E. Rossoni describes this surname as extremely rare and of Ligurian origin. A trace of its transformation into a surname appears already in the 13th century: in a deed of sale dated February 1273 in Genoa, Giovanni Garibbo is mentioned as a seller of ropes and rigging for a galley. Rossoni considers it probably native to the province of Imperia, in Liguria, an opinion that coincides with that of P. Regati, who notes that the surname is spread in the Imperia area.

A different perspective proposes an Arabic etymology: it would derive from ghālib, meaning "victor", and places it as a surname spread in Sicily. This hypothesis, of very different origin and geographical distribution from the Ligurian one, finds no support in the other sources consulted.