E. Rossoni considers that this surname, fairly rare, probably comes from the Taranto area and derives from the aphaeresis of the name Filippo. Rossoni documents the form Lippo in Solofra, in the province of Avellino, where in the 15th century a certain Ser Lippo De Guarino is cited in a notarial deed.

V. Blunda proposes, by contrast, a Sicilian and dialect origin. According to Blunda, the surname comes from the word lìppo, which designates the slime, silt or viscous dirt that settles at the bottom of vessels and watercourses. As a surname it would have arisen from a disparaging nickname applied to a person of unkempt appearance or of a clinging and tiresome manner.

Both hypotheses point to different regions of southern Italy (Puglia and Sicily) and propose different etyma —one onomastic and the other a dialect appellative—, which suggests that the surname could have independent origins in different areas.