The English and Irish surname Talbot, of Norman French origin, is derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements tal meaning “destroy” and  bod meaning “message or tidings,” meaning “messenger of destruction.” The name is first recorded in 1086 when Geoffrey Talebot is registered in “The Domesday Book of Essex.” The earliest record of the name in the New World is in 1620 when William Talbot arrived in Virginia from England. Today there are approximately 15,000 bearers of the name Talbot living in the US.