Goose bumps are created when tiny muscles at the base of each hair, known as arrectores pilorum, contract and pull the hair erect. The reflex is started by the sympathetic nervous system, which is in general responsible for many fight-or-flight responses.

Goose bumps are often a response to cold: in animals covered with fur or hair, the erect hairs trap air to create a layer of insulation. Goose bumps can also be a response to anger or fear: the erect hairs make the animal appear larger, in order to intimidate enemies.

I couldn’t find where it orginiated from.

–noun a rough condition of the skin, resembling that of a plucked goose, induced by cold or fear; horripilation.

Also, gooseflesh.

Also called goose pimples, goose bumps, goose skin.

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[Origin: 1375–1425; late ME]