E. De Felice notes that the fundamental form Battezzato is sporadic in peninsular Italy, while in Sicily —especially in the Catania area— it is very frequent under the variants Battiato and Vattiato, forms peculiar to Sicilian. All derive from the nickname or name battezzato / battiàtu / vattiàtu, meaning "the one who has received baptism; Christian", the semantic equivalent of the name Cristiano.

S. Vannozzi adds that the surname originates in the given names Battista and Battezzato, sustained by the hagiographic tradition since the Christian Middle Ages. Its etymology goes back to the Greek baptismós and the Latin baptisma / baptismatis, meaning "to immerse in water". Vannozzi also documents the presence of the surname in Cercemaggiore, in the Molise region, from the end of the 18th century.