The authors agree that this surname derives from the Late Latin branca, a term that designates "claw" or "clawed paw", and which is preserved in numerous Romance languages with the same sense.

F. Miranda notes that the surname could also have originated in the medieval name Branca or Branco, or in place names such as Branca, in the Perugia area, and Branco, in the Udine area. He also does not rule out a possible link with the adjective "white" in the sense of "resplendent".

V. Blunda, focused on Sicilian usage, presents it as a surname of dialectal origin derived from the word brànca, meaning "paw, arm, limb". He considers that its transformation into a surname would have responded to a nickname applied to a person notable for the strength or size of their limbs, a frequent motivation in Sicilian surnames descriptive of the body.

According to Miranda, the surname is present throughout Italy, with specific areas of greater concentration in Lombardy, Sardinia, Calabria, Puglia, Piedmont, Campania and Lazio. In Sicily it appears in several provinces, especially in the Messina, Catania, Syracuse and Caltanissetta areas.