The authors differ as to the origin of the surname. E. Rossoni derives it from a nickname based on the Campania regional term caccavo, which designates a large cauldron, possibly in allusion to the use of these vessels in monasteries to distribute food to the poor, which would classify the ancestor as a beggar. Rossoni documents its presence mainly in the Naples, Salerno and Pontecagnano Faiano area, with presence also in Barile (Potenza area), Giovinazzo, Canosa di Puglia (Bari area) and Foggia.

G. Rohlfs proposes instead a Greek-Byzantine origin, linking it with the Greek κάκκαβος, meaning "cauldron" or "large pot of the shepherds". Rohlfs considers it a variant of Càccamo and notes its presence in the province of Catanzaro (Calabria), as well as in areas of Basilicata and Campania. For Rohlfs, this surname reflects the survival of the Greek lexicon in the onomastics of southern Italy.

Both interpretations agree in the semantic field of the large cooking vessel, although they differ in the language of origin: the Campania regional term for Rossoni, as opposed to the Greek-Byzantine substrate for Rohlfs.