E. Rossoni proposes two hypotheses for this surname: it could derive from a nickname related to the sweet flag (calamo aromatico), a root with a strong smell of cinnamon, or from the Greek place name Kalamos, a locality situated about 45 km from Athens. Rossoni notes it as typical of the Brindisi area, especially of Ostuni.

G. Rohlfs interprets it as a surname of Greek-Byzantine origin, derived from the Greek kàlamos ("reed"). Its presence is recorded in the Brindisi area —particularly in Ostuni— and in the Lecce area, in localities such as Lecce and San Cesario. Rohlfs highlights that this surname reflects the survival of the Greek lexicon in the Grecìa Salentina, that is, the southernmost zone of the Puglia region, in southern Italy, where elements of the Greek language were historically preserved.