E. Rossoni notes that the surname would derive from a dialectal nickname linked to the trade of rope-maker, although he also considers possible a relation with the cultivation of hemp. His analysis places the origin in the region of Campania, in the Naples area.

V. Blunda studies it as a surname of Sicilian origin and derives it from the dialectal word cannavàru, with two documented meanings: "seller of ropes" and "cellarman or steward". This double function would reflect the habitual diversification of small trade in pre-modern Sicilian cities, where a single establishment could deal with several categories of basic products. The word is related in turn to cànnavu, "hemp", raw material of ropes, which connects the surname with the textile lexicon of hemp in Sicily.

Both authors agree, then, on the link with hemp as a lexical base, although they differ in the area of origin —Campania according to Rossoni, Sicily according to Blunda— and in the profile of the original bearer: rope-maker or cultivator in one case, merchant with multiple functions in the other.