The surname Contardo / Contardi and its variants have an anthroponymic origin of Germanic root, linked to personal names spread in Italy during the Middle Ages.

According to A. Bongioanni, it derives from a Germanic name documented in forms such as Gunthart or Gunther, composed of gunt ("battle") and hart ("strong, resistant"), meaning "strong in battle". This type of name was characteristic of the Lombard tradition and reflected warlike values. Its diffusion in Italy was reinforced by figures such as Saint Contardo of Este (13th century), which favoured its consolidation as a name and then as a surname.

From this base a wide family of regional variants developed: Contardi and Contardo are frequent in Friuli; Contarini is associated with the Venetian sphere; while forms such as Cantarini or Cantarutti reflect dialectal adaptations, especially in Friulian areas where phenomena such as the "impure s" are observed (for example, Scúntaro, Scúntero).

For his part, V. Blunda confirms this Germanic origin, linking it to the compound Gundh-Hardhu, with the same meaning of "brave or strong in combat". He also highlights that these names, in Lombard anthroponymy, placed the emphasis on the warlike context as the space where valour was manifested. As a surname, its diffusion extended from zones of Lombard influence in the north towards the centre and south of Italy, reaching also Sicily during the medieval repopulation processes.

As a whole, both interpretations agree in noting a Germanic origin linked to the military world and to social prestige, with an evolution that gave rise to numerous regional variants within the Italian onomastic system.