E. Rossoni notes that Capria has presence in the Vibo Valentia area and in the Reggio Calabria area, with records also in the Messina area. He also indicates that La Capria seems to be native to the Foggia area, specifically the Apricena area. According to Rossoni, all these surnames would derive from the Latin name Caprius, Capria, documented in a sermon of Horace, although he does not rule out that in some cases they may come from the Arabic name Qabri.

V. Blunda proposes a different etymology circumscribed to Sicily: the surname would come from the dialectal word capria, meaning "capstan" or "winch", that is, a simple machine used to lift heavy loads in construction, ports and mining. Blunda warns that the popular interpretation that associates the surname with the Italian capra ("goat") is a false etymology. As a surname, it could have originated in the trade of the operator or maker of these mechanisms, present especially in the sulphur mines of the centre of the island.

Both authors agree that the surname has presence in southern Italy, although they differ in their explanations about the origin: Rossoni points to a Latin or Arabic etymon with distribution in Calabria, Lazio, Campania, Puglia and Basilicata, while Blunda develops an occupational etymology of dialectal base peculiar to Sicily.