The authors differ as to the origin of this surname. E. Rossoni places it geographically in Rome and its surroundings, in Sgurgola —Frosinone area— and in Cori —Latina area—, and proposes two hypotheses of appellative base: that it derives from a nickname linked to the term caratello (a small wooden container for transporting quality wines or liquors), alluding perhaps to a quality of the founder of the lineage, or that it is a diminutive form of nicknames related to the word caratto.

V. Blunda, on the other hand, proposes a Greek origin from the personal name Caràtes, preserved in the Byzantine tradition of southern Italy. According to Blunda, the surname, of Sicilian presence, would fix the Italianised spelling of that name with the addition of an Italian diminutive suffix.

Both proposals are incompatible with each other: Rossoni points to a Latin appellative origin in central Italy, while Blunda maintains a transmission of a Greek proper name of Byzantine root in the south. The divergence reflects possible independent clusters of origin in different regions of Italy.