E. Rossoni notes that this surname is very scarce and could be of Calabrian origin, deriving from the place name Carfidi, which gave rise to present-day Carfizzi, in the Crotone area. He also proposes several etymological hypotheses: it could derive from the Norman English carf ("wood carver"), from the Greek karfì ("nail"), or from the place name generated from the surname itself in the area of the ancient Magna Graecia. Rossoni also distinguishes the variant Carfì, which he considers characteristic of the Ragusa area, in Sicily.

V. Blunda focuses on the Greek etymology and specifies that the surname comes from the Greek carfìon, "nail", a term that designates the metal piece used in carpentry and forging. According to Blunda, the surname functioned originally as a nickname applied to the ancestor for his trade linked to the making of nails, and over time became a surname along the family line within the onomastics of southern Italy.