E. De Felice notes that the surname was formed from the place name Catanzaro and from its southern gentilic Catanzarita, derived with the suffix of Greek origin -ita (from the Greek -ités). Its epicentre is located in Calabria, with extension towards Sicily.

E. Rossoni agrees that the surname derives from the homonymous place name, but adds an etymological explanation of the name of the city: it comes from the medieval Greek Katantzàrion, formed by the Greek term kàto ("below", "underneath") and the Arabic anzār ("terrace"), with the meaning of "terrace situated in the lower part", in reference to the position of the city at the foot of the plateau of the Sila. Rossoni also broadens the geographical distribution of the surname, which also records presence in Puglia.