The authors agree that this surname derives from the Germanic personal name Gandolfo, documented from the 8th century especially in the northwest of Italy. It is formed by the elements gand ("staff" or "magic wand", with a connotation of spell, attested in Old Norse) and wulfa ("wolf"), with the original meaning of "magic wolf or sorcerer".

A. Bongioanni notes that this surname shares its origin with Pandolfo, since both derive from Germanic names with the same second element. It is spread throughout Italy, with greater presence in Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna.

V. Blunda provides a complementary perspective from the Germanic juridical tradition: the term wulfa also resonated in the figure of the wargus, a legal designation of the outlaw expelled from the community for serious crimes, considered outside all juridical protection and symbolically assimilated to the wild animal. Blunda highlights the currency of the surname in the regions of the northwest.