The authors differ on the etymological origin of this surname. A. Bongioanni notes that it comes from a Germanic given name of obscure etymology, and expressly warns that it bears no relation to any place name of Greek origin; as a hagiographic point of reference he mentions Saint Ida (Itha) of Toggenburg, venerated on 3 November. For his part, P. Durante proposes a Greek origin, derived from eidos ("image"), a position that stands in direct tension with Bongioanni's warning.

V. Blunda describes it as a Sicilian surname of Germanic root, derived from the personal name Idda, a hypocoristic form linked to the root id ("work, effort, deed") with an affective suffix. Blunda highlights the medieval spread of the name among the European nobility, associated with various saints and queens of the early medieval period, among them Saint Ida of Louvain, mother of Godfrey of Bouillon.