The authors agree that this surname derives from a place name, that is, from the name of some locality called Scala or similar, and that it alludes to the geographical origin of the first bearer. Among the possible places are Scala Coeli in the Cosenza area, Scala in the Salerno area, Scala in the Messina area, Santa Maria della Scala in Naples, and Isola della Scala in the Verona area.

E. Rossoni notes that the surname is typical of Calabria, with a presence in the Catanzaro, Reggio Calabria and Vibo Valentia areas. According to Rossoni, the form La Scala is concentrated in Lamezia Terme —Catanzaro area— and in Mileto —Vibo Valentia area—, with a presence in the Reggio Calabria area; the variant Lascala appears in Mileto and in Bianco, also in the Reggio Calabria area.

F. Miranda broadens the geographical distribution and indicates that the surname extends across several regions, with a notable presence in Sicily and Calabria, and smaller cores in Lombardy, Piedmont, Lazio, Tuscany, Campania and Apulia. In Sicily it appears in every province, with the greatest concentration in the Palermo, Messina, Catania and Enna areas.