E. Rossoni proposes that this surname could derive from nicknames linked to the term lavezzo, which designates a type of pietra ollare (soapstone) —a very soft variety of serpentine with a high content of talc or chlorite— or to the lavezzi, truncated-cone vessels for the fire turned from that same stone. The nickname would probably have been applied to craftsmen specialized in making them, or to the merchants who sold them. Rossoni places the surname mainly in the Milan area and in the area between Vigevano and Pavia, with an additional presence between the Rovigo and Ferrara areas, in localities such as Castelmassa, Occhiobello, Argenta and Ferrara.

F. De Laurentiis considers it a variant of the surname Lavezzo, a related form which Rossoni documents in the Rovigo area —especially in Badia Polesine— with significant presences also in Chioggia and in the area between Milan, Pavia and Alessandria.