E. Rossoni notes that this surname is typically Lombard, with a presence concentrated in the Brescia area, in localities such as Palazzolo sull'Oglio, Chiari, Ghedi, Cazzago San Martino, Visano and Coccaglio. It derives from the medieval name Maifredus, attested in the Codice Diplomatico of Brescia in 1175. The earliest traces of its fixing as a surname are found between the Bergamo and Brescia areas in the second half of the 13th century, with the notary of Curno Albertino Maifredi, and continue in the first half of the 15th century with the notary Giovanni Maifredi.

V. Blunda, by contrast, considers it a Sicilian surname of Germanic root, derived from the compound Magan Frithu, with the meaning "peace of the mighty" or "truce of the strong", formed by magan (strength, power) and frithu (peace, truce). This Germanic root appears also in other European anthroponyms preserved to this day, such as Federico, Sigfrido, Manfredo or Fernando. The divergence between the two authors suggests that the surname has independent origins in different regions of Italy.