The authors agree that this surname is typical of the Catania area, in Sicily, with a marked presence in localities such as Nicolosi, Biancavilla, Adrano and Catania itself. E. Rossoni adds that it is also documented in areas such as Belpasso, Paternò, Aci Sant'Antonio, Ragalna, Santa Maria di Licodia and in the Messina area.

F. Miranda broadens the distribution by noting a presence in other Sicilian provinces: in the Messina area (with localities such as Nizza di Sicilia and Torregrossa), in the Enna area (Catenanuova, Centuripe, Piazza Armerina) and in that of Syracuse. Outside Sicily, he indicates specific or scattered areas in Lazio, Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto and Sardinia.

As for the origin, both authors agree that the surname derives from a nickname based on the Late Latin term mateola, with the meaning "cudgel" or "battle mace", possibly applied to the first bearers of the surname because they were soldiers in the medieval period. Miranda further specifies that Mazzaglia functions as a deverbal of ammazzare.