E. Rossoni notes that this is a typically Calabrian surname, located at Palmi —in the province of Reggio Calabria— and at Catanzaro. According to Rossoni, it would derive from a nickname of Greek-Calabrian origin, melissares, linked to the trade of beekeeper practised by the ancestors who gave rise to the surname.

G. Rohlfs agrees on the Greek origin and on the presence in Catanzaro and Reggio Calabria, but broadens the geographical distribution to localities such as Briàtico, Palmi, Seminara and the Aspromonte area, and extends the area of use also to Naples and Sicily. Rohlfs specifies the etymon: the Greek Melissaris, with the meaning "beekeeper", derived from melissi, "bee". The author further refers to the word Melissi as a related entry.