The surname Mercorella, together with its variants Mercorelli, Mercurella and Mercurelli, presents two possible complementary etymological origins.

On the one hand, according to E. Rossoni, these surnames derive from hypocoristic forms of the medieval and Byzantine name Mercurius / Mercuria, linked to the Roman god Mercury and used as personal names in the late period. From this same root come surnames such as Mercuri, Mercurio and Mercuro, which share the same anthroponymic origin and reflect the continuity of these names in the Christian and popular tradition.

On the other hand, Sgaramella proposes an alternative interpretation of a lexical or popular type. The Italian term mercorella designates a traditional medicinal plant, formerly used for its curative properties, or else a dialect word associated with sour or spoiled wine. In this sense, the surname could have arisen as a nickname connected with the rural setting, with practices of traditional medicine, or with symbolic characteristics attributed to a person or an activity.

From these two possible roots various forms developed, such as Mercorella, Mercorelli, Mercurella and Mercurelli, as well as related forms such as Mercuri, Mercurio and Mercuro. Dialect and secondary derived variants are also documented, such as Mercorela, Mercoreli, Mercorello, Mercorellu, Mercurieli, Mercurini and Mercuriniello, which reflect the usual processes of phonetic adaptation, suffixation and regional evolution.