The authors agree that this surname derives from a nickname based on the term muto ("mute"), originally applied to people affected by muteness. E. De Felice and F. De Laurentiis note that its diffusion is concentrated in central and southern Italy.

E. Rossoni broadens the explanation by noting that the motivation of the nickname could have been related both to muteness and to characteristics of behaviour of the founder of the line. He further adds the possibility of a derivation from place names containing the root -muto. As for its geographical distribution, Rossoni indicates that the surname Muti is found throughout central Italy, with a presence on the island of Elba, in the Livorno area, in the Naples area and in the Bari area. The variant Muto, by contrast, appears very widely diffused in Calabria —especially in the Cosenza area—, as well as in the Naples area, in Rome and in the Reggio Emilia area.