E. Rossoni notes that this surname derives from the given name Noè, in turn coming from the Hebrew Noah, with the meaning "consolation", a name that was anciently attributed to children so that they would be favoured by the Lord. According to Rossoni, the surname shows an important cluster in the centre-west of Lombardy, besides specific areas in the province of Turin, in the Venice area, in the Rome area and in the Cosenza area, with lesser presences in other parts of the Italian peninsula and in Sicily.

A. Bongioanni agrees on the Hebrew origin of the name, although he links it to the meaning "rest". He notes that as a surname it is infrequent and places it mainly in Piedmont and Lombardy. Bongioanni adds an alternative hypothesis: he does not rule out that in some cases it may be a variant of the French Noël, the equivalent of the Italian Natale.