The authors agree that this surname derives from the term pergŭla, which designates a pergola, gallery or projecting and elevated place. F. Miranda specifies that the word comes from the Latin pergŭla, in turn derived from the verb pergěre ("to extend"), and notes that the surname very probably alludes to a nickname of the first bearer. Miranda adds that it may also derive from various place names containing that term: the comune of Pergola in the province of Pesaro and Urbino, Monte Pergola near San Marco in the Salerno area, and a contrada Monte Pergola near Augusta in the Syracuse area.

E. De Felice highlights that the surname likewise derives from the demonym Pergolese, and in Sicily from the form Pergolizzi. He further notes that the variant Della Pergola is frequently the surname of Jewish families originating from the region of the Marche. E. Rossoni reinforces the toponymic origin by indicating that the term pérgola is very frequent throughout Italy as the name of districts and localities.

As to geographic distribution, Miranda indicates that the surname is present in around 190 municipalities of several regions, with a main nucleus in Basilicata and consistent nuclei in Sicily, Lombardy, Tuscany, Piedmont, Apulia, Campania and Lazio. In Sicily, the areas of greatest presence are the Catania area and the Enna area. Rossoni adds a presence in Lucca, Rome, Naples and the Salerno area, and Nardò, in the Lecce area.