Piromalli is typical of the Reggio Calabria area, in particular of Gioia Tauro, Cittanova and Rosarno. Piromallo, absolutely rare, has a small area in the Naples area and another in the Cosenza area. They would derive from a nickname based on the Greek term for 'red of hair, of fiery locks', alluding to that physical characteristic of the founding ancestor.

According to G. Rohlfs it is a surname of Greek-Byzantine origin, present in Cosenza and Reggio Calabria (the cities) and in their provinces (Jòppolo, Riace, Siderno, the Gioia Tauro area); also Neapolitan and Sicilian. From the Greek Pyromallis, 'the one with red hair' (from pyr 'fire' and mallì 'hair'). It reflects the Byzantine presence in southern Italy.