E. Rossoni and B. Zuanella agree that the surname derives from the term Patriarca, the ecclesiastical title of the bishop of Aquileia, and designated originally those who worked or administered the properties of the Patriarchate.

Rossoni also mentions an alternative hypothesis, considered less probable: a derivation from the place name Podresca di Prepotto (Udine area) through dialectal modifications.

Zuanella explicitly rules out a Slovenian origin. He notes that the surname seems Slovak and derivable from the preposition pod ("under") combined with the place name Dréka or with the noun réka ("river"), with the meaning of "one who lives under the village of Drenchia" or "one who dwells under or near a river." Both interpretations, he clarifies, are mistaken: the surname is not of Slovenian but of Friulian/Italian origin.

The correct explanation, proposed by Prof. Fran Ramovš, establishes a clear connection between the modern and old forms of the place names: Podrecca/Podréka derives from the name Patriarca through the reductive processes typical of the Slovenian language. This name was given originally to people who administered or worked the properties of the Patriarch of Aquileia, scattered across the whole territory of the Patriarchate, not only in Friuli but also in central Slovenia.

Zuanella documents the surname in the mid-16th century in Cravero and at the beginning of the 17th century in the San Pietro al Natisone area. He also notes that the corresponding Friulian surname Patriarca is today diffused above all in the Tricesimo-Tarcento area.