The authors agree that this surname, together with its variants Punzo, Punzio and Punzone, probably derives from the medieval name Punzo or Punzonis, documented in a Milanese charter of the year 1118. Both also note the possibility that it comes from variants of the medieval name Ponzio, in turn derived from the ancient Latin nomen Pontius.

E. Rossoni adds that another hypothesis would link it to the Spanish lineage of the Ponce, and that the cult of Saint Pontius could have favoured the diffusion of the base name. F. Miranda goes deeper into the origin of Pontius, noting possible Etruscan roots or a derivation from the Oscan Pùntiis or Pompties, related to the Oscan Pompe —the equivalent of the Greek penta, "five"—, which would indicate the name given to the fifth child. Miranda further mentions that some scholars link Ponzio with the Greek póntos (ποντος), "river."

Geographically, the authors agree that the surname has its main nucleus in Apulia, between the Taranto and Brindisi areas, with a presence also in the region of Campania —especially in the Naples area— and in Sicily, in the Palermo and Catania areas. Rossoni adds that the surname also appears in the Salerno area, while Miranda notes its diffusion in Lombardy, Lazio, Liguria, Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna.