E. Rossoni and G. Rohlfs agree that this surname derives from Greek words connected with the concept of wisdom: Rossoni mentions both sophia ("wisdom, knowledge") and sophos ("wise"), while Rohlfs focuses on sophos ("wise, learned") and specifies that the surname is of Greek-Byzantine origin, a reflection of the Byzantine presence in southern Italy. Both authors link it to nicknames that would have characterised the founding ancestor of the lineage.

Geographically, Rossoni notes that Sofi is typical of the Reggio Calabria area, with a presence in Villa San Giovanni and Taurianova. Rohlfs, for his part, places it in Reggio Calabria and the provinces of Cosenza and Reggio Calabria, and adds that it is also typical of Sicily. The variants of the surname show different distributions: according to Rossoni, Sofia appears on both shores of the Strait of Messina —both in the Reggio Calabria area and in the Messina area— and also extends to the Basilicata region in the Potenza area (in Senise and Episcopia), to the Naples area, the Salerno area, Ostuni in the Brindisi area, the Bari area, Rome and Fara in Sabina in the Rieti area.

Rossoni adds that Sofio is specific to Bagnara Calabra, in the Reggio Calabria area, and that Sofo, besides an area near Genoa, has a presence in Sant'Eufemia d'Aspromonte, also in the Reggio Calabria area.