F. Miranda and V. Blunda agree that this is a surname of Sicilian and dialectal origin, derived from the word spezzi or spiezzi, which designates spices or aromas, and that its transformation into a surname came about from a nickname applied to the first bearer linked to the trade in these goods.

Blunda specifies that the dialectal plural spèzzi designated the set of exotic condiments sold in the Sicilian apothecaries, which reinforces the professional or commercial origin of the nickname. Miranda, for his part, adds that in the Sicilian vocabulary compiled by Piccitto and Tropea the term refers specifically to black pepper (nìuru) in grains, and that in a figurative sense spezzi also characterises a particularly lively and spirited person, so that the nickname could have had both an occupational dimension and a connotation of character.

As for its geographical distribution, Miranda notes that the surname, besides being present in Sicily —where it is documented in areas of Catania, Enna and Syracuse—, has small areas of presence also in the regions of Lazio, Umbria, Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna.