E. De Stefani places this surname in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, with a greater density in Trieste, and documents it in that region from at least the end of the 13th century, with an attested presence in Gemona and, from the mid-16th century, in Maiaso —a frazione of Enemonzo—, a locality of the Carnia, a mountainous zone of northern Friuli. It is a toponymic surname derived from the place name Verzegnis by means of the Friulian suffix -as, typical of surnames formed from place names and demonyms: Verzegnàs means "originating from Verzegnis", in the same way that preonàs designates the inhabitant of Preone or glemonàs the one of Gemona (Glemòne in Friulian). In the local dialect of Enemonzo, the place name Verzegnis is pronounced Verzègnas or Vergègnas.

According to De Stefani, the place name Verzegnis would go back to the Latin personal name Verginia or Virginia, through the plural Virginee, attested around the year 1000, and over time it became a surname. The alternative spelling Versegnassi is also recorded in the Perteole area, a frazione of Ruda, in the province of Udine.

E. Rossoni agrees on the toponymic origin from Verzegnis, a locality near Tolmezzo in the province of Udine, whose demonym in Friulian dialect would have given rise to the surname. Rossoni adds that the surname would seem to originate from Cervignano del Friuli.