According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, a son of Heracles.

[3] It has been among the top 100 most popular male baby names in the United States since the late 19th century and has been among the top 100 male baby names between 1998 and 2018 in many countries including Canada, Australia, England, Ireland and Scotland.

[4] Equivalents include Antonio in Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Maltese; Αντώνιος in Greek; António or Antônio in Portuguese; Antoni in Catalan, Polish, and Slovene; Anton in Dutch, Galician, German, Icelandic, Romanian, Russian, and Scandinavian languages; Antoine in French; Antal in Hungarian; and Antun or Ante in Croatian.

In the United States, it was the 43rd most popular male name in 2021, according to the Social Security Administration.

In the 17th century, the letter "h" was inserted into the spelling on the belief that the name derived from the Greek word ἄνθος (anthos), meaning "flower".