The Otto surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 22,558 people carried this name — #1,587 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,100 people counted. That is up 3% from 22,001 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Otto surname
Otto: a surname originating as a patronymic.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Otto» (German), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Poland’s population register
1,758 people named Otto have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 2,087 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in all 16 of Poland’s voivodeships, most of all in Greater Poland.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 1,010 people named Otto live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Misiones.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 515 people named Otto.
92 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 39 départements, most often Alpes-Maritimes.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
422 people named Otto live in Switzerland.
They live in 20 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 174 people named Otto live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Antwerp.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
219 people named Otto are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Otto in American newspapers,
1865–1918.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,378,600 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Otto,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Francis Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg 1530–1559 -
John Conrad Otto 1774–1844 · physician -
Ernst Julius Otto 1804–1877 · composer -
Carl Friedrich Eduard Otto 1812–1885 · zoologist -
Louise Otto-Peters 1819–1895 · writer
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 142 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Otto.
- Otte 4,387 · U.S. census
- Otten 4,396 · U.S. census
- Otter 1,331 · U.S. census
- Ottinger 3,112 · U.S. census
- Ottino 248 · U.S. census
- Ottmann 166 · U.S. census
- Ou 4,196 · U.S. census
- Oudin 126 · U.S. census
- Ouk 1,424 · U.S. census
- Ours 1,585 · U.S. census
- Oury 249 · U.S. census
- Outhier 151 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Otto is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.