Otto is a masculine

German given name Personal names in German-speaking Europe consist of one or several given names (''Vorname'', plural ''Vornamen'') and a surname (''Nachname, Familienname''). The ''Vorname'' is usually gender-specific. A name is usually cited in the "Name order, ...

and a

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

. It originates as an

Old High German Old High German (OHG; ) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally identified as the period from around 500/750 to 1050. Rather than representing a single supra-regional form of German, Old High German encompasses the numerous ...

short form (variants ''

Audo Audo is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Joseph VI Audo (1790–1878), Iraqi Chaldean patriarch * Toma Audo (1854–1918), Iraqi Chaldean archbishop See also * Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It ...

'', ''

Odo Odo is a name typically associated with historical figures from the Middle Ages and before. Odo is etymologically related to the names Otho and Otto, and to the French name Odon and modern version Eudes, and to the Italian names Ottone and Udo; a ...

'', '' Udo'') of

Germanic names Germanic languages, Germanic given names are traditionally wikt:dithematic, dithematic; that is, they are formed from two elements (word stem, stems), by joining a prefix and a suffix. For example, Æthelred the Unready, King Æþelred's name was ...

beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded from the 7th century ( Odo, son of Uro, courtier of

Sigebert III Sigebert III ( 630–656) was the Merovingian dynasty, Merovingian king of Austrasia from 633 to his death around 656. He was described as the first Merovingian ''roi fainéant'', or "do-nothing king", with the mayor of the palace in fact ruling ...

). It was the name of three 10th-century German kings, the first of whom was

Otto I the Great Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Frankish ( German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son of Henry the Fowler and Matilda ...

, the first

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

, founder of the

Ottonian The Ottonian dynasty () was a Saxon dynasty of German monarchs (919–1024), named after three of its kings and Holy Roman emperors, especially Otto the Great. It is also known as the Saxon dynasty after the family's origin in the German stem du ...

dynasty. The Gothic form of the prefix was ''auda-'' (as in e.g. '' Audaþius''), the Anglo-Saxon form was ''ead-'' (as in e.g. '' Eadmund''), and the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

form was '' auð-''. Due to

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (; born ''Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck''; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as ...

, the given name ''Otto'' was strongly associated with the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

in the later 19th century. It was comparatively frequently given in the United States (presumably in

German American German Americans (, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. According to the United States Census Bureau's figures from 2022, German Americans make up roughly 41 million people in the US, which is approximately 12% of the pop ...

families) during the 1880s to 1890s, remaining in the top 100 most popular masculine given names in the US throughout 1880–1898, but its popularity decreased significantly after 1900 with increasing

anti-German sentiment Anti-German sentiment (also known as anti-Germanism, Germanophobia or Teutophobia) is fear or dislike of Germany, its Germans, people, and its Culture of Germany, culture. Its opposite is Germanophile, Germanophilia. Anti-German sentiment main ...

leading up to World War I; it fell below rank 200 in 1919, below rank 500 in 1947, and below rank 1000 in 1975. It re-entered the top-1000 most popular given names in the US in the 2010s, ranking 696th as of 2013.US statistics (behindthename.com)
The given name Otis arose from an English surname, which was in turn derived from ''Ode'', a variant form of ''Odo, Otto''.

People

Medieval period

Otto (mayor of the palace) Otto (died 643 or 644) was the mayor of the palace of Austrasia briefly in the mid-seventh century. Otto was the son of a '' domesticus'' named Uro who served in the court of Dagobert I. Otto was raised with Dagobert's son Sigebert III and subseq ...

(died 643 or 644), mayor of the palace of

Austrasia Austrasia was the northeastern kingdom within the core of the Francia, Frankish Empire during the Early Middle Ages, centring on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers. It included the original Frankish-ruled territories within what had ...

briefly in the mid-7th century *

Otto I, Duke of Saxony Otto ( – 30 November 912), called the Illustrious () by later authors, was a notable member of the Ottonian dynasty and Duke of Saxony from 880 until his death in 912. He played an important role in early medieval history of Germany during the ...

(851–912) *

Otto the Great Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Frankish ( German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son of Henry the Fowler and Matilda ...

(912–973), East Frankish king and Holy Roman Emperor *

Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. Otto II was ...

(955–983) *

Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was the Holy Roman emperor and King of Italy from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was cro ...

(980–1002) *

Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV (1175 – 19 May 1218) was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1209 until his death in 1218. Otto spent most of his early life in England and France. He was a follower of his uncle Richard the Lionheart, who made him Count of Poitou in 1196 ...

(1175/1176–1218) *

Otto, Count of Cleves Otto (1278 – October 29, 1310) was Count of Cleves from 1305 through 1310. Otto was the eldest son of Dietrich VII, Count of Cleves (1256–1305) and his first wife Margaret of Guelders. His first marriage was to Adelheid van der Marck, dau ...

(1278–1310) *

Otto, Count of Lippe-Brake Otto, Count of Lippe-Brake (21 December 1589 – 18 November 1657 in Blomberg) was the first ruling Count of Lippe-Brake. Life Otto was born on 21 December 1589 as the son of Count Simon VI and his wife, Countess Elisabeth of Holstein-S ...

(1589–1657) *

Otto, Duke of Lolland and Estonia Otto of Denmark (c. 1310 – after 1346) () was a Danish prince who was also Duke of Lolland and Estonia. He was the second son of King Christopher II of Denmark and Euphemia of Pomerania. In his childhood his older brother Eric had been el ...

(1310–1346) * Otto, Count of Looz (fl. 980-1000) *

Otto, Count of Vermandois Otto (or Eudes) of Vermandois (29 August 979 – 25 May 1045), Count of Vermandois, was the son of Herbert III, Count of Vermandois and Ermengarde of Bar-sur-Seine Bar-sur-Seine (, literally ''Bar on Seine'') is a Communes of France, comm ...

(979–1045) * Otto, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (1594–1617) *

Otto, Lord of Arkel Otto, Lord of Arkel ( – 26 March or 1 April 1396Marinus Jacobus Waale (1990), ''De Arkelse oorlog,1401-1412: een politieke, krijgskundige en economische analyse'', Uitgeverij Verloren, Hilversum, 1990, p. 46-47Online/ref>) was Lord of Arkel from ...

(1330–1396) *

Otto, Lord of Lippe Otto, Lord of Lippe ( – ) was the ruling Count of Lippe-Lemgo from 1344 until his death. Life He was the son of Simon I and his wife, Adelaide of Waldeck. When his father died in 1344, Lippe was divided; Otto ruled the area around Lemg ...

(1300–1360) *

Otto, Margrave of the Nordmark Otto (–26 June 1057) was an illegitimate son of Bernard, Margrave of the Nordmark, and a Slav mistress whose name is unknown. He was exiled to Bohemia during his youth. Following the death of his half-brother William on 10 September 1056, Otto ...

(died 1057) *

Otto of Bamberg Otto of Bamberg (1060 or 1061 – 30 June 1139) was a German missionary and papal legate who converted much of medieval Pomerania to Christianity. He was the bishop of Bamberg from 1102 until his death. He was canonized in 1189. Early life Thr ...

(1060/1061–1139), bishop and Catholic saint *

Otto of Freising Otto of Freising (; – 22 September 1158) was a German churchman of the Cistercian order and chronicled at least two texts which carry valuable information on the political history of his own time. He was the bishop of Freising from 1138. Ot ...

(c. 1114–1158), bishop and chronicler

Modern era

Otto of Greece Otto (; ; 1 June 1815 – 26 July 1867) was King of Greece from the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed in October 1862. The second son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Ott ...

(1815–1867), King of Greece *

Otto, King of Bavaria Otto (; 27 April 1848 – 11 October 1916) was King of Bavaria from 1886 until 1913. However, he never actively ruled because of alleged severe mental illness. His uncle, Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria, Luitpold, and his cousin, Ludwig III ...

(1848–1916), King of Bavaria * Otto Adler (1929–2014), president of the Jewish Association of Romania * Otto T. Bannard (1854–1929), American attorney, businessman and philanthropist *

Otto Barić Otto Barić (; 19 June 1933 – 13 December 2020) was an Austrian-Croatian professional football player and manager. Coaching career 1970s to 1980s Born in Eisenkappel, near Klagenfurt, Barić started his coaching career in 1969 at West Germa ...

(1933–2020), Croatian footballer and manager *

Otto Brandenburg Otto Herman Max Brandenburg (4 September 1934 – 1 March 2007) was a Danish musician, singer and actor. He is often credited as Denmark's first Rock and roll singer and was considered a teen idol in the 1950s and 60s. Brandenburg released musi ...

(1934–2007), Danish musician, singer and actor *

Otto Carius Otto Carius (27 May 1922 – 24 January 2015) was a German tank commander in the German Army (Wehrmacht), Wehrmacht during World War II. He fought on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front in 1943 and 1944 and on the Western Front (World ...

(1922–2015), German tank ace and pharmacist *

Otto Diels Otto Paul Hermann Diels (; 23 January 1876 – 7 March 1954) was a German chemist. His most notable work was done with Kurt Alder on the Diels–Alder reaction, a method for cyclohexene synthesis. The pair was awarded the Nobel Prize in C ...

(1876–1954), German chemist *

Otto Dix Wilhelm Heinrich Otto Dix (; 2 December 1891 – 25 July 1969) was a German painter and Printmaking, printmaker, noted for his ruthless and harshly realistic depictions of German society during the Weimar Republic and the brutality of war. Alon ...

(1891–1969), German painter and printmaker * Otto Dowling (1881–1946), governor of American Samoa *

Otto Eloluoto Otto Eloluoto (born 10 March 2008) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Veikkausliiga club Inter Turku and the Finland U17 national team. Club career Eloluoto played in the youth sector of Turun Palloseura, befo ...

(born 2008), Finnish footballer *

Otto Farrant Otto Farrant (born 13 November 1996) is an English actor. He is best known for his portrayal of the titular character in Amazon Prime's spy thriller series ''Alex Rider'' (2020–2024). He previously had supporting television roles in '' The Whi ...

, British actor *

Otto Fischer (footballer) Otto "Schloime" Fischer (1 January 1901 – 1 July 1941) was an Austrians, Austrian association football, football player and coach. He played as left winger. He made 7 appearances for the Austria national football team. He was killed in the Lie ...

(1901–1941), Austrian football player and coach *

Otto Floto Otto Clement Floto (1863 – July 14, 1929) was an American sports journalist and sports promoter who worked as a sportswriter for ''The Denver Post''. Floto was the namesake for the Sells Floto Circus, which Floto promoted. Early life Otto C ...

(1863–1929), American sports journalist *

Otto Förschner Otto Förschner (4 November 1902 – 28 May 1946) was a German ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) officer and a Nazi concentration camp commander. After serving with the ''Waffen-SS'' on the Eastern Front, Förschner worked as a senior official at the Buch ...

(1902–1946), German Nazi SS concentration camp commandant *

Otto Frank Otto Heinrich Frank (12 May 1889 – 19 August 1980) was a German businessman, and the father of Anne Frank. He edited and published the first edition of her diary in 1947 (subsequently known in English as ''The Diary of a Young Girl'') and adv ...

(1889–1980), German-born Swiss businessman, father of Anne Frank *

Otto Freundlich Otto Freundlich (10 July 1878 – 9 March 1943) was a German painter and sculptor of Jewish origin. A part of the first generation of abstract painters in Western art, Freundlich was a great admirer of cubism. He was murdered at Majdanek con ...

(1878–1943), German painter and sculptor *

Otto Graham Otto Everett Graham Jr. (December 6, 1921 – December 17, 2003) was an American professional American football, football quarterback who played for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League ...

(1921–2003), professional American football and basketball player *

Otto Graf Lambsdorff Otto Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von der Wenge Graf Lambsdorff, known as Otto Graf Lambsdorff (20 December 1926 – 5 December 2009), was a German politician of the Free Democratic Party (FDP). He was the German Federal Minister of Econom ...

(1926–2009), German politician *

Otto Grotewohl Otto Emil Franz Grotewohl (; 11 March 1894 – 21 September 1964) was a German politician who served as the first prime minister of the German Democratic Republic (GDR/East Germany) from its founding in October 1949 until his death in Septembe ...

(1894–1964), East German politician *

Otto Gutekunst Otto Charles Henry Gutekunst (1866 – 17 February 1947) was a British art dealer and collector, and a co-owner of P. & D. Colnaghi & Co. from 1894. Early life He was born in Stuttgart, Germany, the eldest son of Heinrich Gottlob Gutekunst, a ...

(1866–1947), British art dealer *

Otto Hahn Otto Hahn (; 8 March 1879 – 28 July 1968) was a German chemist who was a pioneer in the field of radiochemistry. He is referred to as the father of nuclear chemistry and discoverer of nuclear fission, the science behind nuclear reactors and ...

(1879–1968), German chemist *

Otto Hautamo Otto Hautamo (born 7 March 2002) is a Finnish professional association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Club career After playing with Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi, HJK organisation and with Mikkeli ...

(born 2002), Finnish footballer *

Otto Herschmann Dr. Otto Herschmann (4 January 1877 – 17 June 1942) was an Austrian Jewish swimmer, fencer, lawyer, and sports official. He is one of only a few athletes who have won Olympic medals in multiple sports, having received a silver medal in swi ...

(1877–1942), Austrian fencer and swimmer * Otto Hindrich (born 2002), Romanian footballer * Otto Kemppainen (born 2003), Finnish footballer *

Otto Klemperer Otto Nossan Klemperer (; 14 May 18856 July 1973) was a German conductor and composer, originally based in Germany, and then the United States, Hungary and finally, Great Britain. He began his career as an opera conductor, but he was later bet ...

(1885–1973), German-born conductor and composer *

Otto Knows Otto Jettman (born 6 May 1989), better known by his stage name Otto Knows is a Swedish DJ, producer and remixer who has had a number of hits in Sweden, Belgium and the Netherlands and has collaborated with artists including Britney Spears, Avic ...

(born 1989), Swedish DJ * Otto Koivula (born 1998), Finnish ice hockey player *

Ottó Komoly Ottó Komoly (also known as Nathan Zeev Kohn) (26 March 1892 – 1 January 1945) was a Hungary, Hungarian Jewish engineer, officer, Zionist, and humanitarian leader in Hungary. He is credited with saving thousands of Jewish children during the ...

(1892–1945) Hungarian humanitarian, engineer, officer and Zionist *

Otto Kraushaar Otto Frederick Krausharr (November 19, 1901 – September 23, 1989) was an American professor of philosophy who served as the 6th president of Goucher College. Kraushaar was also a professor at Smith College for 15 years. Early life and educatio ...

(1901–1989), American academic *

Otto Kretschmer Otto Kretschmer (1 May 1912 – 5 August 1998) was a German naval officer and submariner in World War II and the Cold War. From September 1939 until his capture in March 1941 he sank 44 ships, including one warship, a total of 274,333 tons. For t ...

(1912–1998), German World War II U-boat captain * Otto Lehtisalo (born 2004), Finnish footballer * Otto Lietchen (1887–1977), American politician * Otto Lilienthal (1848–1896), German aviator * Otto Ludvig Beckman (1856–1909), Swedish major general * Otto Lybeck (1871–1947), Swedish Navy admiral * Otto Mahler (1873–1895), Bohemian-Austrian composer, brother of Gustav Mahler * Otto Mears (1840–1931), Russian-American road and railway builder * Otto Moll (1915–1946), German SS-Hauptscharführer at Auschwitz concentration camp * Otto Ohlendorf (1907–1951), German SS general and Holocaust perpetrator * Otto (singer), Otto Maximiliano Pereira de Cordeiro Ferreira (born 1968), Brazilian singer-songwriter, drummer and TV presenter * Otto & George, Otto Peterson (1960–2014), American comedian * Otto Petrén (1912–1990), Swedish jurist * Otto Porter (born 1993), American basketball player * Otto Planetta (1899–1934), Austrian Nazi Waffen-SS who murdered Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss * Otto Plath (1885–1940), entomologist, father of American poet Sylvia Plath * Otto Pohla (1899–1941), Estonian wrestler * Otto Preminger (1905–1986), Austro–Hungarian-born American film director * Otto Rehhagel (born 1938), German football coach * Otto Ruoppi (born 2006), Finnish footballer * Otto Sigfrid Reuter (1876–1945), German ''völkisch''-religious ideologue * Otto Salmensuu (born 2004), Finnish footballer * Otto Sauter-Sarto (1884–1958), German actor * Otto Scheff (1889–1956), Austrian swimmer * Otto Schily (born 1932), German politician * Otto Schmitt (field hockey) (born 1965), Argentine field hockey player * Otto Skorzeny (1908–1975), Austrian-born Waffen-SS commando * Otto Sohn-Rethel (1877–1949), German painter and lepidopterist * Otto Soglow (1900–1975), American cartoonist * Otto Strandman (1875–1941), Estonian politician, Prime Minister in 1919, head of state 1929–1931 * Otto Tief (1889–1976), Estonian politician, military commander, lawyer, Prime Minister * Otto Toeplitz (1881–1940), German mathematician, specialized in functional analysis * Otto van Verschuer (1927–2014), Dutch politician * Otto Christian Archibald von Bismarck (1897–1975), German politician and diplomat *

(1815–1898), Prussian/German statesman * Otto von Habsburg (1912–2011), head of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine from 1922 to 2007 * Otto Waalkes (born 1948), German comedian and actor * Otto Wagner (1841–1918), Austrian architect * Otto Wahle (1879–1963), American swimmer * Otto F. Walter (1928–1994), Swiss journalist, author and publisher * Otto Warmbier (1994–2017), American student imprisoned in North Korea * Otto Weininger (1880–1903), Austrian philosopher * Otto Wichterle (1913–1998), Czech chemist, inventor soft contact lenses * Otto S. Wolfbeis (1947–2023), German chemist

Fictional characters

* Otto Anderson, protagonist of the 2022 film ''A Man Called Otto'', played by Tom Hanks * List of Sons of Anarchy characters#Otto Delaney, Otto Delaney, in the television series ''Sons of Anarchy'' * Herr Otto Flick, in the BBC sitcom '''Allo 'Allo!'' * Otto Hightower, in the television series House of the Dragon * Otto Maddox, the main character in the 1984 film ''Repo Man (film), Repo Man'' * Otto Malpense, the main character in the ''H.I.V.E.'' series by Mark Walden * Otto Mann, in the animated television series ''The Simpsons'' * Otto Octavius, Marvel Comics supervillain Doctor Octopus * Fear the Walking Dead#CITEREFFaherty2016, Jake, Jeremiah, and Troy Otto, in the television series ''Fear the Walking Dead'' * Oswald "Otto" Rocket, the main character of Nickelodeon's ''Rocket Power'' * Otto Osworth, the main character of Cartoon Network's ''Time Squad'' * Otto Suwen, in the anime/manga series ''Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World'' * Otto, the inflatable "auto" pilot in the 1980 comedy film ''Airplane!'' * Otto West, the main antagonist in the 1988 heist comedy ''A Fish Called Wanda'' * Otto, one of the main Minions (Despicable Me), Minions in the 2022 animated comedy film ''Minions: The Rise of Gru'' * Ottoriki, one of the main characters in American animated children's television series Kikoriki, GoGoRiki * Otto, the friend of Lab Rat in ''SuperKitties'' * Otto, in the children's television series ''Odd Squad'' * Otto, one of the five robot monkeys in the series ''Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!'' * Otto, in the 2024 film ''The Garfield Movie''

References

External links

AUDName List: Auð-
(nordicnames.de) {{Given name Danish masculine given names Dutch masculine given names English masculine given names Estonian masculine given names Finnish masculine given names German masculine given names Icelandic masculine given names Masculine given names Norwegian masculine given names Swedish masculine given names