Given name & surname
Lotta
“a small, strong woman”
Lotta is a variant of Lottie. In French use, Lottie carries the interpretation “a small, strong woman.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Lotta is a variant of Lottie. In French use, Lottie carries the interpretation “a small, strong woman.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Lotta connects to the Charlotte name family through Lottie. Charlotte belongs to English and French naming traditions and was formed as a feminine diminutive of Charles.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English usage, Lotta is a diminutive of Charlotta. Lotta connects to the Charlotte name family through Lottie. The shared background comes through Charlotte: Charlotte was formed from Charles using a feminine diminutive ending. Charlotte’s connection to the Charles family also links it to the older Germanic root behind that name.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Lotta is a variant of Lottie. The history of Lottie gives this family its wider story. Lottie was in use during the 19th century.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Lotta through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 499
- 0 boys · 499 girls
- Most popular year
- 1883
- 25 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 2016. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 25 in 1883. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 196 as a first name in 2020; 155 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Lotta’s family of names
In English usage, Lotta is a diminutive of Charlotta. In Finnish usage, Lotta has a conventional equivalent in the English form Charlotte. Lotta has a related form in Lottie.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Lotta has relatives in 7 languages.
7 related names in 7 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 4
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Lotta
- Lotta SchelinSwedish association football playerborn 1984
- Lotta HenttalaFinnish cyclistborn 1989
- Lotta LotassSwedish writer, Member of the Swedish Academyborn 1964
- LéonSwedish singer and songwriterborn 1993
- Lotta Udnes WengNorwegian cross-country skierborn 1996
- Lotta KemppinenFinnish sprinterborn 1998
- Lotta ÖkvistSwedish association football playerborn 1997
- Lotta CrabtreeAmerican actress and comedian (1847-1924)
- Lotta TejleSwedish actress and singerborn 1960
Characters named Lotta: Lotta on Troublemaker Street (literary character created by Astrid Lindgren).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.