Find out how popular the last name Motter is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Motter.

Motter, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Motter surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Motter in America

Motter is the 10979th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Motter surname appeared 2,897 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Motter.

We can also compare 2010 data for Motter to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Motter

The surname Motter is believed to have originated in Germany, likely in the 16th or 17th century. It is thought to be derived from the German word "Mutter," which means "mother" or "matron." This suggests that the name may have initially been given as a descriptive nickname or occupational name for someone who worked as a midwife or in a profession assisting mothers.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Motter can be found in the church records of the town of Hahn, located in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany, dating back to the late 1600s. The name was also present in other parts of Germany during this time period, with various spellings such as Motter, Muter, and Mütter.

In the 18th century, the Motter name began to appear in records of German immigrants to North America, particularly in Pennsylvania and other areas with significant German settlement. One notable early bearer of the name was Johann Georg Motter, who was born in Germany in 1714 and immigrated to Pennsylvania in the 1740s.

Another early Motter of note was Jacob Motter, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1754 and served as a private in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. His service is documented in various military records from that time.

In the 19th century, the Motter surname continued to spread across North America, with families bearing the name settling in various regions. One prominent individual was Andrew Jackson Motter, born in Pennsylvania in 1825, who became a successful businessman and banker in Iowa.

The name Motter has also been associated with several places in Germany, such as the village of Mottern in Rhineland-Palatinate, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname over time.

Throughout history, the Motter surname has been carried by many individuals, including scholars, artists, and professionals in various fields. Some notable examples include Johann Motter, a German painter and engraver from the 16th century, and Maximilian Motter, a German-American architect and engineer who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Motter

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Motter.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Motter was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Motter has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Motter was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Motter, please contact us.

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