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

Ottesen, 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 Ottesen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ottesen in America

Ottesen is the 31285th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ottesen surname appeared 741 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ottesen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ottesen 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 Ottesen

The surname Ottesen originated in Scandinavia, specifically in Norway and Denmark. It is a patronymic surname, meaning it was derived from the father's given name. In this case, Ottesen means "son of Otto." The name Otto itself has Germanic roots and is derived from the Old German name Odo or Audo, which means "wealthy" or "prosperous."

The earliest recorded instances of the Ottesen surname date back to the 13th century in Denmark and Norway. It was commonly found in areas such as Jutland, Zealand, and the Norwegian counties of Vestfold and Rogaland. The name was often spelled differently in those times, with variations like Otthesen, Otsen, and Ottson appearing in historical records.

One notable example of the Ottesen name in history is Niels Ottesen Basmus (1594-1664), a Danish naval officer and admiral who played a significant role in the Torstenson War between Denmark and Sweden. Another early bearer of the name was Jens Ottesen Sødring (c. 1550-1630), a Norwegian nobleman and landowner who held significant influence in the Stavanger region.

In the 17th century, Hans Ottesen Skouboe (1630-1696) was a prominent Danish naval officer and shipbuilder. He was instrumental in the expansion of the Danish navy during the Scanian War against Sweden. Around the same time, Otto Ottesen Møller (1642-1711) was a Norwegian merchant and ship owner who established a successful trading company in Bergen.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ottesen name in literature is found in the Norwegian folk tale "Per Gynt," written in the early 19th century. The character of Per Gynt's father is referred to as Åse Ottesen, highlighting the use of the patronymic surname in traditional Norwegian folklore.

These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname Ottesen. The name has been carried by many more individuals across various professions and walks of life, reflecting its enduring presence in Scandinavian culture and history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ottesen

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

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 Ottesen 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 Ottesen 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 Ottesen was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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