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Lotta
How to Pronounce Lotta
Pronounced LOT-uh /ΛlΙtΙ/High
Meaning: Lotta is a Swedish and German pet form of Charlotta or Charlotte, the feminine of Charles, from a Germanic root meaning 'free man'. It was borne by the famous nineteenth-century American entertainer Lotta Crabtree, which helped keep the short form visible in the United States in its early years.Medium
Popularity in the U.S. Β· SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880βpresent). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Lotta is a Scandinavian and German short form of Charlotte or Charlotta, feminine of Charles, 'free man'. Its early United States visibility owed much to Lotta Crabtree, a hugely popular actress and comedian of the eighteen-hundreds, alongside immigrant Charlotta families.
It was never common, a couple dozen girls a year at most around the eighteen-eighties, and it faded through the twentieth century. A girl given it then would be a great-grandmother now, and it reads as a nineteenth-century short form rather than a current name.
Variations
Nicknames
Famous Bearers
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Lotta Crabtree (1847-1924)a celebrated American actress, comedian and entertainer of the nineteenth century
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Lotta mean?
It's a Swedish short form of Charlotta or Charlotte, feminine of Charles, meaning 'free man'.
How do you pronounce Lotta?
It's said LOT-uh /ΛlΙtΙ/, two syllables, stress on the first.
Is Lotta a boy or girl name?
Lotta is used as a girl's name.
Is Lotta a popular name?
No, it was always rare in America, a nineteenth-century short form of Charlotte seen only slightly.