Lota
Feminine · “Probably a pet form of Charlotte”
Lota is a short girl's name of the late nineteenth century, most likely from Charlotte by way of Lottie. The same four letters name a household pot across South Asia and a coal town on the coast of Chile.
How old is the name Lota?
Lota first appears in US birth records in 1881 — 144 years ago. The typical Lota alive today was born around 1915, making them about 110 years old. Fewer than a hundred people named Lota are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
When was the name Lota most popular?
Lota peaked in 1881, reaching #679 nationally. See the whole 1881 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Charlotte to Lota
The story of Lota
In India and Pakistan, a lota is a small round pot of brass, copper or steel with a narrow neck, used for drinking water and for washing, and found in almost every home. In Chile, Lota grew up around coal mines on the Gulf of Arauco, whose tunnels ran out beneath the sea; the miners' hard lives there were written into Chilean literature. As an American name, Lota most likely came from Charlotte.
Meaningscholars disagree
Probably a pet form of Charlotte
Lota is most likely a pet form of Charlotte, like Lottie and the German Lotte, though it may be a name of its own.
How the name formed
- Charlotte
- Lotte
- Lota
Related forms: Lotte · Lottie
Pronouncing Lota
LOH-tuh
Two syllables with the stress on the first.
Nicknames for Lota
Limited
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1881
- Most girls named
- 191220 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #679reached in 1881
- Change vs 1946
- −12.5%7 in 1947, from 8
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Lota in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Lotte in German — related form
- Lottie in English — related form
Lotas among us
Fewer than a hundred people named Lota are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Lota sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Short and bright.
- Almost certain to be the only one.
- Easy to spell.
- People will hear Lola or Lotta.
- It reads as a name of a much earlier generation.
- Some will know it as the word for a water pot.
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Lota
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Lotas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. Fewer than a hundred people named Lota are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
- How popular is the name Lota in 2025?
- Lota is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Lota with classmates?
- Lota will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More L names
The most-given names starting with L, all years combined.
Linda#902 · Lisa#987 · Laura#379 · Lauren#401 · Lillian#57 · Lori#1721 · Louise#514 · Lois#1666
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Lota? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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