Family name origins & meanings
- South German : from an agent derivative of Middle High German zotte, zote ‘shaggy wool’, hence perhaps an occupational name for someone who kept sheep or was employed in the wool trade, or alternatively a nickname for someone who habitually wore a sheepskin or who had unkempt hair.
- German : nickname for a clumsy or distracted person, from a derivative of Middle High German zotten ‘to stroll or amble’.