Ignaz Otteni (1800-1870) was the Great Great Great Grandson of Hans Georg Otteni, the first known Otteni that settled in Urloffen, Germany, where many Otteni families lived. At some point, one of the family members moved to Nußbach, Germany, since Ignaz was born there.  Nußbach is 134 miles (215 km) north of Urloffen.  

While in Nußbach, the descendants of Ignaz began spelling their surname with a "y" instead of an "i".  It is speculated that due to the distance from Urloffen, the inconsistencies of how records were kept, and possibly an unknown family reason, the spelling of the name took the form of OTTENY.

Ignaz Otteni's son, Martin (1828-1909) went by OTTENY.  Ignaz Otteni's other son, Franz Xavier (1833-1880), went by OTTENI.  However, Franz Xavier's son went by OTTENY.  There are families in Germany and Europe today that spell their name OTTENY who are related to those using other spelling variations of the name.

OTTNEY Tombstone in Nußbach, Germany

Click on the following link to view information on the descendants of Ignaz Otteni to the present, which includes the OTTENY variation.  

Descendants of Iznaz Otteni (1800-1870) - a privatized (dates & places of living people) Descendant Book, with index, of Ignaz Otteni descendants (PDF)