The surname Ottolenghi is of toponymic origin and is linked with the name of the German locality of Ettlingen, in the south-western region of Germany. On this point E. De Felice and F. De Laurentiis agree, noting that it is a surname formed by the Italianized adaptation of that place name, brought to Italy by Jewish communities that took refuge in the peninsula after the expulsions that occurred between the 15th and 16th centuries.

Along the same lines, E. Rossoni confirms this origin and specifies that these would be families of Ashkenazi Hebrew tradition who adopted the surname from their place of provenance, its use being documented in Italy as early as the 16th century. He also highlights that the form Ottolenghi represents an Italianization of the original place name, later consolidated as a hereditary surname in different areas of the Italian centre-north.