Ottonian dynasty was a dynasty of kings of Germany, named after its first emperor Otto I the Great. But it is also known as the Saxon dynasty after the origin of this family of noblemen. The family itself is also sometimes known as the Liudolfings, after its earliest known member "Liudolf" and one of its most common names. The Ottonian rulers are also regarded as the first dynasty of the Holy Roman Empire, as successors of the Carolingian dynasty and Charlemagne, who is commonly viewed as the original founder of a new (Frankish) Roman Empire.