Is Princess Ruto in Twilight Princess?

Ruto and Rutela are not the same person

Zelda Wiki’s Ruto article lists her appearances as Ocarina of Time, the 3DS version, the Switch 2 version, the Himekawa manga, Hyrule Warriors, and a Spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Twilight Princess is not on that list. Rutela has her own article. The queen Link meets after he thaws Zora’s Domain with a Molten Shard is Rutela. She thanks him, asks him to save Ralis, and gives the Zora Armor. Those beats are on the Rutela page and on the Zora’s Domain page.

Why the mix-up is so common

• Both are royal Zora women.
• Both names start with Rut-.
• Both stories freeze Zora’s Domain.
• Both are tied to a blue gem. Rutela’s necklace is compared to Zora’s Sapphire on her wiki page.

The wiki suggests the Rut- prefix is a nod to Ruto. That suggestion is one page’s reading. I repeat it as a suggestion. The frozen domains are still two events: Ganondorf freezes the domain in Ocarina of Time’s adult era, and Twilight Princess freezes it again in a later age. Link uses a Molten Shard in Twilight Princess. He does not do that in Ocarina of Time.

Did Ganondorf kill Ruto?

No published page says Ganondorf kills Ruto in Twilight Princess, because she is not in that game. The person who dies there is Rutela, and the Rutela article says Shadow Beasts execute her. In Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf freezes the domain, Sheik gets Ruto out from under the ice, and she leaves for the Water Temple. She is alive when she gives Link the Water Medallion. I will not merge those two deaths into one.

Where she does show up

The appearances table is the full list, including the games that only mention her. Breath of the Wild names Divine Beast Vah Ruta after her and does not put her on screen. If the question is “is the Zora queen in Twilight Princess actually Ruto,” the answer on this page is no.