2000
#1,768
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,568
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.88
Uncommon Last name
Dietz
A German occupational surname referring to someone who made candles or worked with wax.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 20,396 Americans carry the last name Dietz. That puts it at #1,979 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,805 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dietz surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Dietz with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
20K
1 in 16,805
Census rank
#1,979
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
18K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 17,786 bearers of the surname Dietz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1979th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dietz, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dietz
The surname Dietz originated in Germany and can be traced back to the 12th century. It derived from the Germanic personal name Theodoric, which meant "ruler of the people" and was composed of the elements theud (people) and ric (ruler). The name evolved over time, taking on various spellings such as Dietz, Dietz, Ditz, and Thietz.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dietz can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, where a certain Theodoricus Dietz was mentioned in 1187. Additionally, the name appears in the Hirsauer Codex, a 12th-century manuscript from the Hirsau Abbey in Baden-Württemberg, referring to a landowner named Dietrich Dietz.
During the Middle Ages, the name Dietz was particularly prevalent in the regions of Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Baden-Württemberg. It was often associated with certain place names, such as Dietzbach and Dietzenbach, which were likely named after individuals bearing the surname Dietz.
Notable individuals with the surname Dietz include Johann Dietz (1665-1738), a German Baroque composer and organist; Friedrich Dietz (1794-1876), a German theologian and author; Wilhelm Dietz (1843-1922), a German socialist and publisher; Mary Dietz (1925-2005), an American painter and sculptor; and Paul Dietz (1935-2022), a Canadian artist and illustrator.
Throughout history, the surname Dietz has been borne by various individuals from different walks of life, including scholars, artists, politicians, and religious figures. While its origins can be traced back to medieval Germany, the name has since spread across Europe and beyond, carrying with it a rich cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dietz
Among Census respondents with the surname Dietz, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Dietz bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Dietz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 16,352
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 605
- Two or more races2.9% · 522
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 144
- Black or African American0.5% · 96
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 67
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dietz
Dietz appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#1,925
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,720
+152 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 6.35
Rank movement Down 157 places
2020
#1,979
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,786
-934 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 5.95
Rank movement Down 54 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,768 | 18,568 | 6.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,925 | 18,720 | 6.35 | +152 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 157 places |
| 2020 | #1,979 | 17,786 | 5.95 | -934 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 54 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Dietz surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,925 | #1,979 | -2.8% |
| Count | 18,720 | 17,786 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 6.35 | 5.95 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dietz bearers went from 18,720 to 17,786 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 54 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,925 to #1,979.
FAQ
Dietz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dietz?
Name Census estimates that about 20,396 living Americans carry the surname Dietz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,805 residents.
How common is Dietz?
Dietz ranks #1,979 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.95 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 17,786 people with the surname Dietz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (20,396), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.95 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Dietz.
Has Dietz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dietz went from 18,720 recorded bearers to 17,786. That is a decrease of 934 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,925 to #1,979.
What does the Census say about the background of Dietz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dietz, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dietz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (16,352 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dietz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Dietz (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Dietz mean?
A German occupational surname referring to someone who made candles or worked with wax. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Dietz (5.95 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Dietz?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.