This interesting surname is of medieval German origin and is a diminutive form of the ancient German personal name Theodoric, which is composed of the elements "theudo" meaning people, race, plus "ric", power. The surname dates back to the early 16th Century (see below), London Church Records list the marriages of Diana Dietz to Haydock Hill on the 1st February 1781 at St. Mary, St. Marylebone Rd, St. Marylebone, and John Dietz to Mary Hedgson on October 28th 1793 at St. Panras Old Church. Harriet Jemima, daughter of John and Mary Dietz, was christened on March 20th 1796, and their son Frederick was christened on October 7th 1798, both at St. Pancras Old Church. A Coat of Arms granted to a German Dietz family depicts a shield divided per pale red and silver, in chief a griffin silver and black, in base a gold and blue mullet, on a blue fesse one gold and one silver mullet. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Georg Dietz, which was dated 1535, witness at the christening of his daughter Maria at Chemnitz, Geyersdorf, Sachsen, during the reign of Emperor Charles V - Habsburg Emperor 1519 - 1558. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.