Family name origins & meanings
- English : from Middle English diche, dike, Old English dīc ‘dike’, ‘earthwork’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a ditcher or a topographic name for someone who lived by a ditch or dike. The medieval dike was larger and more prominent than the modern ditch, and was usually constructed for purposes of defense rather than drainage.
- Americanized spelling of Dutch Dijk (see Dyck).