The House of Shakhovskoy[a] is the name of a noble family of the Russian Empire which claims descent from Konstantin Glebovich "Shah", a voivode of Nizhny Novgorod in 1481.

[citation needed] In the 19th century, and especially after the abolition of serfdom, the "Shakhovskoy" surname began to appear among peasants who adopted their employers' name, but were not themselves descendants of the princely family.

[citation needed] The family was founded by Prince Konstantin Glebovich, nicknamed "Shah".

[citation needed] The family also descends cognatically from Ivan I of Moscow, through the latter's daughter Evdokia Ivanovna Moskovskaya (1314–1342),[3] who married Vasili Mikhailovich, Prince of Yaroslavl (died 1345).

[citation needed] Nevertheless, Konstantin managed to earn the nickname "Shakh" - from Persian "Shah", meaning king.