Shaw is most commonly a surname and rarely a given name.
[1] This name is derived from the Middle English schage, shage, schawe, and shawe, from the Old English sceaga meaning "dweller by the wood".
The English surname was established in Ireland during the 17th century.
Shaw is a romanization of Chinese: 邵 with various Latinized spellings, including Shaw, Siaw, Siew, Shao, Shiu, Siu, Chow, and Sho.
Shaw is also a rare romanization of the simplified Chinese: 萧; traditional Chinese: 蕭, inspired by its use as the transliteration of Shaw for notable figures such as Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw and English actor Robert Shaw.