Shaws History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The clans of the Pictish people in ancient Scotland were the ancestors of the first people to use the name Shaws. It was a name for a person who shared some of the qualities attributed to a wolf. Shaws is a nickname surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname Shaws is derived from the Gaelic first name Sithech, which means wolf.

Early Origins of the Shaws family

The surname Shaws was first found in Perthshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Pheairt) former county in the present day Council Area of Perth and Kinross, located in central Scotland, where the family appears to have been firmly entrenched in the Eastern coastal regions well before 1000 AD.

While some claim that the Clan originally descended from a MacDuff, one of the ancient Earls of Fife, the first official mention in documents shows them to be present at the General Council held by King Malcolm at Forfar in 1061.

However, this ancient leadership was challenged by many other Clans Commyns (Cummings) who had leased the Shaw lands of Rothiemurchus.

Early History of the Shaws family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shaws research. Another 369 words (26 lines of text) covering the years 1178, 1226, 1405, 1411, 1527, 1550, 1602, 1608, 1625, 1672, 1692, 1751, 1774, 1776, 1799, 1804, 1826, 1832, 1849, 1876 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Shaws History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shaws Spelling Variations

In the Middle ages, spelling and translation were not yet regulated by any general rules. spelling variations in names were common even among members of one family unit. Shaws has appeared Shaw, Shawe, Mac Ghille-Sheathanaich (Gaelic) and others.

Early Notables of the Shaws family

Notable amongst the Clan at this time was Robert Shaw (died 1527), Scottish cluniac monk and prelate; William Schawe (1550-1602), Scottish architect, probably a younger son of Schaw of Sauchie; John Shawe or Shaw (1608-1672), an English puritan minister from Yorkshire...
Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shaws Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Shaws family to Ireland

Some of the Shaws family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 123 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Shaws family

Faced by this persecution and the generally unstable political climate of those days, many Scots chose to leave their homeland for Ireland, Australia, and North America in search of greater opportunity and freedom. The colonies across the Atlantic were the most popular choice, but a passage there was neither cheap nor easily suffered. Passengers arrived sick and poor, but those who made it intact often found land and more tolerant societies in which to live. These brave settlers formed the backbone of the burgeoning nations of Canada and the United States. It is only this century that the ancestors of these families have begun to recover their collective identity through the patriotic highland games and Clan societies that have sprung up throughout North America. Research into early immigration and passenger lists revealed many immigrants bearing the name Shaws: Anne Shaw settled in Virginia in 1635; along with Richard and William; Donald Shaw settled in Virginia in 1716; Ewen Shaw settled in South Carolina in 1716.