Given name & surname
Yaw
“born on a Thursday”
Yaw is used as a given name and a surname. One African interpretation is “born on a Thursday.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One African interpretation is “born on a Thursday.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is African.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1973. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Yaw through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 405
- 405 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1997
- 18 babies
- 2025
- 6
- #11,941 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −7%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 11,941 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 6.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 18 in 1997. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,320 as a first name in 2020; 1,487 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Yaw’s family of names
Yaw has a related form in Yao. Yaw has a related form in Yawo.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Yaw
- Yaw YeboahGhanaian association football playerborn 1997
- Yaw PrekoGhanian footballerborn 1974
- Yaw Osei AdutwumGhanaian politicianborn 1964
- Frimpong Yaw AddoGhanaian politicianborn 1962
- Yaw Osafo-MaafoGhanaian former Member of Parliament and former Finance Ministerborn 1942
- Yaw BarimahGhanaian politicianborn 1949
- Yaw Ihle AmankwahGhanaian-Norwegian footballerborn 1988
- Yaw AckahGhanian footballerborn 1999
- Yaw AntwiGhanaian footballerborn 1985
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Yaw, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Akin
“a brave man; a hero”
>99% boys
Obasi
“one who honors God”
>99% boys
Gyasi
“a superior man”
>99% boys
Tupac
“a messenger warrior”
>99% boys
Oluwatosin
“a servant of God”
>99% boys
Uzoma
“one who takes the right path” · “born during the course of a journey”
94% boys · 6% girls
Olujimi
“one who is close to God”
>99% boys
Kamau
“a quiet warrior”
>99% boys