The great white shark, also known as white pointer, white shark, or white death, is an exceptionally large lamniforme shark found in coastal surface waters in all major oceans. Reaching lengths of about 6 metres (20 ft) and weighing up to 2,250 kilograms (5,000 lb), the great white shark is the world`s largest known predatory fish. It is the only known surviving species of its genus, Carcharodon. Carolus Linnaeus gave the great white shark its first scientific name, Squalus carcharias in 1758. Sir Andrew Smith gave it the generic name Carcharodon in 1833 and in 1873, the generic name was identified with Linnaeus specific name and the current scientific name Carcharodon carcharias was finalised. Carcharodon comes from the Greek words karcharos, which means sharp or jagged, and odous, which means tooth