What is the origin of shorthand for "with" -> "w/"?

Question

In many places, I've seen "w/" written instead of "with". At least, I think that one replaces the other. I couldn't find anywhere what is the origin of "w/".

Is this something in regular usage in the English language?

Answer 1

CyberDefinitions gives a plausible explanation:

Although its origin is contested, w/ has been used at least since the rise of the fast-food industry in the 1950s. As a form of shorthand to save time when writing down food orders, waiters replaced the words "with" and "without" with the abbreviations w/ and w/o .

Since that time, the use of w/ as an abbreviation of "with" has become much more widely used.

WikiHow gives detailed examples, explaining that

It appears over text, on social media, in handwritten notes, or even in casual communications at work like Slack messages.

Prowritingaid takes it further and adds that this abbreviation can be found in more formal contexts:

Many people will use w/ when they are taking notes, whether in school, in a meeting or conference, or somewhere else. Using shorthand like this makes note taking much faster.

It’s also common to see the abbreviation w/ in real estate or housing descriptions. Many descriptions of properties for sale or rent have limited characters, so they use abbreviations: “house w/ 2-car garage.”

You might see the abbreviation for with on official forms or tables of research data that have a limited number of characters. It’s also common in informal communication as well as quick business communications.

As an interesting fact, the site adds that

Note that the medical field does not use w/ as the abbreviation for with. Instead, they use a lowercase C with a line over it. This stems from the Latin word for with, “cum.”