Christopher Columbus at the gates of the monastery of Santa Maria de la Rabida with his son Die

Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρειν (''phérein''), "to bear"; hence the "Christ-bearer".

As a given name, 'Christopher' has been in use since the 10th century.
In English, Christopher may be abbreviated as "Chris", "Topher", and sometimes " Kit".
It was frequently the most popular male first name in the United Kingdom, having been in the top twenty in England and Wales from the 1940s until 1995, although it has since dropped out of the top 100. The name is most common in England and not so common in Wales, Scotland, or Ireland.

People with the given name

Antiquity and Middle Ages

* Saint Christopher (died 251), saint venerated by Catholics and Orthodox Christians
* Christopher (Domestic of the Schools) (fl. 870s), Byzantine general
* Christopher Lekapenos (died 931), Byzantine co-emperor
* Christopher of Antioch (died 967), Greek Orthodox patriarch of Antioch
* Christopher I of Denmark (1219–1259), King of Denmark (1252–1259)
* Christopher II of Denmark (1276-1332), King of Denmark (1320–1326, 1329–1332)
* Christopher of Bavaria (1416–1448), union king of Denmark (1440–1448), Sweden (1441–1448), and Norway (1442–1448)
* Christopher of Werle (died 1425), Prince of the Wends
* Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), Italian navigator, explorer, and colonizer who captained the first European ship to reach the Americas

Modern

* Christopher (singer) (born 1992), Danish singer
* Christopher, Count of Oldenburg (c. 1504–1566)
* Christopher, Duke of Brunswick-Harburg (1570–1606)
* Christopher, Duke of Mecklenburg (1537–1592)
* Christopher of Greece and Denmark (1888–1940), prince, son of George I, King of Greece
* Christopher of Prague (born 1953), primate-elect of the Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia
* Christopher Abbott (born 1986), American actor
* Christopher J. Alexis Jr. (born 1996), Grenadian road cyclist
* Christopher Awdry (born 1940), English author is best known for his contributions to The Railway Series of books featuring Thomas the Tank Engine
* Christopher Bartley (born 1963), American psychologist
* Christopher Bengtsson (born 1993), Swedish professional ice hockey player
* Chris Broach (born 1976), American musician, songwriter, and recording artist.
* Chris Brown (born 1989), American singer and songwriter
* Christopher Cerf (born 1941), American author, composer-lyricist, voice actor, and record and television producer
* Christopher Chung (born 1998), Australian-born Hong Kong professional footballer
* Kris Clyburn (born 1996), American basketball player for Maccabi Rishon LeZion of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Christopher Comstock (born 1992), American electronic music producer and DJ, better known by his stage name Marshmello
* Chris Cornell (born 1964) American musician, songwriter, singer, rhythm guitarist and recording artist
* Christopher Cradock (1862–1914), English Royal Navy officer
* Christopher Cross (born 1950), American musician
* Christopher Dorner (1973–2013), American former LA police officer and spree killer
* Christopher Doyle (born 1952), Australian-Hong Kong cinematographer
* Christopher Eccleston (born 1964), English actor
* Christopher Evans (born 1981), American actor
* Christopher R. Fee, American medievalist
* Christopher Ford, American screenwriter
* Christopher E. Gerty (born 1975), American aerospace engineer and aquanaut
* Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go (born 1974), Filipino politician
* Christopher Guarin, Filipino journalist who was murdered
* Sir Christopher Hatton (1540-1591), English politician and 'favourite' of Queen Elizabeth 1st
* Chris Hemsworth (born 1983), Australian actor
* Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011), English American author and journalist
* Christopher Isherwood (1904–1986), English American novelist
* Christopher Allan Hector Perera Jayawardena, Sri Lankan Sinhala army officer
* Christopher Katongo (born 1982), Zambian international footballer
* Christopher Lee (disambiguation)
* Kristoffer Lindberg (born 1992), Swedish politician
* Christopher Lloyd (born 1938), American actor
* Christopher Lloyd (screenwriter) (born 1960), American screenwriter
* Christopher Maloney (English singer) (born 1977), British singer-songwriter
* Christopher Marlowe (1564–1593), English dramatist
* Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin (born 1977), English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and philanthropist.
* Christopher Meloni (born 1961), American actor
* Chris Messina (open-source advocate), Christopher Messina (born 1981), American inventor of the hashtag
* Christopher Robin Milne (1920–1996), English son of author A. A. Milne
* Christopher Morley (1890–1957), American journalist, novelist, essayist, and poet
* Christopher Newsom (1983–2007), American murder victim
* Christopher Nolan (born 1970), British-American film director and producer
* Christopher Norris (actress), American actress
* Christopher Nowinski (born 1978), American professional wrestler
* Christopher Ober (born 1954), Canadian-American material scientist
* Christopher Ondaatje (born 1933), Sri Lankan Briton businessman and adventurer
* Christopher O'Neill (born 1974), husband of Princess Madeleine of Sweden
* Christopher Paolini (born 1983), American author
* Christopher Stuart Patterson (born 1842), American Dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School
* Christopher Pike (author) (born 1954), American author
* Chris Pine (born 1980), American actor
* Christopher Pratt (born 1935), Canadian painter and printmaker
* Chris Pratt (born 1979), American actor
* Christopher Plummer (1929–2021), Canadian actor
* Christopher Reeve (1952–2004), American actor
* Christopher Ruocchio, American author and editor
* Christopher Samba (born 1984), former Blackburn Rovers Captain
* Christopher Scarver (born 1969), American robber and serial killer; best known for killing Jeffrey Dahmer
* Christopher Smart (1722–1771), English poet
* Chris Squire (1948-2015), English bassist (Yes (band), Yes)
* Christopher Tingley (born c. 1950), Arabic translator
* Christopher Tolkien (1924–2020), third and youngest son of the author J. R. R. Tolkien
* Christopher Tsui, Hong Kong-based businessman and a Champion Thoroughbred racehorse owner
* Christopher Walken (born 1943), American actor
* Chris Whelpdale (born 1987), English professional footballer
* Christopher Wilder (1945–1984), American serial killer and rapist
* Christopher Woodrow (born 1977), American movie producer
* Christopher Wren (1632–1723), English architect

People with the surname

* Alvin Christopher, first elected to office as an independent in 1995
* Ann Christopher (born 1947), British sculptor
* Anthony (Tony) Christopher (born 1952), CEO and president of Landmark Entertainment Group
* Bostin Christopher, American actor
* Byron Christopher (born 1949), Canadian news reporter
* Chigozie Christopher (born 1992), Nigerian footballer
* Joseph Christopher (1955–1993), American serial killer
* Josh Christopher (born 2001), American basketball player
* Ted Christopher (1958–2017), American racing driver
* Tony Christopher, Baron Christopher (born 1925), British businessman, trade unionist, and tax official
* Warren Christopher (1925–2011), 63rd United States Secretary of State

Fictional characters

* Christopher Da Silva, a character from the ''Silent Hill (film), Silent Hill'' film franchise.
* Christopher Ewing, a character from the American TV series ''Dallas (2012 TV series), Dallas''
* Christopher Gardener, the main character from the 2006 film ''The Pursuit of Happyness''
* Christopher “Chris” Halliwell, son of main character Piper Halliwell of Charmed.
* Christopher "Chris" Myers, character from ''The Promise (2016 film), The Promise'' (2016)
* Christopher "Chris" Kirkman, a character in ''Bravest Warriors#Cast, Bravest Warriors''
* Christopher Moltisanti, a character from the American TV series ''The Sopranos''
* Christopher Pike (Star Trek), Christopher Pike, captain of the U.S.S. ''Enterprise'' NCC-1701 immediately prior to James T. Kirk, from the ''Star Trek (franchise), Star Trek'' franchise including Star Trek: The Original Series, the Original Series, the Star Trek (film), 2009 film by J. J. Abrams, the second season of ''Star Trek: Discovery'', and the upcoming series ''Star Trek: Strange New Worlds''.
* Christopher Robin, a character from the 1926 novel ''Winnie-the-Pooh (book), Winnie the Pooh'' and its franchise
* Christopher "Chris" Traeger, a character from the American TV series Parks and Recreation
* Christopher Turk, a character from the American television series ''Scrubs (TV series), Scrubs''
* Peter Christopher, lead character in the 1960s TV sitcom ''Occasional Wife''
* Christopher "Kit" Walker, the real name of the comic character The Phantom
* Christopher Wilde, a character from the 2010 film ''Starstruck (2010 film), Starstruck''

Cognates in other languages

*Afrikaans: Christoffel, Christoforus
*Albanian language, Albanian: Kristofer, Kristofor, Kristoforid, Kristo
*Arabic language, Arabic: كريستوفر (''Krīstafor, Kristūfar, Krístufer''), اصطفر (''ʔiṣṭufur, ʔiṣṭafur''), عبد المسيح (''ʕabdu l-masīḥ''), خريستو (''Ḵrīstū, Ḵrīstaw, Ḵrīstau'')
*Aragonese language, Aragonese: Cristofo
*Azerbaijani language, Azerbaijani: Kristofer
*Armenian language, Armenian: Քրիստափոր (''Christapor, Krisdapor'')
*Basque language, Basque: Kristobal
*Belarusian language, Belarusian: Крыстафер (''Krystafier'')
*Bengali language, Bengali: ক্রিস্টোফার (Krisţophar)
*Breton language, Breton: Kristof, Kristol
*Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: Кристофър (''Christofr''), Христофор ("Khristofór")
*Catalan language, Catalan: Cristòfor
*Chinese language, Chinese: 克里斯托弗 (''Kèlǐsītuōfú''), 克里斯多夫(''Kèlǐsīduōfū''), 克里斯多福 ("Kèlǐsīduōfú'')
*Cornish language, Cornish: Kitto
*Corsican language, Corsican: Cristofanu
*Croatian language, Croatian: Kristofor
*Czech language, Czech: Kryštof
*Danish language, Danish: Christoffel, Christoffell, Christoffer, Christofher, Christopher, Chriztoffer, Kristofer, Kristofers, Kristoffer, Kristoofer, Kristopher
*Dutch language, Dutch: Christoffel, Christoforus, Christophe, Kristof
*Esperanto: Kristoforo
*Estonian language, Estonian: Christoph, Kristof, Kristofer, Kristoffer, Risto
*Faroese language, Faroese: Kristoffur
*Finnish language, Finnish: Kristoffer, Risto
*Flemish: Christoffel, Kristof
*French language, French: Christophe
*Galician language, Galician: Cristovo
*Genoese dialect, Genoese: Christoffa
*German language, German: Christoph, Christof, Christoffer
*Georgian language, Georgian: ქრისტეფორე (''K'ristep'ore'')
*Greek: Χριστόφορος (''Christóphoros'')
*Gujarati language, Gujarati: ક્રિસ્ટોફર (''Krisṭōphara'')
*Haitian Creole language, Haitian Creole: Kristòf
*Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: Kilikopela, 'Imiloa (direct translation)
*Hebrew language, Hebrew: כריסטופר (''Kristofer'')
*Standard Hindi, Hindi: क्रिस्टोफर (''Krisṭōphar'')
*Hungarian language, Hungarian: Kristóf, Krisztofer
*Icelandic language, Icelandic: Kristófer
*Irish language, Irish: Críostóir
*Italian language, Italian: Cristoforo
*Japanese language, Japanese: クリストファー (''Kurisutofā'')
*Kannada: ಕ್ರಿಸ್ಟೋಫರ್ (''Krisṭōphar'')
*Korean language, Korean: 크리스토퍼 (''Keuriseutopeo'')
*Latin language, Latin: Christopherus, Christophorus
*Latvian language, Latvian: Kristaps, Kristofers
*Lithuanian language, Lithuanian: Kristoforas, Kristupas
*Macedonian language, Macedonian: Кристофер (''Kristofer'')
*Malayalam language, Malayalam: ക്രിസ്റ്റഫർ (''Kristaphar'')
*Maltese language, Maltese: Kristofru, Ħamallu
*Marathi language, Marathi: ख्रिस्तोफर (''Khristōphar'')
*Middle English: Cristofre
*Mongolian language, Mongolian: Кристофер (''Kristofyer'')
*Nepali language, Nepali: क्रिस्टोफर (''Krisṭōphar'')
*Norwegian language, Norwegian: Kristoffer
*Occitan language, Occitan: Cristòl
*Persian language, Persian: کریستوفر
*Polish language, Polish: Krzysztof
*Portuguese language, Portuguese: Cristóvão
*Romanian language, Romanian: Hristofor
*Russian language, Russian: Христофо́р (''Khristofór'')
*Northern Sami language, Sami: Doffá
*Sardinian language, Sardinian: Cristolu
*Scottish Gaelic language, Scottish Gaelic: Crìsdean
*Serbian language, Serbian: Христофор (''Hristofor'')
*Sicilian language, Sicilian: Cristòfuru
*Slovak language, Slovak: Krištof
*Slovenian language, Slovenian: Krištof
*Sorbian languages, Sorbian: Kito
*Spanish language, Spanish: Cristóbal, Cristo, Tobolito, Cristóforo
*Swahili language, Swahili: Gitte
*Swedish language, Swedish: Christoffer, Kristoffer
*Tamil language, Tamil: கிறிஸ்டோபர் (''Kiṟisṭōpar'')
*Telugu language, Telugu: క్రిస్టోఫర్ (''Krisṭōphar'')
*Thai language, Thai: คริสโตเฟอร์ (''Kristofeʼr'')
*Turkish language, Turkish: Kristof
*Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Христофор (''Khrystofor''), Криштоф (''Kryshtof'')
*Urdu language, Urdu: کرسٹوفر
*Venetian language, Venetian: Cristoforo
*Vietnamese language, Vietnamese: Kristoffer, Christopher
*Welsh language, Welsh: Cristoffis
*Yiddish language, Yiddish: טשריסטאָפער (Tshristofer)

See also

*Christoph, a given name and surname
*Christophers, a surname
*Kester (name), a given name and surname

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christopher (Name)
Given names of Greek language origin
Unisex given names
English given names
English-language unisex given names
English unisex given names