The

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

Xavier (, , , , ; ; ) is a masculine name derived from the 16th-century Navarrese

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, Jesuits, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Kingdom of Navarre, Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus ...

Etymology

Xavier comes from the name of the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

missionary saint

, where ''Xavier'' stands for his birthplace of Javier (''Xabier'' in Basque; ''Xavier'' in

Old Spanish Old Spanish (, , ; ), also known as Old Castilian or Medieval Spanish, refers to the varieties of Ibero-Romance spoken predominantly in Castile and environs during the Middle Ages. The earliest, longest, and most famous literary composition in O ...

) in the

Kingdom of Navarre The Kingdom of Navarre ( ), originally the Kingdom of Pamplona, occupied lands on both sides of the western Pyrenees, with its northernmost areas originally reaching the Atlantic Ocean (Bay of Biscay), between present-day Spain and France. The me ...

. The

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...

is itself the

romanization In linguistics, romanization is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Latin script, Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and tra ...

of the Basque place-name (and surname) '' etxe berri'', meaning 'castle', 'new house' or 'new home'.

Usage in the United States

An increase in usage of the name in the United States has been attributed to the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

character

Charles Xavier Professor X (Prof. Charles Francis Xavier) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 ( ...

, and the feature film version of that character played by

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...

People

Arts

* Xavier Abraham (born 1945), Spanish poet *

Xavier Abril Xavier Abril de Vivero, (4 November 1905 in Lima - 1 January 1990 in Montevideo) was a Peruvian poet and essayist who devoted time studying the poetry of César Vallejo César Abraham Vallejo Mendoza (March 16, 1892 – April 15, 1938) was ...

(1905–1990), Peruvian poet * Xavier Armange (born 1947), French writer and illustrator * Xavier Arsène-Henry (1919–2009), French modernist architect and urban planner *

Xavier Atencio Francis Xavier Atencio, also known as X Atencio (September 4, 1919 – September 10, 2017) was an American animator and Imagineer for The Walt Disney Company. He is perhaps best known for writing the scripts and song lyrics of the Disney theme p ...

(1919–2017), American animator for The Walt Disney Company * Xavier Barbier de Montault (1830–1901), French liturgical writer * Xavier Blum Pinto (born 1957), Ecuadorian artist * Xavier Boniface Saintine (1798–1865), French dramatist and novelist * Xavier Cortada (born 1964), Cuban-American painter *

Xavier Cugat Xavier Cugat (; ; 1 January 1900 – 27 October 1990) was an American musician and bandleader who was a leading figure in the spread of Latin music. Originally from Girona, Spain, he spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba, before arriving i ...

(1900–1990), Spanish-Cuban bandleader *

Xavier Davis Xavier Davis (born 1971 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, producer, and music educator who leads the Xavier Davis Trio. In addition to performing with the Christian McBride Big Band and other groups as a s ...

(born 1971), American jazz pianist * Xavier de Planhol (1926–2016), French historical scholar *

Xavier Dolan Xavier Dolan-Tadros (; born 20 March 1989) is a Canadian filmmaker and actor. He began his career as a child actor in commercials before directing several arthouse feature films. He first received international acclaim in 2009 for his feature ...

(born 1989), Canadian actor and filmmaker * Xavier Fagnon (born 1972), French voice actor * Xavier Forneret (1809–1884), French poet, playwright and writer * Xavier Fourcade (1926–1987), French American art dealer *

Xavier Herbert Xavier Herbert (born Alfred Jackson; 15 May 190110 November 1984) was an Australian writer best known for his Miles Franklin Award-winning novel '' Poor Fellow My Country'' (1975). He was considered one of the elder statesmen of Australian lite ...

(1901–1984), Australian writer *

Xavier Lopez Xavier Lopez (born October 23, 2003), known professionally as Xaviersobased, is an American born Dominican rapper and record producer from New York City. He is known for his eccentric rapping and production styles. He first gained recognition with ...

(born 2003), American rapper and record producer *

Xavier Trudeau Xavier James Trudeau (born October 18, 2007), known professionally as Xav, is a Canadian R&B singer. He is the son of former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Xav has released three singles and is currently signed to Ottawa-based record lab ...

(born 2007), Canadian singer-songwriter, son of former Canadian Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

* Xavier Martinez (1869–1943), American artist of Mexican descent *

Xavier Naidoo Xavier Kurt Naidoo (; born 2 October 1971) is a German soul and R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member of German band Söhne Mannheims, and started two record labels, Beats Around the Bush and Naidoo Records. Naid ...

(born 1971), German singer-songwriter *

Xavier Rudd Xavier Rudd (born 29 May 1978) is an Australian singer, songwriter, musician, and multi-instrumentalist. Several of Rudd's songs incorporate socially conscious themes, such as spirituality, humanity, environmentalism and the rights of Indigen ...

(born 1978), Australian singer-songwriter *

Xavier Samuel Xavier Samuel (born 10 December 1983) is an Australian film and theatre actor. He has appeared in leading roles in the feature films '' Adore'', ''September'', ''Further We Search'', ''Newcastle'', '' The Loved Ones'', ''Frankenstein'', '' A Fe ...

(born 1983), Australian actor

Law, military and politics

* Xavier Albertini (born 1971), French politician *

Xavier Becerra Xavier Becerra (; born January 26, 1958) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services, a position he held from March 19, 2021 to January 20, 2025. He is the first Latino to h ...

(born 1958), American politician *

Xavier Bertrand Xavier René Louis Bertrand (; born 21 March 1965) is a French politician; he is president of the regional council of Hauts-de-France since the 2015 regional elections. Earlier in his career, Bertrand was Minister of Health from 2005 to 2007 ...

(born 1965), French politician *

Xavier Bettel Xavier Bettel (; born 3 March 1973) is a Luxembourgish lawyer and politician who serves as the List of deputy prime ministers of Luxembourg, deputy prime minister of Luxembourg and as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Luxembourg), minister for Fo ...

(born 1973), Luxembourgish politician *

Xavier Bout de Marnhac Lieutenant General Xavier Bout de Marnhac (born 7 July 1951 in Trier, West Germany) is a French military commander and former head of the Kosovo Force The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO-led international NATO ...

(born 1951), French military general *

Xavier Brasseur François Xavier Brasseur (19 October 1865 – 4 July 1912) was a Luxembourgish politician and jurist. Brasseur was educated at the Athénée de Luxembourg, graduating in 1884. Afterwards, he studied law, graduating on 17 June 1890, and began ...

(1865–1912), Luxembourgish politician * Xavier Breton (born 1962), French politician * Xavier Connor (1917–2005), Australian judge * Xavier Coppolani (1866–1905), French military leader * Xavier Darcos (born 1947), French politician * Xavier, Duke of Parma and Piacenza (1889–1977), pretender to the defunct throne of Parma, and Carlist claimant to the throne of Spain *

Xavier Kyooma Xavier Kyooma Akampurira is a Ugandan politician who serves as an MP of Uganda. Political positions Kyooma proposed mandatory HIV testing in prisons and to separate HIV positive inmates from negative inmates to combat the HIV epidemic. He was a ...

, Ugandan politician * Xavier de Magallon (1866–1956), French poet, translator and politician * Xavier Sylvestre Yangongo (1946-2024), Central African military general and politician *

Xavier Espot Zamora Xavier Espot Zamora (born 30 October 1979) is an Andorran judge and politician who has served as Prime Minister of Andorra and President of the Democrats for Andorra since 2019. He previously served as Minister of Social Affairs, Justice, and ...

(born 1979), Andorran politician and current prime minister of Andorra

Sports

* Xavier Adibi (born 1984), American NFL player *

Xavier Aguado Xavier 'Xavi' Companys Aguado (born 5 June 1968) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a central defender. He spent 13 years with Real Zaragoza – 12 in La Liga – appearing in nearly 500 official matches and winning three ...

(born 1968), Spanish association football player *

Xabi Alonso Xabier Alonso Olano (, ; born 25 November 1981) is a Spanish professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the head coach of La Liga club Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid. He is regarded as o ...

(born 1981), Spanish association football player *

Xavier Báez Xavier Iván Báez Gamiño (born 22 July 1987) is a former Mexican professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Career Báez debuted with Chivas on 17 April 2007 against Atlante in a 3–0 win for the ''Rojiblancos''. He pla ...

(born 1987), Mexican association football player * Xavier Barrau (born 1982), French association football player * Xavier Beitia (born 1982), American AFL and college football player * Xavier Bertoni (born 1988), French freestyle skier * Xavier Booker (born 2004), American basketball player * Xavier Capdevila Romero (born 1976), Andorran ski mountaineer * Xavier Carter (born 1985), American track and field athlete * Xavier Chen (born 1983), Belgian association football player * Xavier Clarke (born 1983), indigenous Australian rules football player * Xavier Coleman (born 1995), American football player * Xavier Comas Guixé (born 1977), Andorran ski mountaineer * Xavier Corosine (born 1985), French basketball player * Xavier Crawford (born 1995), American football player * Xavier Daufresne (born 1968), Belgian tennis player * Xavier Delisle (born 1977), Canadian ice hockey player * Xavier Dirceu (born 1977), Brazilian association football player *

Xavier Doherty Xavier John Doherty (born 22 November 1982) is a former Australian international cricketer who played Australian domestic cricket with Tasmania cricket team, Tasmania and internationally for Australia national cricket team, Australia. He is a ...

(born 1982), Australian cricketer * Xavier Dorfman (born 1973), French Olympic rower * Xavier Downwind (1893–1968), American NFL player * Xavier Edwards (born 1999), American baseball player *

Xavier Ellis Xavier John Ellis (born 28 February 1988) is a media personality and former professional Australian rules football player who played with the Hawthorn Football Club and West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League. Over 125 senior matche ...

(born 1988), Australian rules football player *

Xavier Eluère Albert Xavier Eluère (8 September 1897 – 5 February 1967) was a French heavyweight professional boxer. He competed in the 1920s and was born in Issé. Eluère won a bronze medal in the 1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics ( ...

(1897–1967), French Olympic boxer *

Xavier Escudé Xavier Escudé Torrente (born 17 May 1966 in Terrassa, Catalonia) is a former field hockey player from Spain, who won the silver medal with the men's national team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. He also participated in the 1 ...

(born 1966), Spanish Olympic field hockey player *

Xavier Florencio Xavier Florencio Cabré (born December 26, 1979, in Tarragona, Catalonia) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is ...

(born 1979), Spanish road bicycle racer * Xavier Fulton (born 1986), American NFL player * Xavier Gipson (born 2000), American football player *

Xavier Henry Xavier Henry (; born March 15, 1991) is an American former professional basketball player. He played one year of college basketball with the Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball, Kansas Jayhawks before he was drafted in the 2010 NBA draft by the Mem ...

(born 1991), American NBA player *Xavier Hernández Creus, commonly known as

Xavi (footballer, born 1980) Xavier Hernández Creus (born 25 January 1980), commonly known as Xavi Hernández () or simply Xavi, is a Spanish professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who most recently managed La Lig ...

(born 1980), Spanish association football manager and former player *

Xavier Hutchinson Xavier Hutchinson (born June 1, 2000) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Blinn and Iowa State. Early life Hutchinson attended Bartram T ...

(born 2000), American football player * Xavier Johnson (basketball) (born 1999), American basketball player * Xavier Johnson (American football) (born 1999), American football player * Xavier Jones (born 1997), American football player * Xavier Kelly (born 1997), American football player * Xavier Maassen (born 1980), Dutch racing driver *

Xavier McDaniel Xavier Maurice McDaniel (born June 4, 1963), nicknamed "X-Man", is an American former professional basketball player who, at 6 ft 7 in, played both small forward and power forward. He played college basketball for the Wichita State Sh ...

(born 1963), American basketball player * Xavier McKinney (born 1999), American football player *

Xavier Malisse Xavier Malisse (born 19 July 1980) is a Belgian tennis coach and a former professional player. Born in the north-western Flemish Region, Flemish city of Kortrijk and nicknamed ''X-Man'', he is one of only two Belgian men (the other being David G ...

(born 1980), Belgian tennis player *

Xavier Margairaz Xavier Margairaz (born 7 January 1984) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Margairaz was born in Rances. After beginning professionally with FC Lausanne-Sport and Neuchâtel Xamax, he was part of th ...

(born 1984), Swiss association football player * Xavier Munford (born 1992), American basketball player *

Xavier Nady Xavier Clifford Nady VI (; born November 14, 1978) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman. Nady played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Ari ...

(born 1978), American former baseball player * Xavier Newman-Johnson (born 1999), American football player *

Xavier Ouellet Xavier Ouellet (born July 29, 1993) is a French-Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing for HC Dinamo Minsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Ouellet was drafted 48th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in the 201 ...

(born 1993), French-Canadian ice hockey player * Xavier Proctor (born 1990), American football player *

Xavier Restrepo Xavier Restrepo (born April 12, 2002) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes. High school career Restrepo attended ...

(born 2002), American football player *

Xavier Rhodes Xavier Rhodes (born June 19, 1990) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles, and was selected by the Minnesota Vikin ...

(born 1990), American football player *

Xavier Robinson Xavier Robinson is an American football running back for the Oklahoma Sooners. Early life and high school Robinson attended Carl Albert High School in Oklahoma. As a junior, he rushed for 2,594 rushing yards and 41 total touchdowns and led his ...

, American football player *

Xavier Rush Xavier Joseph Rush (born 13 July 1977, in Auckland) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He is a former All Black number eight and second row, and played professional rugby in Wales for Cardiff Blues where he is the former captain. C ...

(born 1977), New Zealand rugby player *

Xavier Silas Xavier James Silas (born January 22, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player and current head coach for the Mets de Guaynabo of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), the highest professional basketball league in Puerto Rico. ...

(born 1988), American basketball player * Xavier Quentin Shay Simons or Xavi Simons (born 2003), Dutch association football player * Xavier Sneed (born 1997), American basketball player in the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl (, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is a professional basketball league in Israel and the highest level of basketball in the country. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL ...

* Xavier Thomas (born 1999), American football player * Xavier Tillman (born 1999), American basketball player *

Xavier Watts Xavier Watts (born November 22, 2001) is an American professional football safety for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, winning the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in ...

(born 2001), American football player * Xavier Woods (American football) (born 1995), American football player *

Xavier Worthy Xavier Worthy (born April 27, 2003) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, earning three All-Big 12 honors. Worthy ...

(born 2003), American football player

Other

* Xavier, Duke of Aquitaine (1753–1754) *

Xabier Arzalluz Xabier Arzalluz Antia (24 August 1932 – 28 February 2019) was a Basque politician, leader of the Basque Nationalist Party from 1979 until 2004. He was a nationalist and a Christian Democrat, considered during the period one of the most power ...

(1932–2019), Basque nationalist politician *

Xavier Bichat Marie François Xavier Bichat (; ; 14 November 1771 – 22 July 1802) was a French anatomist and pathologist, known as the father of modern histology. Although he worked without a microscope, Bichat distinguished 21 types of elementary tissues ...

(1771–1802), French anatomist and pathologist *

Xavier Briggs Xavier de Souza Briggs (born 1968) is an American educator, social scientist, and policy expert, known for his work on economic opportunity, social capital, democratic governance, and leading social change. He has influenced housing and urban po ...

(born 1968), American sociologist * Xavier Chamorro Cardenal (1932–2008), Nicaraguan journalist * Xavier Ehrenbert Fridelli (1673–1743), Austrian Jesuit missionary * Xavier Fernique (1934–2020), French mathematician * Xavier Le Pichon (1937–2025), French geophysicist *

Xavier Mertz Xavier Guillaume Mertz (6 October 1882 – 8 January 1913) was a Swiss polar exploration, polar explorer, mountaineer, and skier who took part in the Far Eastern Party, a 1912–1913 component of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, on wh ...

(1882–1913), Swiss explorer * Xavier de Montclos, (1924–2018), French historian of religion *

Xavier Roberts Xavier Roberts (born October 31, 1955, in Cleveland, Georgia) is best known for Cabbage Patch Kid dolls, once immensely popular soft sculpted dolls. Early life When Xavier Roberts was five, his father died in a car accident, leaving his mothe ...

(born 1955), American inventor and manufacturer of Cabbage Patch Kids * Xavier Rolet (born 1959), French businessman and chief executive officer of the London Stock Exchange * Francis Xavier Seelos (1819–1867), German Roman Catholic missionary *

Xavier Yap Jung Houn On 21 January 2022, at a playground in Greenridge Crescent, located in Singapore's Bukit Timah Road, Upper Bukit Timah, 11-year-old twin brothers Ethan Yap E Chern () and Aston Yap Kai Shern (), who were both diagnosed with autism, were murdered ...

(born 1973), Singaporean convicted double killer of his twin sons *

Xavier Zubiri Xavier Zubiri (; ; 4 December 1898 – 21 September 1983) was a Spanish philosopher. Zubiri was a member of the Madrid School, composed of philosophers José Ortega y Gasset (the founder of the group), José Gaos, and Julián Marías, among ...

(1898–1983), Spanish philosopher

Fictional characters

*Brigadier General Frank Xavier Hummel, antagonist of the film '' The Rock''. * Xavier Austin, a character in the Australian soap opera ''Home and Away'' *Xavier Bird, a character in Joseph Boyden's novel '' Three Day Road'' * Xavier Desmond, a character in the George R. R. Martin book series ''Wild Cards'' *Xavier Dolls, a character in the supernatural Western TV series '' Wynonna Earp'' *Xavier, the main character of the animated series '' Xavier: Renegade Angel'' *Xavier March, protagonist of Robert Harris' novel ''

Fatherland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic nation ...

'' *Xavier Quinn, protagonist of the film '' The Mighty Quinn'' *Xavier Harkonnen, a character in the fictional ''

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

'' universe *Xavier Hutchinson, of the reality TV series ''Earth'' which premiered on the

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

in 1986 *Xavier Benedict, a character in Julia Golding's ''Finding Sky'' book trilogy * Xavier Chavez, a character in the film ''

Saw II ''Saw II'' is a 2005 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman and written by Leigh Whannell and Bousman. It is the sequel to ''Saw (2004 film), Saw'' (2004) and the second installment in the Saw (franchise), ''Saw'' film series. The film sta ...

'' *Xavier Riddle, the main character in the PBS Kids animated series '' Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum'' *Xavier Thorpe, a character in the Netflix series ''

Wednesday Wednesday is the day of the week between Tuesday and Thursday. According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the third day of the week. In English, the name is derived from Old English and Middle English , 'day of Woden', reflecting ...

References

{{given name Basque masculine given names French masculine given names German masculine given names Swiss masculine given names English masculine given names Masculine given names