Given name & surname · also Basque, Spanish

Xavier

“owner of a new house”·“one who is bright”

Xavier is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “owner of a new house” and “one who is bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.

Original SpanishJavier

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Meaning & origin

What it means

Interpretations include “owner of a new house” and “one who is bright”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.

Where it comes from

This spelling has been associated with Spanish and Basque naming traditions.

How it developed

In Catalan usage, Xavier developed from Xabier.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1886. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.

From dated birth records

Xavier through the years

Babies since 1880: 161,200; 160,332 boys · 868 girls
Most popular year: 2007; 6,577 babies
2025: 3,241; #108 for boys · #10,874 for girls
2021–25 vs 2016–20: −19%; Easing

Xavier in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1886–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

Where it’s given

Most at home inNew Mexico, Nevada, Arizona

FewerMore, relative to births Not published

2025 births by state of birth. Tiles are equal-sized so small states stay visible. Highest rates: New Mexico (34), Nevada (40), Arizona (115), California (566), Indiana (86).

By the numbers

In 2025, this name appeared in 3,232 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 108 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 19.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 6,561 in 2007. It also appeared in 9 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (566). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 119,289 as a first name in 2020; 3,775 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.

Xavier’s family of names

In English usage, Xavier has a diminutive in XAV. Xavier has a feminine form in Xaviera. In Spanish usage, Xavier has a related form in Javier.

Walk Xavier’s family in the name graph

Around the world

Xavier has relatives in 35 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.

44 related names in 35 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Dots on the border stand for languages further away. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 23

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

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Spellings & scripts 1

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

Xavyerlikely spelling

Across languages 35

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

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People named Xavier

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Appears in

Similar names

If you love Xavier, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

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Sibling ideas

Names that share Xavier’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

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