Javier (name)

Javier () is the Spanish spelling of the masculine name Xavier.

The name derives from the Catholic Saint called Francis de Xavier, where ''Xavier'' refers to the saint's birthplace. This birthplace name, in turn, has Basque roots, etymologically originating in the word ''etxaberri'' (''etxe berri'' in standard spelling), meaning "castle" or "new house".

The original place name went through a Romance phonetic change in Navarro-Aragonese, a Romance language spoken in the neighbouring Romanzado (cf. Leire) from the Early Middle Ages. Like examples can be found in Irunberri > Lumbier, Erronkari > Roncal. It was later borrowed by Castilian. Other variations of this name include Xaverius, Xever, Javiero, and Saverio. The feminine Javiera, Saveria, Zaviera, and Saverina are less common.

''Etxeberria'', ''Echeverría'', ''Echevarría'', ''Etxebarri'', and ''Chávarri'' are Basque surnames related to the name by etymology.

Its diffusion is due to the fame of Jesuit priest and missionary Saint Francis Xavier ( es, San Francisco Javier). When he was canonized, places and people were named after him, which popularized the name.

Contemporary use of the name Javier is found in Spain, Equatorial Guinea and Latin American countries, where it is popular.

Etymology: from Etxaberri to Javier

* Loss of the initial e
* Loss of the ending i
* Middle, accentuated, e became the diphthongized form
* Old Spanish X was pronounced as in Basque, like an English ''sh''. Old Spanish then merged with J (then pronounced the English and later the French way) into , which is now spelled J and pronounced like Scottish or German ''ch'' or as English ''h''.

Pronunciation

In the English-speaking world, especially in the British media, the pronunciation of "Javier" is frequently confused with the pronunciation of French words or names ending in "-ier" such as Xavier or Olivier. The resulting pronunciation "HAV-ee-ay" is a hybrid of Spanish, French and English. In Spanish, correctly spoken, the final syllable sounds much like the English word "air", not the English word "eh".

English speakers sometimes pronounce "Xavier" as "zavier". The latter pronunciation is used for the fictional character Charles Xavier, leader of the X-Men; however it is not incorrect to pronounce it this way when considering that many 'X' words derive in English from the Greek phonetics, which pronounce it as a soft 'Ks' sound.

In other languages

* Aragonese Chabier
* Asturian: Xabel
* Basque: Xabier
* Castilian: Javier
* Catalan Xavier
* English: Xavier
* French: Xavier
* Gaeilge: Savy
* Galician: Xabier
* German: Xaver ()
* Italian: Saviero or Saverio
* Latin: Xaverius
* Maltese: Saverju
* Leonese: Xabiere
* Philippine languages: Javier or Xavier
* Polish: Ksawery
* Portuguese: Xavier
* Russian: Ксаверий (''Ksavierij'')

References

External links

* http://www.medievalscotland.org/problem/names/xavier.shtml

See also

* Javy
* Javier (surname)

{{Given name
Spanish masculine given names