Originally a surname.
A name mostly used in Catalan, Portuguese, French and English.
Derives from Etxaberri, a Basque place, meaning “the new house”.
Etxeberria is another spelling of this place which is also a Basque surname.
It was the surname of Saint Francis Xavier. He is the patron saint of the missionaries.
Xavier was a Navarrese Basque Roman Catholic missionary and travelled to China, India, Japan and elsewhere in Asia.
He was born into a noble family and he lived a privileged childhood.
His birthplace was Javier, Xavier in Old Spanish, also derived from the Basque Etxaberri, located in Navarre, Spain.
In 1525 Xavier went to study in Paris where he met Ignacio de Loyola. The two of them, and five others later founded the Jesuit order.
His last name was adopted as a given name mostly by Catholics.
The Spanish form of Xavier is Javier.
Feminine forms of the name are Xaviera, Saveria, Zavia, Xavia.
Variants are: Xavi, Xabi, Xavior, Javier, Xaver, Saverio.
Famous bearers are Xavier Cugat, Xavier Dolan, Xavier Montsalvatge, Xavier Beauvois, Xavier Rudd, Xavier Nady, Xavier Deluc, Xavier Giannoli, Xavier Laurent.
Xavier Cugat, was a musician, violinist and great arranger. He was one of the most leading figures in the spread of Latin music in the United States. Cugat’s personal papers are preserved in the Biblioteca de Catalunya.
In the following video, Cugat’s fourth wife Abbe Lane performs live “La Malagueña” (by E. Ramirez & P. Galindo), with Xavier Cugat’s orchestra.