Name Analysis

XAVIER

Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Portuguese, Catalan, Spanish (Archaic)
Pronounced: ZAY-vee-ər (English), ZAY-vyər (English), ig-ZAY-vee-ər (English), za-VYAY (French)
Derived from the Basque place name Etxaberri meaning “the new house”. This was the surname of the Jesuit priest Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552). He was a missionary to India, Japan, China, and other areas in eastern Asia, and he is the patron saint of the Orient and missionaries. His surname has since been adopted as a given name in his honour, chiefly among Catholics.

SAMUEL

Gender: Masculine
Usage: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Scandinavian, Finnish, Biblical
Other Scripts: Ancient Hebrew
Pronounced: SAM-yoo-əl (English), SAM-yəl (English)
From the Hebrew name שְׁמוּאֵל (Shemu’el) which could mean either “name of God” or “God has heard”. Samuel was the last of the ruling judges in the Old Testament. He anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel, and later anointed David.

As a Christian name, Samuel came into common use after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers include American inventor Samuel Morse (1791-1872), Irish writer Samuel Beckett (1906-1989), and American author Samuel Clemens (1835-1910), who wrote under the pen name Mark Twain.