| Javier | Nicolás | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | New house | victory of the people |
| Origin | Spanish | spanish |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | hah-vee-AIR | nee-ko-LAHS |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1917 | 1882 |
| Peak year | 2001 (2,637) | 2003 (3,003) |
| In 2025 | 1,252 | 2,053 |
| Trend | Declining | Steady |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Javier | Nicolás |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 8,461 | 11,843 |
| 2010s | 17,204 | 21,216 |
| 2000s | 24,637 | 28,267 |
| 1990s | 22,115 | 21,219 |
| 1980s | 14,482 | 10,268 |
| 1970s | 10,452 | 3,870 |
| 1960s | 6,423 | 1,388 |
| 1950s | 2,899 | 1,041 |
| 1940s | 809 | 694 |
| 1930s | 321 | 567 |
| 1920s | 155 | 749 |
| 1910s | 11 | 367 |
| 1900s | 0 | 51 |
| 1890s | 0 | 19 |
| 1880s | 0 | 26 |
Javier comes from the Basque Etxeberria, “new house,” via Saint Francis Xavier.
The Spanish form of Nicholas, from the Greek Nikolaos, combining nike 'victory' and laos 'people'. Popularized by Saint Nicholas of Myra, the 4th-century bishop who became the basis for Santa Claus.
Nicolás is more popular than Javier today: about 2,053 US babies were given the name Nicolás in 2025, compared with 1,252 named Javier.
Javier means New house (Spanish origin), while Nicolás means victory of the people (spanish origin).
In US records, Javier first appears in 1917 and Nicolás in 1882, so Nicolás has the longer recorded history.