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ArchivesRe: Att. Lumia and other Spaniards! XAVIER/JAVIER
in reply to a message by Andy ;—)
Well, I'm Catalan, like Lumia.
Xavier and Javier are not pronunced the same:
Xavier, Catalan form of the Basque Xabier: shu-bih-eh, with a closed "e", as in café, I guess.
Javier, the Spanish form: hah-bi-ehr, with a hard "h" sound, the same "e" as in Catalan and a sounding "r".
They both come from the Basque, and although I don't know it, I think Xavier is closer to the original Xabier than Javier.
But, wait for Lumia, she always has brilliant answers with surprising facts, hasn't she? ;-D
EVA
Xavier and Javier are not pronunced the same:
Xavier, Catalan form of the Basque Xabier: shu-bih-eh, with a closed "e", as in café, I guess.
Javier, the Spanish form: hah-bi-ehr, with a hard "h" sound, the same "e" as in Catalan and a sounding "r".
They both come from the Basque, and although I don't know it, I think Xavier is closer to the original Xabier than Javier.
But, wait for Lumia, she always has brilliant answers with surprising facts, hasn't she? ;-D
EVA
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Replies
My answer isn't going to be so onomastically excellent, but I'd like to contribute what I know nonetheless. I have lots of family in Ecuador, and there are Xaviers pronounced Javier everywhere. Tons. Recently born, too. This was actually going to be my middle name if I were a boy. I have never been able to distinguish the first sound from the normal J sound in Spanish (i.e. an h sound).
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Spelling of first names in Spanish-speaking countries
In Spanish-speaking countries, it is very usual to find first names spelled incorrectly (Gustabo, Migel...) and English (Joshua, Michel...) or pseudo-English (Deici, Leidi...) first names.
And it is usual, too, to choose the English form of a first name instead of the Spanish form. (If you are interested about the phenomenon of the use of foreign names, I can search for some links of articles about this, because it is a subject very annotated by Spanish linguist and Spanish names experts.)
But this doesn't mean that this forms are legit Spanish names. There is a lot of Joshuas in Spanish-speaking countries, but the Spanish form is Josué, Joshua still be a foreign form (an English form).
Nowadays, the only correct form of the name in Spanish is Javier, with J and V.
Remind: in Spanish, first names are subject to RAE (Academy) spelling rules and the possible graphical variants of a first name are very limited. So, in Spanish (as in other languages as Basque, Catalan, etc.), there are some correct forms of names and some incorrect forms.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
In Spanish-speaking countries, it is very usual to find first names spelled incorrectly (Gustabo, Migel...) and English (Joshua, Michel...) or pseudo-English (Deici, Leidi...) first names.
And it is usual, too, to choose the English form of a first name instead of the Spanish form. (If you are interested about the phenomenon of the use of foreign names, I can search for some links of articles about this, because it is a subject very annotated by Spanish linguist and Spanish names experts.)
But this doesn't mean that this forms are legit Spanish names. There is a lot of Joshuas in Spanish-speaking countries, but the Spanish form is Josué, Joshua still be a foreign form (an English form).
Nowadays, the only correct form of the name in Spanish is Javier, with J and V.
Remind: in Spanish, first names are subject to RAE (Academy) spelling rules and the possible graphical variants of a first name are very limited. So, in Spanish (as in other languages as Basque, Catalan, etc.), there are some correct forms of names and some incorrect forms.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
This message was edited 11/17/2005, 7:37 AM
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Etxeberri: from etxe, "house", and berri, "new".
Etcheverry is a French adaptation of the surname Etxeberri.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
Etcheverry is a French adaptation of the surname Etxeberri.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
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How do you pronouce "Etxeberri"?
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Thanks to both of you!
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et cheh BEH ree
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Pronunciation remarks
In Spanish, the pronunciation is khah-BIEHR, with a diphthong. The sound of Spanish J is usually represented with a KH and it's more or less the same sound of CH in German or in Scottish "loch".
In Basque (Xabier) is pronounced shah-bee-EHR.
In some old Spanish documents, Javier is spelled Xavier (or Xabier or Javier), because some centuries ago the X had a sound [kh] (it is the same raison of some X in place names as México, Oaxaca, or in surnames as Ximénez, Mexías). But nowadays, the only correct form of the name in Spanish is Javier (orthographical RAE rules order).
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
In Spanish, the pronunciation is khah-BIEHR, with a diphthong. The sound of Spanish J is usually represented with a KH and it's more or less the same sound of CH in German or in Scottish "loch".
In Basque (Xabier) is pronounced shah-bee-EHR.
In some old Spanish documents, Javier is spelled Xavier (or Xabier or Javier), because some centuries ago the X had a sound [kh] (it is the same raison of some X in place names as México, Oaxaca, or in surnames as Ximénez, Mexías). But nowadays, the only correct form of the name in Spanish is Javier (orthographical RAE rules order).
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
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Thanks for the time being!
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