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I like Nicholas Peters' suggestion that it is derived from "Javier/Xavier" from Spanish. If it is indeed correct that the character is of Asturian origin, that would make sense! Incidentally, Xavier comes from the Basque name meaning "new house" (etxea barria). I have absolutely no evidence of this, and it is probably wrong, but it just occurred to me that it might be a French adaptation of the Arabic name Jafar.

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"Ja'far (Arabic: جَعْفَر‎), meaning in Arabic "small stream/rivulet/creek"

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If he is Asturian, I would bet more strongly on Javier, since Asturias is quite close to Pais Vasco (Basque Country), but if his Spanish origins are considered in the context of "Fortune-tellers' son," as in the musical, I get a little bit of a sense of Gitano (Spanish Gypsies), which could have a much stronger connection to Moorish names. I don't know, but I am excited to see this conversation evolve!

Re the etymology of the name Javert. Given that this is Inspector Javert surname, we are nevertold his first name. Now most surnames are based on 1/ Occupation of an ancestor e.g. Smith 2/ name of an an snscestor Peters / Peterson or place of origin. In the book Victor Hugo states "The peasants of Asturias are convinced that in every litter of wolves there is one dog, which is killed by the mother because, otherwise, as he grew up, he would devour the other little ones.Give to this dog-son of a wolf a human face, and the result will be Javert." Implying that Javert is originally from Northern Spain with the assumption that either he or more likely his father originates from on or around Javier or he is or his father were named after St Francisco Javier.
A Northern Spanish Saint of the 16th century; he is much venerated in Spain where Francisco Javier or Javier ( and variants there of) are common male given names.
Hope this helps

I've had a look at a database of 18th-19th C. French birth, marriage and death records. There are very few Javerts, mostly Jauvert or Javart, who are mostly Walloons. I suspect Hugo created the name as a play on language which means something, at least, to him. He did this with many characters. I think it's a fine name. Where are the French literature scholars in the house?

Hi,
I can't find anything on "Javert", but I found the following:

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JAVAN
Gender: Male
Meaning: Son of Japtheh
Origin: Hebrew
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JAVEN
Gender: Male
Meaning: Son of Japheth
Origin: Hebrew
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JAVIER
Gender: Male
Meaning: New house
Origin: Spanish
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?? Martina ??

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In French, Javert (zha-vair, like Jeanne, not John) is a surname, not a first name.

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So, I've found that the name Javert could come from the city of Javerlhac or Javerdat, both in France.
I did a little search, the name isn't common at all. There has only been 1 birth of someone with the surname JAVERT in France during the 20th century...