Gustavo

Gustavo is the Latinate form of a Germanic male given name with respective prevalence in Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian. It has been a common name for Swedish monarchs since the reign of Gustav Vasa.

It is derived from Gustav /ˈɡʊstɑːv/, also spelled Gustaf, of Old Swedish origin, meaning “staff of the Gods/Goths” or “great royal staff” or "staff of the Geats", derived from the Old Norse elements Gautr ("Geat") and stafr ("staff"). Other Swedish variants/derivatives: Gösta, Göstav, Gustafsson, Gustavsson.

Such a name is also etymologically indicative of a Slavonic origin (through Swedish) from "Gostislav", a compound word from Old Slavic "Gost'" ("guest") and "slava" ("glory"). Other Slavonic variants/derivatives: Goslav, Gustaw, Gusti, Gustik, Gusty.

Such a name in the United States also bears diminutive forms in English, which serve as nick names: Gus, Gussie, Gussy, Goose. To avoid confusion, note that these nick names are also commonly used for a different class of names: Augustine, Augustus, etc.

People with the name

Brazil has the highest count, over half a million, of people bearing the name.

Mexico and Argentina follows, each having over a quarter million count.

Uruguay, a nation between Argentina and Brazil, has the highest density of people bearing the name.

Drama, film and television

Gustavo Alatriste, Mexican actor, director, and producer of films, married to Silvia Pinal
Gustavo Aguerre (born 1953), Argentine artist, curator, writer, and theatre designer
Gustavo Sorola, American actor, podcast host, and co-founder of the American company, Rooster Teeth

Engineering, religion and science

Gustavo Colonnetti (1886–1968), Italian mathematician and engineer
Gustavo Gutiérrez Merino (born 1928), Peruvian theologian and Dominican priest regarded as the founder of Liberation Theology at the University of Notre Dame
Gustavo Tamayo, Colombian ophthalmologist
Gustavo Marín, Chilean-French economist and sociologist
Gustavo Scuseria (born 1956), Robert A. Welch Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Physics & Astronomy and Professor of Materials Science & NanoEngineering at Rice University

Music

Gustavo Angel (born 1968), Mexican singer of Los Temerarios
Gustavo Assis-Brasil, Brazilian jazz guitarist
Gustavo Becerra-Schmidt (born 1925), Chilean composer
Gustavs Butelis (born 1978), Latvian rapper and producer known professionally as Gustavo
Gustavo Gonzalez, also known as Big Duke, member of American hip-hop group Psycho Realm
Gustavo Cerati (1959-2014), Argentine artist and songwriter
Gustavo Cordera (born 1964), Argentine rock musician
Gustavo Dudamel (born 1981), Venezuelan conductor
Gustavo Lapis Ahumad, founding member of American goth rock band Bitter Grace
Gustavo Ramírez Reyes, Mexican musician and composer
Gustavo Santander, Colombian composer
Gustavo Santaolalla (born 1952), Argentine musician, producer, and composer

Military and politics

Gustavo A. Madero (1875–1913), participant in the Mexican Revolution
Gustavo Adolfo Espina Salguero (born c.1946), former vice-president of Guatemala
Gustavo Arcos Bergnes (1926–2006), Cuban revolutionary alongside Fidel Castro
Gustavo Díaz Ordaz Bolaños Cacho (1911–1979), former President of Mexico
Gustavo Espinoza, Peruvian politician and Congressman
Gustavo Esteva, Mexican activist who founded the Universidad de la Tierra in Oaxaca, Mexico
Gustavo Jiménez (c.1886–1933), Peruvian Colonel who served as President of Peru for six days
Gustavo Leigh Guzmán (1920–1999), representative of the Air Force in the Government Junta that ruled Chile
Gustavo Noboa Bejarano (born 1937), politician and former President of Ecuador
Gustavo Petricioli (born 1928), Mexican economist and ambassador to the United States
Gustavo Rojas Pinilla (1900–1975), former military dictator and Colombian political figure
Gustavo Vázquez Montes (1962–2005), Mexican politician of the PRI, governor of Colima
Gustavo de Arístegui [es], a Spanish politician and diplomat
Carlos Gustavo dos Anjos, São Toméan diplomat and Foreign Minister

Sports

Gustavo Adrián López (born 1973), Argentine footballer
Gustavo Andrés Oberman (born 1985), Argentine footballer
Gustavo Ayón, Mexican basketball player
Gustavo Badell (born 1972), Venezuelan IFBB professional bodybuilder
Gustavo Barros Schelotto, Argentine footballer
Gustavo Benítez (born 1953), Paraguayan football defender and manager
Gustavo Boccoli (born 1978), Brazilian footballer
Gustavo Borges (born 1972), Brazilian swimmer
Gustavo Cabrera (born 1979), Guatemalan footballer
Gustavo Chacín (born 1980), starting pitcher in Major League Baseball
Gustavo Santos Costa (born 1996), Brazilian footballer for Hồ Chí Minh City F.C.
Gustavo Dezotti, Argentine football striker
Gustavo Endres, Brazilian volleyball player
Gustavo Enrique García (born 1980), Mexican footballer
Gustavo Gómez (born 1993), Paraguayan footballer
Gustavo Kuerten (born 1976), Brazilian tennis player
Gustavo Marzi (1908–1966), Italian fencer
Gustavo Manduca (born 1980), Brazilian footballer
Gustavo Méndez (born 1971), Uruguayan footballer
Gustavo Méndez (referee) (born 1967), Uruguayan football (soccer) referee
Gustavo Morínigo (born 1977), Paraguayan football midfielder
Gustavo Munúa (born 1978), Uruguayan football goalkeeper
Gustavo Nascimento da Costa (born 1995), Brazilian footballer
Gustavo Nery (born 1977), Brazilian footballer
Gustavo Oliveros (born 1946), Cuban fencer
Gustavo Lobo Paradeda (born 1979), Brazilian-born Russian futsal player
Gustavo Poyet (born 1967), Uruguayan footballer
Gustavo Pereira (born 1997), Brazilian footballer for Retrô
Gustavo Quinteros Desabato (born 1965), Bolivian football player and coach
Gustavo Salgueiro de Almeida Correia (born 1985), Brazilian footballer
Gustavo Sant'Ana Santos (born 1995), Brazilian footballer for Sài Gòn
Gustavo Claudio da Silva (born 1988), Brazilian footballer for Nakhon Si United
Gustavo Valderrama (born 1977), Venezuelan volleyball player
Gustavo Varela (born 1978), Uruguayan footballer
Luis Gustavo Dias (born 1987), Brazilian footballer
Arthur Gustavo Malzahn III (born 1965), American Football coach

Writing

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer (1836–1870), Spanish writer of poetry and short stories
Gustavo Adolfo Martínez Zuviría (1883–1962), novelist and scriptwriter from Argentina
Gustavo Adolfo Mellander (born 1935), Swedish-Panamanian writer, professor, college president, and historian
Gustavo Pérez Firmat (born 1949), Cuban-American writer, poet, professor
Gustavo Gorriti, Peruvian journalist
Gustavo Sainz (born 1940), Spanish language author from Mexico

Other professions

Gustavo C. Garcia (1915–1964), American civil rights attorney and advocate
Gustavo Charif (born 1966), Argentine artist
Gustavo Cisneros (born 1946), Venezuelan-born media mogul
Gustavo Franco, former President of the Brazilian Central Bank Bank
Gustavo Gianetti (born 1979), Brazilian model, Mister World 2003
Gustavo Martínez Zuviría, de facto Federal Interventor of Córdoba, Argentina
Gustavo Rol (1903–1994), Italian sensitive
Gustavo R. Vincenti (1888–1974), Maltese architect and developer
Gustavo tillo, Head of the Montreal Latino Mafia and founder of Los Latinos.

Fictional characters

Gustavo, in the video game Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Gustavo, in the children's animated series Thomas & Friends
Gustavo Fring, in the American television drama series Breaking Bad on AMC
Gustavo Rocque, on the show Big Time Rush
Dr. Gustavo Bauer, in Season 6, Episode 16 (Room 147) of the ABC television drama series Castle
Gustavo Borracha, major antagonist in Maintenance.