Aleixo is a Portuguese variant of Alexis, itself a short form of Alexander. Alexander originates in Greek language and means "defender of man". It has always been one of the most popular masculine given names all over the world. This is another name of the Greek hero Paris, and it also appears in the Bible. Born by numerous kings, emperors and popes, the most famous bearer until today remains the King of Macedon in the 4th century BC, Alexander the Great. In the US the popularity of Alexander started growing in the 1960s and currently it is one of the most popular masculine given names.