Apparatus and method for skipping XML index scans with common ancestors of a previously failed predicate

An apparatus and method are disclosed for skipping XML index scans with common ancestors of a previously failed predicate. An XML index is scanned by an XML index scan to filter entries of the index matching at least one search value (predicate) of an XML query. When the XML index scan finds a matching entry, the entry is passed to an XPath evaluation component. The XPath evaluation component evaluates the entry against remaining predicates of the XML query for further qualification. When the XPath evaluation component disqualifies an entry, the XPath evaluation component provides feedback to the XML index scan to skip remaining entries comprising a common ancestor of the disqualified entry's path. The XML index scan can then efficiently skip index entries that will not qualify against the XML query.