Silvester
From Latin origin, meaning "of the woods" or "one who lives in the forest".
Name Census estimates that about 691 living Americans carry the first name Silvester. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Silvester today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Silvester births was 1960 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Silvester. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
691
~ 1 in 496,027 Americans
Peak year
1960
32 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
2023 SSA rank
#12,032
Tracked since 1884
Popularity
Silvester: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Silvester from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 218 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Silvester by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Silvester during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Silvesters live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Texas, Arkansas, California recorded the most babies named Silvester, while Mississippi, California, Arkansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 26 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Silvester
The name Silvester is derived from the Latin word "silva" meaning "forest" or "woods". It originated as a Latin personal name during the Roman Empire, around the 3rd century AD. The name was commonly used in ancient Rome and throughout the territories under Roman influence at the time.
One of the earliest and most famous bearers of the name was Pope Silvester I, who reigned as the Bishop of Rome from 314 to 335 AD. He is credited with converting the Roman emperor Constantine to Christianity and was an influential figure in the early Christian church.
In the Middle Ages, the name Silvester became popular across Europe, particularly in regions with strong ties to the Catholic Church. Notable individuals from this period include Silvester II, who was Pope from 999 to 1003 AD and is considered one of the most learned men of his time.
The name also gained prominence in literature and folklore. In the 14th century, the German poet Konrad von Würzburg wrote the epic poem "Der Trojanische Krieg" (The Trojan War), which featured a character named Silvester, the son of the legendary Trojan hero Aeneas.
During the Renaissance, the name Silvester was favored by humanist scholars and intellectuals. One notable example is the Italian philosopher and poet Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, whose full name was Giovanni Pico della Mirandola e Concordia Silvester (1463-1494).
In the 19th century, the German writer and philosopher Friedrich Schiller used the name Silvester for a character in his play "Wallenstein's Lager" (Wallenstein's Camp), which was part of the Wallenstein trilogy.
Other notable figures throughout history with the name Silvester include the British architect Sir Silvester Fleming (1835-1915), who designed several notable buildings in London, and the American actor Silvester Stallone (born 1946), known for his roles in the Rocky and Rambo film series.
People
Silvester + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Silvester as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Silvester: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Silvester?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 691 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Silvester going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 496,027 US residents.
Is Silvester a common name?
We classify Silvester as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,306 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Silvester most popular?
The single biggest year for Silvester was 1960, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Silvester is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Silvester a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Silvester in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.