Sylis
English name of uncertain origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 972 living Americans carry the first name Sylis. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Sylis today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sylis births was 2013 (84 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sylis. 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
972
~ 1 in 352,628 Americans
Peak year
2013
84 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,257
Tracked since 1998
Census
Sylis in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 692 people with the first name Sylis, which placed it at #16,339 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#16,339
National first-name rank
People counted
692
692 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
64.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sylis
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sylis is White at 64.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (18.2%) and Two or More Races (7.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Sylis described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Sylis at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.3% · 445
- Hispanic or Latino18.2% · 126
- Two or more races7.9% · 55
- Black or African American5.5% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.5% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 11
Popularity
Sylis: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sylis from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 596 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Sylis remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sylis 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 Sylis during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Sylis' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Sylis, while Missouri, Arizona, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 14 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Sylis
The given name Sylis is believed to have its origins in ancient Greece, dating back to the 5th century BC. It is thought to be derived from the Greek word "sylos," which means "spoil" or "plunder." This could suggest that the name was initially given to individuals who were successful in battle or warfare.
During the classical period of ancient Greece, the name Sylis was not widely recorded or documented. However, in the works of the renowned historian Thucydides, there is a mention of a Spartan soldier named Sylis who fought valiantly in the Peloponnesian War against Athens between 431 and 404 BC.
The name Sylis gained more prominence during the Byzantine era, which spanned from the 4th to the 15th century AD. One notable figure bearing this name was Sylis of Alexandria, a renowned scholar and philosopher who lived in the 5th century AD. He is credited with writing several treatises on philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy, which influenced the intellectual discourse of his time.
In the Middle Ages, the name Sylis was relatively uncommon, but it was occasionally recorded in various regions of Europe. One notable example is Sylis of Gloucester, an English monk and chronicler who lived in the 12th century. He is best known for his work "The Life and Miracles of St. Wulfstan," which provides valuable insights into the religious and cultural practices of that era.
During the Renaissance period, the name Sylis gained some popularity in certain parts of Europe. One notable figure was Sylis Tolomei, an Italian humanist and scholar who lived in the 15th century. He was known for his contributions to the revival of classical learning and his promotion of the study of ancient Greek and Latin texts.
Another historical figure bearing the name Sylis was Sylis Ambrose, a German composer and organist who lived in the 16th century. He is renowned for his compositions for the organ, which were widely performed and celebrated during his lifetime.
In more recent times, the name Sylis has been less commonly used, but it has continued to appear sporadically throughout various cultures and regions. Some notable individuals with this first name include Sylis Rodney, a British politician and social activist who lived in the 20th century, and Sylis Khatri, an Indian novelist and playwright who gained recognition for his works exploring social and cultural issues.
It is important to note that the historical records and references to the name Sylis are relatively scarce, and its origins and evolution remain somewhat obscure. However, the name's enduring presence across different eras and cultures suggests a rich and intriguing history that continues to captivate those interested in the study of onomastics.
People
Sylis + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sylis 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
Sylis: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sylis?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 972 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sylis 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 352,628 US residents.
Is Sylis a common name?
We classify Sylis as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 980 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sylis most popular?
The single biggest year for Sylis was 2013, when 84 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sylis is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sylis in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 692 people with the name Sylis, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,339 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Sylis in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Sylis?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sylis leans strongly male. 684 people counted with this name were male (97.4%), compared with 18 female bearers (2.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Sylis?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sylis is White at 64.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (18.2%) and Two or More Races (7.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Sylis most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Sylis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.3% (445 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Sylis in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sylis a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sylis 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.
Is Sylis still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sylis in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Sylis can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people are called Sylis?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.