Sylvan
11% girls · 89% boys
About Sylvan
One of the many variations of Silvanus, the name of the Roman forest god, and a little-used member of the freshly stylish Sylv- family of names. Silvan is the sleek German and Dutch form. Given to less than 100 boys each year in the US, it's nevertheless in the Nameberry Top 500, perhaps owing to its gentle yet sleek sounds, the -an ending, and the nature-related meaning.
Sylvan is also given to girls, where it ranks #8811 in the US.
Pronounced SIL-vun.
As of October 2026, Sylvan ranked #1674 for boys and #8811 for girls in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #555 for boys in 1912 and #7529 for girls in 2024, Nameberry popularity #549 for boys.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #3,214 | 35 | 18.2 |
| 2015 | #4,159 | 25 | 13 |
| 2016 | #2,833 | 43 | 22.7 |
| 2017 | #3,305 | 35 | 18.9 |
| 2018 | #3,510 | 32 | 17.6 |
| 2019 | #2,690 | 48 | 26.8 |
| 2020 | #2,751 | 45 | 26.1 |
| 2021 | #2,217 | 64 | 36.6 |
| 2022 | #1,948 | 80 | 45.8 |
| 2023 | #2,026 | 75 | 43.8 |
| 2024 | #1,911 | 83 | 48.2 |
| 2025 | #1,674 | 99 | 58 |
World rankings
Sylvan for boys
Similar names
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Sylvan on lists
Famous Sylvans
- Sylvan Augustus EbanksBoy
Blake, British footballer
- Sylvan Nathan GoldmanBoy
American inventor of the shopping cart
- Sylvan RichardsonBoy
British guitarist of Simply Red
Sylvan in pop culture
- Sylvan ForesterBoy
character in Thomas Love Peacock's 1817 novel 'Melincourt; or, Sir Oran Haut,on'
- Sylvan EssoBoy
band