MEANING & HISTORY
What does Sylvia mean?
Sylvia is a variant spelling of Silvia and became the usual English form. Silvia is feminine to Silvius, the Roman name associated with Latin silva, wood or forest.
The y spelling reflects a later naming form rather than a different root. Rhea Silvia, mother of Romulus and Remus in Roman legend, belongs to the older family. Shakespeare’s use of Silvia is a separate literary association in the name’s transmission.
References for this explanation
Pronunciation & syllables
Synthetic voice reading
Origin and name formation
English
Dictionary accounts by language
English
Feminine form of a Medieval form of Silvius, from Latin silva (“forest”). In myths, Rhea Silvia was the mother of famous twins Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. 6th-century saint Silvia was the mother of the pope Gregory the Great.
A female given name from Latin, a popular spelling variant of Silvia.
Wiktionary: Sylvia (English) ↗ · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki/Wiktextract; common glosses translated for Filipino.
People with the name Sylvia
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
Sylvia La Torre
Filipino actress-singer (1933–2022)
DOCUMENTED NAMESAKE
Sylvia Rosales
actor
Descriptions: Wikidata contributors (CC0).
Similar names to Sylvia
Explore names with a similar opening or ending.
Names in this collection
- Silvia♀Feminine form of Silvius; forest
- Sylvan♂Wood or forest, through a Latin word or Silvanus
- Olivia♀Traditionally associated with Latin olive
- Sydney♂♀Variant of the surname-name Sidney
- Sylvester♂Of the woods or woodland
Explore Sylvia further
Records & sources
Recorded use
- OpenHalalan / COMELEC · 2001
- 3 elected-candidate records ·
SYLVIA
· CSV row 10,256 · ODbL 1.0 - Wikidata
- 3 person records with this given name · Q10686817 · CC0
These records document use of the spelling; they are separate from birth statistics.
Follow the sources
- OpenHalalan — pinned 2001 COMELEC transcription (opens in a new tab)
- COMELEC — 2001 List of Elected Candidates (opens in a new tab)
- Wikidata given-name item Q10686817 — Sylvia (opens in a new tab)
- Wikidata — Sylvia La Torre (opens in a new tab)
- Wikidata — Sylvia Rosales (opens in a new tab)
- Wiktionary contributors — Sylvia (English) (opens in a new tab)
- Behind the Name — Sylvia (opens in a new tab)
- Behind the Name — Silvia (opens in a new tab)
- Behind the Name — Silvius (opens in a new tab)