Silas

Where Silas comes from

From Latin Sīlās, from Ancient Greek Σίλας (Sílas), from Aramaic שְׁאִילָא (šəʾīlā), cognate of Hebrew שָׁאוּל (šāʾūl, “Saul”). Doublet of Saul.
— Wiktionary's entry for Silas
  • Aramaic
  • 2 syllables
Along the way
  1. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #139 among boys — 98 babies in the first year on record.
  2. 1970
    Silas Weir Mitchell born
    American actor
  3. 1998
    Silas Katompa Mvumpa born
    DR Congolese footballer
  4. 2025
    Peak, #71
    4,639 babies named Silas — more than any year before or since.
  5. 2025
    The comeback
    Back to #71 after sinking to #1,003 in 1967.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Aramaic of Biblical origin.
Namesakes
  • Silas Weir Mitchell · American actor, born 1970
  • Silas Katompa Mvumpa · DR Congolese footballer, born 1998
  • Silas Kiplagat · Kenyan distance runner, born 1989
  • Silas Carson · English actor, born 1965
  • Silas Weir Mitchell · American physician, 1829–1914

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.