Sylvester

Last seen for girls in 1981 at #9,110 · #2,207 for boys in 2025, 64 births
Given to boys 98.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1889 · 112 births
Debut · boys
89 births
In top 100 · boys
never
of 146 years
Total births · boys
43,230
since 1880

Sylvester over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Sylvester has never cracked the top 100 here.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201892peak #126, 1889boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025—#2,20764
2024—#2,09871
2023—#2,14767
2022—#2,09471
2021—#2,10968
2020—#2,46752
2019—#1,97474
2018—#2,12266
2017—#2,06567
2016—#2,08667
2015—#1,98373
2014—#1,92075
2013—#1,86676
2012—#2,27057
2011—#2,17360
2010—#2,14462
2009—#2,05067
2008—#2,06267
2007—#2,16462
2006—#1,79077
2005—#1,88967
2004—#1,91164
2003—#1,53883
2002—#1,57178
2001—#1,51480
2000—#1,39190
1999—#1,32091
1998—#1,41880
1997—#1,169103
1996—#1,23690
1995—#1,010121
1994—#963131
1993—#893143
1992—#1,017115
1991—#904135
1990—#712203
1989—#708193
1988—#662203
1987—#646199
1986—#634199
1985—#632194
1984—#584209
1983—#628184
1982—#584218
1981#9,1106#584215
1980—#613204
1979—#537249
1978—#561223
1977—#570217
1976—#590190
1975—#544218
1974—#575195
1973—#502241
1972#8,2925#529224
1971#6,6197#473291
1970#6,3627#515245
1969—#499241
1968#7,0165#470259
1967#5,4577#439293
1966—#423326
1965—#397388
1964—#405390
1963#5,2967#374454
1962#6,5785#373467
1961—#349518
1960#6,3905#347504
1959#4,6258#326559
1958—#316582
1957—#312604
1956#5,3256#297621
1955#3,77810#283644
1954#4,6557#278640
1953#3,9559#276635
1952#4,4837#280603
1951—#266640
1950#3,05212#256643
1949—#277588
1948#3,8838#271600
1947#5,2955#281596
1946—#278538
1945#4,0256#258508
1944—#250534
1943#3,2499#272501
1942—#267498
1941#3,0309#237538
1940#3,5037#257460
1939#2,20614#244472
1938#3,4507#237503
1937#2,9409#244476
1936—#237482
1935#2,57511#224529
1934#2,56711#232497
1933#2,8689#232495
1932#2,83110#216561
1931#2,9729#226525
1930#2,30614#217599
1929#2,19115#224570
1928#2,28415#219599
1927#2,25616#218611
1926#1,58927#201688
1925#2,61713#203691
1924#2,13718#198708
1923#1,89521#190725
1922#2,61213#194707
1921#2,19517#185755
1920#2,73112#174807
1919#1,74522#173749
1918#1,88720#172766
1917#1,55224#175715
1916#3,0319#172715
1915#2,9009#163706
1914#2,4349#164538
1913#2,3318#157464
1912#2,9795#167348
1911#2,1916#154219
1910#1,52110#154200
1909#1,9576#164151
1908#1,4399#143166
1907#1,5128#149151
1906#1,4168#156125
1905—#160126
1904#1,09211#154124
1903#1,7925#156114
1902#1,5946#141135
1901#1,2278#138120
1900#1,5617#160131
1899—#16094
1898—#147115
1897—#144111
1896—#148111
1895—#15899
1894#1,2377#152101
1893—#17085
1892#1,2786#16198
1891—#19464
1890#1,2106#15193
1889—#126112
1888—#17783
1887—#17771
1886—#18273
1885—#16282
1884—#19967
1883—#17769
1882—#18274
1881—#15976
1880—#15389
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Sylvester was already there! It came in at #153, and was given to 89 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 2004–2025, when fewer than 78 boys a year got the name.

Where Sylvester is popular in 1892

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Sylvester
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 109 spots since 2024 (#2,098 → #2,207)
  • 260 spots since 2020 (#2,467 → #2,207)
  • 224 spots since 2015 (#1,983 → #2,207)
  • Biggest jump: 124 spots in 1993 (#1,017 → #893)
  • Biggest drop: 192 spots in 1991 (#712 → #904)
Rise & fade · boys
9 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1889 at #126 (112 births)
  • Births halved by 2020, 131 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 1,000 for 114 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: never
  • Top 1,000: 114 yrs · run 1880–1991
Share of babies · boys
1 in 887
  • Highest: 1 in 887 boys born in 1901 were named Sylvester (0.11%)
  • Latest: 1 in 26,689 boys born in 2025 (0.00%)
  • Its best rank, #126 in 1889, was only 1 in 987 (0.10%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1920s
  • 15.9% of all boys named Sylvester (6,861) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s796#126 (1889)#169
1890s971#144 (1897)#159
1900s1,343#138 (1901)#152
1910s5,420#154 (1911)#165
1920s6,861#174 (1920)#201
1930s5,139#216 (1932)#231
1940s5,361#237 (1941)#265
1950s6,171#256 (1950)#289
1960s3,840#347 (1960)#408
1970s2,293#473 (1971)#540
1980s2,018#584 (1982)#628
1990s1,212#712 (1990)#1,064
2000s735#1,391 (2000)#1,788
2010s677#1,866 (2013)#2,060
2020s393#2,094 (2022)#2,187

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Sylvester in 1892

girls
#1,278
6 births · 1 in 35,390 girls
boys
#161
98 births · 1 in 1,245 boys

Top girls' names in 1892

  1. #1Mary13,172
  2. #2Anna5,542
  3. #3Elizabeth3,461
  4. #4Margaret3,435
  5. #5Ruth3,290
  6. #6Florence3,154
  7. #7Emma3,128
  8. #8Ethel3,035
  9. #9Helen2,936
  10. #10Clara2,661
  11. #1,278Sylvester6

Top boys' names in 1892

  1. #1John9,039
  2. #2William7,782
  3. #3James5,398
  4. #4George4,760
  5. #5Charles4,319
  6. #6Frank3,150
  7. #7Joseph3,064
  8. #8Robert2,710
  9. #9Harry2,460
  10. #10Henry2,452
  11. #161Sylvester98
More about 1892

girls

212,339 girls got a published name in 1892; 1 in 35,390 of them was named Sylvester, which outranked 23.1% of the 1,661 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 20.6% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Sylvester
  1. #1,171Will7
  2. #1,171Zela7
  3. #1,171Zelia7
  4. #1,278Sylvester6
  5. #1,278Abby6
  6. #1,278Achsah6
  7. #1,278Ader6
  8. #1,450Adelaida5
  9. #1,450Adrienne5
  10. #1,450Albena5

Tied with 171 names at #1,278; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1891
Risers
  1. ↑ 553Lollie#1,093 → #540
  2. ↑ 536Leonore#1,332 → #796
  3. ↑ 528Gwendolyn#1,213 → #685
  4. ↑ 507Antonette#1,213 → #706
  5. ↑ 507Monnie#1,213 → #706
Fallers
  1. ↓ 700Nathalie#750 → #1,450
  2. ↓ 654Eudora#624 → #1,278
  3. ↓ 611Leva#839 → #1,450
  4. ↓ 611Roy#839 → #1,450
  5. ↓ 609Pollie#669 → #1,278

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

122,035 boys got a published name in 1892; 1 in 1,245 of them was named Sylvester, which outranked 87.2% of the 1,260 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 37.0% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Sylvester
  1. #157Owen102
  2. #159Christopher100
  3. #160Abraham99
  4. #161Sylvester98
  5. #161Nelson98
  6. #163Felix96
  7. #163Manuel96
  8. #163Roscoe96

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1891
Risers
  1. ↑ 559Pierce#963 → #404
  2. ↑ 505Milford#963 → #458
  3. ↑ 466Rose#963 → #497
  4. ↑ 466Omar#963 → #497
  5. ↑ 396Shelby#841 → #445
Fallers
  1. ↓ 542Maude#524 → #1,066
  2. ↓ 502Bernice#564 → #1,066
  3. ↓ 502Wilton#564 → #1,066
  4. ↓ 480Wellington#476 → #956
  5. ↓ 469Jule#597 → #1,066

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1892 →