Sylvester

For other uses, see Sylvester (disambiguation).

Sylvester or Silvester is a name derived from the Latin adjective silvestris meaning "wooded" or "wild", which derives from the noun silva meaning "woodland". Classical Latin spells this with i. In Classical Latin, y represented a separate sound distinct from i, not a native Latin sound but one used in transcriptions of foreign words. After the Classical period y was pronounced as i. Spellings with Sylv- in place of Silv- date from after the Classical period.

Given name

Arts and entertainment

• Silvester Brito (1937–2018), American poet and academic
• Silvester Diggles (1817–1880), Australian musician and ornithologist
• Silvester Harding (1745–1809), English artist and publisher
• Sylvester James Jr. (1947–1988), also known as Sylvester, singer and disco performer
• Sylvester Levay (born 1954), Hungarian musician
• Sylvester McCoy (born 1943), Scottish actor
• Sylvester Stallone (born 1946), American actor
• Sylvester Stewart (born 1943), or Sly Stone, musician and record producer, best known as the frontman for Sly and the Family Stone
• Sylvester Terkay (born 1970), American professional wrestler

Politics

• Sylvester A. Dineen (1898–1950), American schoolteacher and politician
• Silvester Johnson (1813–1889), Kentucky merchant and politician
• Silvester Mirabal (1864–1939), American farmer and politician
• Silvester Sedborough (1515/16–1551), Member of Parliament
• Sylvester Turner (1954–2025), American attorney and politician, mayor of Houston, Texas

Religion

• Antipope Sylvester IV, a claimant from 1105 to 1111
• Pope Sylvester I (died 335), Saint Sylvester
• Pope Sylvester II (c. 946–1003)
• Pope Sylvester III (died 1062 or 1063)
• Silvester de Everdon (died 1254), bishop and Lord Chancellor
• Sylvester Gozzolini (1177–1267), saint and founder of the Sylvestrines religious order
• Silvester Jenks (1656–1714), English priest and theologian
• Silvester Petra Sancta (1590–1647), Italian priest and herald
• Patriarch Silvester of Alexandria (fl. 1569–1590)
• Sylvester of Assisi (died 1240), companion of Saint Francis of Assisi
• Sylvester of Antioch, 18th century Greek bishop
• Sylvester of Kiev (c. 1055–1123), clergyman and writer in Kievan Rus
• Silvester of Troina (died 1185), Basilian monk
• Silvester of Valdiseve (1278–1348), monk
• Sylvester of Worcester, early 13th century Bishop of Worcester
• Sylvester (priest), 15th-century priest of the Cathedral of the Annunciation and close advisor to Ivan IV
• Sylvester Graham (1794–1851), Presbyterian minister, father of graham crackers
• Silvester Horne (1865–1914), Congregational minister

Sports

• Silvester Ashioya (born 1948), Kenyan hockey player
• Sylvester Croom (born 1954), American football coach and former player
• Silvester Fernandes (born 1936), Kenyan hockey player
• Silvester Goraseb (born 1974), Namibian footballer
• Silvester Knipfer (1939–2010), German sports shooter
• Sylvester Mittee (born 1956), Saint Lucian/British boxer
• Silvester Sabolčki (1979–2003), Croatian footballer
• Silvester Šereš (1918–2000), Hungarian-Yugoslav footballer
• Silvester Shkalla (born 1995), Albanian footballer
• Silvester Takač (born 1940), Serbian-Yugoslavian footballer and football manager
• Silvester van der Water (born 1996), Dutch footballer

Other fields

• Sylvester of Marsico (c. 1100–1162), Count of Marsico in the Kingdom of Sicily
• Silvester Bolam (1905–1953), British newspaper editor
• Silvester Gardiner (1708–1786), American physician, pharmaceutical merchant and land developer

Surname

• Andy Silvester (born 1947), British bassist and multi-instrumentalist
• Attila Silvester (1944–2010), Greek choreographer
• Charles Sylvester (1774–1828), English chemist and inventor
• Dean Sylvester (born 1972), American hockey player
• David Silvester (born 1958), Scottish numerical analyst
• David Sylvester (medievalist), Canadian medieval historian
• Debbie Silvester (born 20th century), British-Australian chemist and professor
• Flor Silvester (1923–2008), Dutch graphic designer, illustrator, painter and sculptor
• Fred Silvester (1933–2025), British politician
• Frederick C. Silvester (1901–1966), British organist and composer
• Hannah Sylvester (1903–1973), American blues singer
• Harold Sylvester (born 1949), American film and television actor
• James Joseph Sylvester (1814–1897), English mathematician
• Jarrod Silvester (born 1965), Australian rules footballer
• Jay Silvester (born 1937), American athlete
• John Silvester (disambiguation)
• Joshua Sylvester (1563–1618), English poet
• Lewis Sylvester (born 1998), English boxer
• Marc Sylvester, American middle-distance runner
• Michael Silvester (born 1998), Irish rugby union player
• Michael Sylvester (politician), American politician and labor organizer
• Michael Sylvester (tenor) (born 1951), American opera-singer
• Mike Sylvester (born 1951), an Italian-American basketball player
• Mist (born 1992 as Rhys Thomas Sylvester), British rapper
• Nigel Sylvester (born 1987), American professional BMX athlete
• Paul J. Silvester (born 1963), American white collar criminal
• Peter Silvester (disambiguation)
• Philip Carteret Silvester (1777–1828), 2nd Baronet
• Rick Sylvester (born 1942), American stuntman
• Robin Sylvester (1950–2022), English musician
• Sherry Sylvester, American political worker and journalist
• Stephen Silvester (born 1951), English cricketer
• Victor Silvester (1900–1978), English musician and bandleader
• Walter Sylvester (1867–1944), English inventor
• William Sylvester (1922–1995), American TV and film actor
• William Henry Thomas Sylvester (1831–1920), English army officer and surgeon

Fictional characters

• Bear Sylvester, a character on the BBC soap opera Doctors
• Sylvester the Cat, a Looney Tunes character
• Sylvester Junior, a son of Sylvester J. Pussycat, Sr.
• Sylvester, a donkey in the children's book Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
• Sylvester, a main character in the series Trapped in the Closet
• Sylvester Rax, an antagonist in the 1985 animated show M.A.S.K. (TV series)
• Sylvester McMonkey McBean, a character in the Dr. Seuss book The Sneetches and Other Stories
• Sue Sylvester, a main character on the Fox sitcom Glee

See also

• Saint Sylvester's Day