Sylvester

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