Meanings
- A female given name from Latin, a popular spelling variant of Silvia.
What lovely names for girls there are! There's Stella like the Evening Star, And Sylvia like a rustling tree, […]
1933, Eleanor Farjeon, “Girls' Names”, in Over the Garden Wall, Faber and Faber, page 911 more example
In the brouhaha over the reappointment of Superior Court Judge Sylvia Pressler, we organized massive support - telegramming, telephoning and writing to encourage the State Senate to exercise its advise and consent function responsibly.
1984 August 5, “Women Lawyers Unit Describes Its Role”, in The New York Times - A minor city in Reno County, Kansas, United States.
- Romanabbreviationhuman sciencesShort for Princess Rhea Silvia, the mother of Romulus and Remus, founders of Rome.
- astronomy87 Sylvia, a main belt asteroid; named for Rhea Silvia, mother of Romulus and Remus.
Origin
- Latinsilva“forest”
- EnglishSylvia
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.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan Sílvia
- SílviaTranslations
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
Sylvia. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sylvia
“Sylvia.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sylvia. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Sylvia,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sylvia.
Source: Sylvia on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.