Explore the Family Name Sylvan

The meaning of Sylvan

1. Swedish: ornamental name derived from the Latin adjective silvanus ‘pertaining to a wood or forest’ (a derivative of silva ‘forest, wood’), used as a translation of the Swedish name element skog ‘forest’. 2. West Indian (Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada): from the personal name Sylvan, from Latin Silvanus (see Sylvain).

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Sylvan in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Sylvan has seen a slight increase between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Sylvan was ranked as the 41657th most popular surname in the United States with a count of 492 individuals bearing it. By 2010, the rank had risen to 39419th and the count increased to 558, representing a 13.41% growth. Consequently, the proportion of people per 100,000 with this surname increased by 5.56%, moving from 0.18 in 2000 to 0.19 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#41,657	#39,419	5.37%
Count	492	558	13.41%
Proportion per 100k	0.18	0.19	5.56%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sylvan

Regarding ethnic identity associated with the Sylvan surname, the Decennial U.S. Census data indicates some shift over the decade. The largest group identified as White, though this share decreased from 52.03% in 2000 to 49.82% in 2010. The percentage of those identifying their ethnicity as Black increased from 40.85% to 43.37%. Those identifying as Hispanic also saw an increase, from 3.25% to 4.30%. Meanwhile, the proportion identifying as two or more races dropped significantly, from 2.44% to 1.61%. No individuals identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	52.03%	49.82%	-4.25%
Black	40.85%	43.37%	6.17%
Hispanic	3.25%	4.3%	32.31%
Two or More Races	2.44%	1.61%	-34.02%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%