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Dictionary of Medieval Names
from European Sources

Sylvester m. Latin silvestris 'wooded, wild', from Latin silva 'woodland'.

The name of three popes and an anti-pope, and two 12th C saints.

Belgium
Dutch
1564 Sylvester MPSA p. 74; 1568 Sylvester ibid. p. 76; 1570 Sylvestre ibid. p. 77; 1574 Sylvester ibid. p. 79; 1597x1598 Silvester BoonenGes p. 330
England
Latin
1340xc1450 Silluester (nom) CovGuild-1 p. 70; 1408 Silvester (nom) GCCYork p.11
Dutch
1589 Sylvester AuFr Poorten
Early Modern English
1560 Silvester BUmar-vol2 p. 60; 1565 Sylvester BarnstapleBap p. 14; 1571/2 Selvister RegBisham p. 3; 1572/3 Syluester SurMus p. 167; 1577 Silvester DEmar-vol1 p. 83; 1583/4 Sillvester SurMus p. 26; 1584 Silvester ibid. p. 190; 1585 Silvester DEmar-vol2 p. 11; 1590 Silvester BUmar-vol1 p. 17, DEmar-vol1 p. 86; 1591 Silvester BUmar-vol2 p. 118; 1594 Silvester DEmar-vol2 p. 30; 1596/7 Silvester bruton1 p. 123
Middle French
1580 siluestre WCS p. 16
France
Latin
969 Silvestri (gen) CartSavII 4; 1000? Silvester (nom) ibid. 9, Silvestri (gen) ibid. 9; 1135 Silvester (nom) clairvaux-12thc 7; 1147x62 Silvester (nom) ibid. 48; 1173 Silvestri (gen) ibid. 154; 1180 Silvestris (gen) RotScaNor p. 27; 1208 Silvester (nom) ChartCaen2 7; 1217 Silvester (nom) ibid. 8
Old French
1313 Selvestre Paris1313 p. 30
Middle French
1386 Silvestre MemBret-II col. 514; 1392 Sevestre ibid. col. 607; 1563 Sevestre RegPCC-1 p. 535, Silvestre ibid. p. 33, Sylvestre ibid. p. 43; 1564 Silvestre ibid. p. 44; 1565 Silvestre ibid. p. 121
Italy
Latin
999 Sylvestro (abl) HGSav-4.1 p. 1; 1348 Silvestrum (acc) INP 24, Sylvestri (gen) ibid. 25; 1366 Sylvester (nom) Livi 31; 1367 Silvester (nom) ibid. 131/132; 1368 Silvester (nom) ibid. 197, Silvestri (gen) ibid. 188; 1449 Silvestri (gen) VitAs2 V; 1464 Silvester (nom) CUP-III-I CCXXXI; 1490 Silvestro (abl) VitAs2 III; 1521 Silvestro (abl) ibid. VI; 1522x1532 Silvester (nom) DSF p. 51, 13, Silvestri (gen) ibid. p. 51, 13
Italian
1513x1521 Silvestro LeoX p. 24
Portugal
Latin
1256 Silvester (nom) PHGCRP-I no. 17
Portuguese-Galician
1238 Sylvestre PHGCRP-I no. 22b
Spain
Spanish
1576 Silvestre Catalogo-5.2 4024
Sweden
Old Swedish
1409 Silfuaster (nom) SDHK no. 17268, Siluaster (nom) ibid. no. 17256
Early Modern Swedish
1543 Silvets (gen) Audén1980 p. 163
Cite as: R. Le Get, N. Shiel, S.L. Uckelman. "Sylvester". In S.L. Uckelman, ed. The Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, Edition 2021, no. 1. http://dmnes.org/2021/1/name/Sylvester.