Sylas is a modern spelling of Silas, a Greek name from the New Testament that is usually seen as a short form of Silvanus, the Roman god of woods, and so means "of the forest" or "woodland". Silas was a companion of the apostle Paul. The y spelling has ridden the success of the original: Sylas has been in the US top 1000 since 2009, climbed from number 612 in 2015 to number 440 in 2025 and is at its highest rank yet.