Latin silva, "forest", or a short form of Silvanus — of the forest. Paul's travelling companion in Acts; George Eliot's weaver in Silas Marner.
Silas ranks 71st among American boys in 2025, with 4,646 born that year. Its best year was 2025, when 4,646 babies were given the name, ranking 71st. The typical living American called Silas is about 9 years old today. It is relatively most common in Maine, where it accounts for 0.45% of births.
Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.