My husband and I have been wondering for a while if our last name create a problem for girls and what to do if it does. Our last name is [name]Sylvester[/name]. Not only is this a harsh sounding word, but it’s also a man’s name. Not only is this a man’s name, but it’s an old man’s name (the still crusty, not back in yet kind. Not the cool kind). It’s obviously the kind of man’s name you’d be surprised to hear on a girl. [name]Do[/name] we need to compensate for this? Should we choose super frilly names for any daughters we have? This is not our taste AT ALL.
I don’t have a problem with men’s names as last names (that would be hard to avoid), but few last names sound as harsh and crusty and solidly manly as [name]Sylvester[/name] does to me. I think it’s a hard name for girl’s to carry. [name]Do[/name] you agree and what can we do to make it more manageable?
I’m actually jealous, lol! I would love to have the LN [name]Sylvester[/name]. It’s very dashing and stylish, imo, and it reminds me of silver, which makes me think of twinkling gems, and the one [name]Sylvester[/name] I knew (besides my aunt’s lazy cat, lol) was this very grandfatherly-like, sweet, friendly man. He was like a mentor to me in college… I just think [name]Sylvester[/name] would be cool all around, haha.
I would probably pick something distinctly feminine (read: not unisex), but still fairly short-and-sweet (which would avoid the frilly problem). What sort of names have you been looking at? I think something like [name]Evie[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (or [name]Eva[/name], or [name]Eve[/name], [name]Evelyn[/name], etc., nn [name]Evie[/name]), [name]Anna[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name], [name]Lila[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name], [name]Clara[/name]/[name]Claire[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name], etc. would work really well.
Good luck!
Agreed.
- [name]Athena[/name]
[name]Sylvester[/name] Stallone is my first thought when I hear [name]Sylvester[/name], and he isn’t exactly what I would call crusty.
A lot of surnames are also male names. Maybe I’m missing something, but I don’t understand why anyone would be surprised to hear [name]Sylvester[/name] on a girl if it’s her surname. I also don’t understand how a surname can be hard to carry unless it has some great legacy attached to it that the kid has to live up to.
I agree with [name]Ashley[/name]. You don’t have to choose something super frilly. I would recommend something short and feminine, but that’s it.
[name]Sylvester[/name] is silvery & gorgeous & works with a lot…and I think it would be awesome as a fn on a boy!
Really anything from [name]Ada[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] to [name]Zara[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] works. I don’t know what your taste is? But even some strong fns like [name]Morgan[/name] or [name]Vivian[/name] work fine with your last name. Or something just as crusty/old like [name]Bernadette[/name]. something slick & modern like [name]Quinn[/name], [name]Brook[/name], [name]Brynn[/name] or
On the contrary, I think [name]Sylvester[/name] is light, sibilant, fresh, and altogether lovely! Your real challenge will be finding a girls’ name that doesn’t end in -es or -er – a problem I have with my own surname.
Ahhh this is good to hear! We thought it brought to mind my grandfather’s old friends, old men coughing grossly into their red hankies. Which is obviously not what you’d want people to associate with your little girls. Thanks for all the compliments on my last name 
Sorry for the communicating poorly: I don’t think it’s surprising as a girl’s surname (It’s my surname and I’m a girl 
)- I meant I don’t expect to ever meet a girl who was given the first name [name]Sylvester[/name]. But I do think certain last names would be harder/easier to work with because people having certain expectations when they hear them. If your name was Boink, for example, you probably want to stay away from names like [name]Quinn[/name], which sounds clownish unless clownish is what you like. If your name was Lady, but you think an especially girly image would harm your daughter’s future job prospects, you might skip over [name]Clarabelle[/name] or [name]Daisy[/name] even if it’s 1 of your favorites. Some surnames start out neutral, and some start out with association attached. My association with my own name appears to be way off! I guess it’s not surprising, though, because that is the way I think of other variations of it, like [name]Sylvan[/name] (this makes me think of misty woods in the morning).
We’ve been looking at names like [name]Adaire[/name] [name]Charlotte[/name] (def our favorite), [name]Ariadne[/name]/[name]Ariane[/name], [name]Maris[/name], [name]Eliza[/name], and [name]Georgia[/name].
Yeah, we’ve run into a few -er problems too. The worst was when we had a brief conversation about how much we liked [name]Esther[/name]
I meant- I guess your associations with it shouldn’t surprise me.
I agree with most pp’s; its a good surname and not at all crusty old man. I don’t think you need a ‘frilly’ girl’s name, just make sure it is identifiably female, so no androgenous or ‘surnamey’ names.
Of the suggestions above [name]Ada[/name], [name]Evie[/name] and [name]Zara[/name] are standouts to me; they all have a lovely rhythm with [name]Sylvester[/name].
[name]Georgia[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] sounds great to me! In this instance I like the bouncy A matching endings. [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] is a bit too matchy though for me. What about:
[name]Adelaide[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (old-time non-frilly name that’s coming back - [name]Addy[/name] or [name]Ada[/name] for short)
[name]Zara[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (as others have described - lovely rhythm)
[name]Pippa[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (or [name]Philippa[/name] - deffo not frilly but has options and is still clearly a female name)
[name]Carmen[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (strong and female, not frilly - makes [name]Sylvester[/name] sound a bit exotic!)
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (mentioned by pp, love this)
[name]Mabel[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (rather “of the moment”, I think it matches well)
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (v strong female name, not girly)
Also there are some classic feminine names that are fairly underused but definitely not frilly:
[name]Elizabeth[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] (could shorten to [name]Eliza[/name] just verbally but keep [name]Elizabeth[/name] as the official name?)
[name]Katherine[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name]
[name]Madeleine[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name]
I think you have loads of options to make a beautiful name alongside [name]Sylvester[/name] - I’m jealous too!
I would just stay away from gender neutral names, unfortunately, including [name]Adair[/name], since it can be used for boys.
To further dispel your apprehensions regarding your last name, [name]Sylvester[/name] is still the nickname for New Year’s [name]Eve[/name] festivities in several parts of the world, including [name]Brazil[/name] and Germany/[name]Austria[/name] (St. [name]Sylvester[/name] [name]Day[/name] is [name]December[/name] 31). We live in Germany and the days after [name]Christmas[/name] are full of preparations for [name]Sylvester[/name] [name]Day[/name] glitz and debauchery: huge fire-crackers, champagne, small sequined dresses… Definitely not an crusty old man image for me!
[name]Esther[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] - that would have been fun 
[name]How[/name] about [name]Alessa[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] LOL
[name]How[/name] about:
[name]Kate[/name]
[name]Aria[/name]
[name]Audra[/name]
[name]Erin[/name]
[name]Enid[/name]
[name]Bree[/name]
[name]Hope[/name]
[name]Lark[/name]
[name]Skye[/name]
[name]Cara[/name]
[name]Tori[/name]
[name]Alice[/name]
[name]Tamsin[/name]
[name]Opal[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name]
[name]June[/name]
[name]Imogen[/name]
[name]Dawn[/name]
If you like [name]Esther[/name], why not use [name]Estelle[/name], [name]Stella[/name], or something with similar meaning (ie. [name]Clarice[/name]/[name]Claire[/name]).
[name]Hannah[/name] or even [name]Johanna[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] sounds quite nice. Maybe your last name would carry well with a more classic name like these?
However, my advise would be to avoid 3 syllable first names since it wouldn’t flow as easily with your 3 syllable LN. I might gear more toward 2 syllables. (I tend to like 3 syllable names so this would certainly be tough; my maiden name was only 1 syllable ~ now, married, I have 4!!! What a transition, especially for a name-lover!)
I don’t think your last name is bad at all. I agree with [name]Ashley[/name]. Pick something along the lines of [name]Ella[/name], [name]Ava[/name], [name]Violet[/name].
I agree. [name]Sylvester[/name] sounds silvery and chimey (I don’t know why, it makes me think of silver wind chimes) and misty mornings. I think it’s lovely and quite like it as a surname or as a first name on a boy.
I agree with the other assessments, overtly frilly you do not need. Something short, sweet, and feminine should do the trick quite nicely. [name]Violet[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] has a very nice ring to it with the purply and silvery images right next to each other. [name]Anne[/name], [name]Quinn[/name], [name]Ella[/name], [name]Olive[/name]/[name]Olivia[/name] and I loved teh suggestion of [name]Audra[/name] I think it sounds really deep and rich, a lovely contrast to light and silvery [name]Sylvester[/name].
go overly girly for the first name. [name]Arabella[/name] [name]Sylvester[/name] is very nice
i worked with someone with the last name sylvester and never once thought anything of her last name. i rarely would consider the last name unless it was really odd or if it rhymed with the first name
I think the hardest part of [name]Sylvester[/name] is the -er which eliminates any name with an -ar, -er, -ir, -or, or -ur ending (our LM also ends in -er). Otherwise, it sounds to me like the name of an actress or other gutsy sort of gal. I would go for a short, slick FN that is more on the classy or old-fashioned side. A “newer” trendy name (like [name]Zoe[/name]) might take away a bit of the “dash.” On the other hand, on-trend vintage names would work really well!