The etymology of SILVAN ART | Why the name is "SILVAN ART" instead of "sylvan art"

Welcome! You've found the internet home of SILVAN ART, makers of the finest wooden maps on the internet. Sylvan is an alternate spelling of Silvan.     

 

What's in a name: SILVAN ART vs Sylvan Art

Both parse as valid phrases, but only one is our name. 

In English, Oxford Definitions defines Silvan or Sylvan: adjective, literary.

1) consisting of or associated with woods; wooded
2) pleasantly rural or pastoral.

SILVAN ART (1) original wooden artwork

But where did the name come from?  Although immediately recognizable in English, the family name "Silva" came originally from misspelled Italian, and further back to the Latin root 'sylva'

The derivation of the name doesn't come from the English adjective "Silvan" but rather the surname "Silva"

Art from Silva -> della Silva -> SILVAN ART

In Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, the woodland elves were Silvan Elves - those denizens of Lothlórien with all their whimsy and magic. The mighty Galadriel, had she been an artist, might have created art with sylvan qualities - Sylvan Art.

But to avoid all ambiguity - the correct usage of our name is "SILVAN ART", as opposed to "SYLVAN ART" (with a y).

Click through for more about sylvan art...