Where does “selva” come from?

selva (English) comes from Italian selva, from Latin silva, from Proto-Indo-European sēl- — to calm, quiet, be favourable.

selva (English): Heavily forested ground in the Amazon basin

Definitions

  1. Heavily forested ground in the Amazon basin

Ancestry of “selva”, step by step

selva traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Italian selva

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italianselvaforest, wood
2Latinsilvawood, forest; orchard, grove
3Proto-Indo-Europeansēl-to calm, quiet, be favourable

via Portuguese selva

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Portugueseselvajungle; woods, forest; mass, multitude, forest
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sēl- →Every word from Latin silva →Every word from Italian selva →
selva — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer