noun · femininefirst declension
silva
silva f (genitive silvae)
Classical[ˈsɪɫ.wa]Ecclesiastical[ˈsil.va]
№ 234 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary
Meaning
- femininewood; forest
- feminineorchard; grove
Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers
multae arborēs ūnā; in silvīs ferae habitant.silva -ae f — in Mille Verba, Rūs et Agrīcultūra
locus multārum arborumsilva -ae (f) — in Metamorphoses I, †
forest
silva -ae — in Viri Romae Facillimi, ch. 2, 11, 12, 14, 24
Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms
Silva · Saltus · Nemus · Lucus
Silva (ὕλη) denotes a wood, in a general sense, merely with reference to the timber, like ὕλη; whereas saltus (ἄλσος) as a wild place, or wood in the midst of mountains, like νάπη; nemus (νέμος) as a pleasant place, as a grove; lucus (λόχμη) as a sacred place, as a grove consecrated to the gods, like ἄλσος, ἆλτις. (ii. 93.)
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | silva | silvae sylvae |
| genitive | silvae sylvae | silvārum sylvārum |
| dative | silvae sylvae | silvīs sylvīs |
| accusative | silvam sylvam | silvās sylvās |
| ablative | silvā | silvīs sylvīs |
| vocative | silva | silvae sylvae |
Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book
- montes vestiti silvis
- wooded hills.
silva (less correctly sylva), ae (old
I. gen. silvaï;
silua as trisyl., Hor. C. 1, 23, 4; id. Epod. 13, 2; cf. Prisc. p. 546 P.), f. cf. Gr. ὕλη,, a wood, forest, woodland (syn.: saltus, nemus, lucus). I. Lit.: (lupus) Conicit in silvam sese, Enn. ap. Non. 378, 19 (Ann. v. 75 Vahl.): omne sonabat Arbustum fremitu silvaï frondosaï, id. ap. Macr. S. 6, 2 (Ann. v. 197 ib.):
(ignes) Conficerent silvas, Lucr. 1, 906: per silvas profundas, id. 5, 41; so id. 5, 992: densa et aspera, Cic. Att. 12, 15; id. Div. 1, 50, 114: (Ancus Marcius) silvas maritimas omnes publicavit, id. Rep. 2, 18, 33: rursus ex silvā in nostros impetum facerent, Caes. B. G. 2, 19: Caesar silvas caedere instituit, id. ib. 3, 29: juga coepta movere Silvarum, Verg. A. 6, 257: dea silvarum, i. e. Diana, Ov. M. 3, 163; cf.: silvarum numina, Fauni Et Satyri fratres, id. ib. 6, 392: nemorosis abdita silvis, id. ib. 10, 687: stabula silvis obscura vetustis, id. ib. 6, 521: gloria silvarum pinus, Stat. S. 5, 1, 151: formidolosae, Hor. Epod. 5, 55: salubres, id. Ep. 1, 4, 4: virentes, Cat. 34, 10: Silvius, casu quodam in silvis natus, Liv. 1, 3, 6.—B. Transf.
1. A plantation of trees, an orchard, a grove; a growth or crop of other plants, bush, foliage, etc. (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose):
signa in silvā disposita, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 19, § 51: domūs amoenitas silvā constabat, Nep. Att. 13, 2; Sen. Ep. 86, 3; cf.: inter silvas Academi quaerere verum, Hor. Ep. 2, 2, 45: tristis lupini Sustuleris fragiles calamos silvamque sonantem, Verg. G. 1, 76; 1, 152; 2, 310; 4, 273; Ov. M. 1, 346; 3, 80; 12, 352; Grat. Cyneg. 47; Col. 7, 9, 7 al.: i. q. frondes, foliage, Ov. M. 7, 242: congeries silvae, of wood, id. ib. 9, 235.—2. In plur., trees (poet.):
nemus omne intendat vertice silvas, Prop. 1, 14, 5: silvarum aliae pressos propaginis arcus Exspectant, Verg. G. 2, 26: fractis obtendunt limina silvis, Stat. Th. 2, 248; cf. Luc. 2, 409; 4, 525: bracchia silvarum, Stat. Th. 1, 362; id. S. 4, 3, 79; 3, 3, 98; Sen. Oedip. 542.—II. Trop., a crowded mass, abundance or quantity (class.;
in Cic. sometimes with quasi): omnis ubertas et quasi silva dicendi ducta ab illis (Academicis) est, Cic. Or. 3, 12; cf. id. ib. 41, 139: silvae satis ad rem, Plaut. Mil. 4, 4, 18: silva rerum, sententiarumque, Cic. de Or. 3, 26, 103: silva virtutum et vitiorum, id. ib. 3, 30, 118: silva observationum sermonis antiqui, Suet. Gram. 24 fin.—Poet.: immanis, an immense forest (of darts), Verg. A. 10, 887; cf.: densam ferens in pectore silvam, a forest (of darts), Luc. 6, 205 Cort.: horrida siccae Silva comae, a bristling forest, Juv. 9, 13: Silva, as the title of a book; cf. Gell. Noct. Att. praef. § 6; Quint. 10, 3, 17.—So the Silvae of Statius.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
silva (not sylva; poet. silua, trisyl., H.), ae, f
2 SER-, a wood, forest, woodland : silvae publicae: genus hominum in silvis dissipatum: ex silvā in nostros impetum facere, Cs.: silvarum potens Diana, H.: dea silvarum, O.: nemorosis abdita silvis, O.: salubres, H.: in silvis natus, L.— A plantation of trees, orchard, grove, crop, bush, foliage : signa in silvā disposita: domūs amoenitas silvā constabat, N.: inter silvas Academi quaerere verum, H.: sonans, V.: (aras) silvā incinxit agresti, foliage , O.: Congeries silvae, of wood , O.— Trees (poet.): Silvarum aliae pressos propaginis arcūs Exspectant, V.: nudata cacumina silvae Ostendunt, i. e. above the water , O.—Fig., a crowd, mass, abundance, quantity, supply, material : ubertas et quasi silva dicendi: rerum ac sententiarum. —Poet.: Immanis, a vast forest (of darts), V.: horrida siccae comae, a bristling forest , Iu.
Origins
Traditionally derived from Proto-Indo-European *sel-, *swel- (“firewood, wood, beam, board, frame, threshold”), and compared with Ancient Greek ὕλη (húlē, “wood, timber”) and Old English syl (“sill, threshold, foundation”). However, De Vaan is implicitly skeptical of this derivation, and leaves the origin open.
Borrowings
- Englishsilva
- Englishsylva
- Frenchsylve
- Romaniansilvă
- Interlinguasilva
Ibero-Romance
- Portuguesesilvafrom Old Galician-Portuguese silva
- Spanishselvafrom Old Spanish selva
- Portugueseselva
- Aragoneseselva
- Asturianselva
- Asturiansilva
- Galiciansilvafrom Old Galician-Portuguese silva
- Ladinoselvafrom Old Spanish selva
- Ladinoסילב׳הfrom Old Spanish selva
Gallo-Romance
- Catalanselva
- Occitanselva
Italo-Romance
- Italianselva
Rhaeto-Romance
- Friulianselve
Gallo-Italic
- Romagnolsèiba
- Romagnolsiba
- Romagnolsélva