An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Schilf

by Friedrich Kluge

Schilf, neuter, ‘rush, bulrush, reed,’ from the equivalent Middle High German schilf, Old High German sciluf (masculine and neuter?); unknown to the other Teutonic dialects; perhaps it is an early loan-word from Latin scirpus, ‘rush,’ to which it cannot be primitively allied. Others, regarding Schilf as a genuine Teutonic word, connect it with Old High German sceliva, Middle High German schelfe, ‘bowl of fruit and pulse.’