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Vikivortaro and Vikipedio say ‘malsekejo’, and I suspect that that should be the preferred term, but Benson (under ‘land’) gives ‘marĉejo’. (Neither Wells, nor ReVo, nor Sonja has an entry for this.) An example of a wetland is the Everglades National Park.

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Generally speaking, I would trust Benson over a random Wikipedia article. ReVo is often a good starting point but it's worth double checking anything you find there.

"Malsekejo" strikes me as a literal translation of the English term (perhaps from someone translating the English Wikipedia article), so I would consider that suggestion with caution.

Marĉejo, on the other hand, is a common expression. It's listed in PIV (malsekejo is not), and it's used quite a bit in Adersen's Fables, among other sources.

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Wetlands are places where the ground is soaked and sometimes slightly covered with water and hence the plant life adapted to a wet environment. A mire is a type of wetland that accumulates peat.

Looking at the Vikipedio description of "marĉo", as well as the PIV-entries for "marĉo" and "torfo"(peat), I conclude that "marĉo" means "mire".

Vikipedio

Marĉo konsistas el diversaj torf-travoloj. Ekzistas marĉoj, kiujn enfluas grunda akvo kaj marĉoj sen ligo al grunda akvo, akvumitaj nur per pluvakvo.

PIV

Marĉo

Akvujo de senflua densa akvo kun malseka, mola fundo, konsistanta plejparte el malkombiniĝintaj vegetaĵoj.

Torfo

Materialo (petro) bruligebla, malpeza, spongeca, bruna, kiu estiĝas en marĉoj per malkombiniĝo de vegetaĵoj.

Since marĉo is used to name a specific type of wetland I do not think marĉejo is a suitable translation for "wetland" itself. Malsekejo is a good alternative.

Everglades consists mainly of marsh, which is another type of wetland. According to Vikipedio it is called aluvia grundo in Esperanto. The article briefly explains the difference between marĉo and aluvia grundo. It would be interesting to see what Benson says about "marsh".

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  • I notice you didn't mention marĉejo -- which was in the OP, and which I included in my answer as the best choice for wetland.
    – Tomaso Alexander
    Commented Apr 15, 2017 at 17:40
  • I'm sorry, I didn't put much importance in the suffix. Could you explain why it is necessary? I edited my answer to show that I am adressing the question.
    – Antonia Montaro
    Commented Apr 15, 2017 at 21:50
  • I think I addressed that in my own answer. Benson says it matters. PIV seems to say it matters. My concern is that you focused on the difference between marĉo and malsekejo, but didn't address the option presented by one of North America's best known Esperanto lexicographers.
    – Tomaso Alexander
    Commented Apr 15, 2017 at 22:48
  • If I am right and marcxo means mire, why would adding -ej make it mean wetland? Your answer is out of a language-use angle, and I choose to focus on biology instead. Here, the differing feature of the ecosystems is the peat-accumulation. I think it is relevant.
    – Antonia Montaro
    Commented Apr 18, 2017 at 11:34
  • My response is that Benson and the authors of PIV tell us what marĉejo is. My assumption is that people who are interested in this topic will take the time to check those resources. PIV and CEED have been wrong before, but I think it's up to the people asserting that they're wrong to give good reasons as to why they're wrong.
    – Tomaso Alexander
    Commented Apr 18, 2017 at 12:37

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