According to one embodiment, a semiconductor light emitting device includes a first semiconductor layer of a first conductivity type, a second semiconductor layer of a second conductivity type, and a light emitting layer provided between the first semiconductor layer and the second semiconductor layer and configured to emit a light having a peak wavelength of 440 nanometers or more. Tensile strain is applied to the first semiconductor layer. An edge dislocation density of the first semiconductor layer is 5×109/cm2 or less. A lattice mismatch factor between the first semiconductor layer and the light emitting layer is 0.11 percent or less.