When using Webflow, why does setting a Div inside another Div to position:Absolute always make the parent object the Body, even if it's not the actual parent? Also, why does clicking on the Body link next to the target icon not change the parent as indicated in the interface?

When setting position: Absolute for a div inside another div in Webflow, the absolute element may anchor to the Body instead of the intended parent because Webflow requires the parent to have position: Relative (or Absolute, Fixed, or Sticky) to act as a positioning context. Clicking the "Body" link near the target icon doesn't change the positioning context if the immediate parent lacks a defined position.

1. Why Absolute Position Defaults to Body

• In Webflow and CSS, an element with position: Absolute will by default anchor to the nearest positioned ancestor (an ancestor with position: Relative, Absolute, Fixed, or Sticky).
• If no such ancestor exists, it defaults to the Body (or the closest relatively positioned wrapper, like a Section or Container).
• To ensure the div positions itself relative to its actual parent, set the parent’s position to Relative before applying position: Absolute to the child.

2. Why Clicking "Body" in the Target Icon Doesn't Work as Expected

• The "Body" label next to the target icon in the Webflow UI is only an indicator of the current positioning context; clicking it does not automatically change the parent’s position.
• To change the positioning context, you must manually set the intended parent's position to Relative in the Style panel.

3. How to Fix This Issue

• Select the parent div and set position: Relative in the Style panel.
• Ensure the child div has position: Absolute (now it will be positioned relative to the div with position: Relative).
• Confirm that the absolute div moves inside its immediate parent instead of anchoring to the Body.

Summary

When using position: Absolute, the element aligns to the nearest positioned ancestor—or Body if no positioned ancestor exists. To prevent this, manually set position: Relative on the intended parent. The "Body" link in the target indicator panel displays the current positioning context but does not alter the element hierarchy.