English
knitter
Knitter comes from Middle English knytter ‘Knitter, a person who knits as an occupation’, from knytten ‘to join’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *knuttô ‘a knot’.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*knuttô‘a knot’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*knuttijaną‘to bind into a knot’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*knuttijan‘to bind into a knot, tie with a knot’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cnyttan‘to tie’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500knytten‘to join’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500knytter‘Knitter, a person who knits as an occupation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1899knitter
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*knuttô‘a knot’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*knuttijaną‘to bind into a knot’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*knuttijan‘to bind into a knot, tie with a knot’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cnyttan‘to tie’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500knytten‘to join’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500knytter‘Knitter, a person who knits as an occupation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1899knitter
Earliest quotation: 1899, Joseph Conrad, The Heart of Darkness: “Ave! Old knitter of black wool.”
Formed from knit + -er
Proto-Germanic *knuttô ‘a knot’
Proto-Germanic *knuttijaną ‘to bind into a knot’
Proto-West Germanic *knuttijan ‘to bind into a knot, tie with a knot’
Old English cnyttan ‘to tie’
Middle English knytten ‘to attach or close with a knot’
English knit
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵónu ‘knee’
through Proto-Germanic *knuttô ‘a knot’
Today it means
noun A person or a machine that knits.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *knuttô / knitter