Knitting is one of many fiber arts that have been practiced for centuries. Knitting is thought to have originated in the fifth century in the middle east. There are other methods of creating fabrics with yarns that predated knitting such as nalebinding. Knitting has remained popular to the present day (Ross, 2017). There are many different styles of knitting that originated in different regions of the world.

Beginning in the 14th century, knitting guilds were established that were entirely made up of men and they focused on creating and selling knitted goods of very good quality. These guilds were very prestigious and took many years of training to join (The Crafty Gentleman, 2015).

By the 16th century, knitting machines were created which meant that not all knitting needed to be done by hand (Ross, 2017). Knitting production increased.

https://www.makersmercantile.com/history-of-knitting-a-resource-guide.htm

During wars, knitting was often seen as a patriotic activity. For example, during the Revolutionary War, American women knit clothing to avoid having to buy British goods (Makers Mercantile, n.d.).

References.

Makers Mercantile. n.d. A History of Knitting: A resource demystifying the origins of knitting. https://www.makersmercantile.com/history-of-knitting-a-resource-guide.htm.

Ross. 2017. What is knitting? A brief history of knitting and its uses. https://www.the-sustainable-fashion-collective.com/2017/05/04/knitting-brief-history-knitting-uses.

The Crafty Gentleman. 2015. The History of Knitting: the history of knitting guilds. https://www.thecraftygentleman.net/2015/08/16/history-of-knitting-guilds/.