Knitting
Old English cnyttan, of West Germanic origin; related to German dialect knütten, also to knot1. The original sense was ‘tie in or with a knot’, hence ‘join, unite’ (knit (sense 2 of the verb)); an obsolete Middle English sense ‘knot string to make a net’ gave rise to knit (sense 1 of the verb).
wiktionary
From Middle English knyttynge; equivalent to knit + -ing.
etymonline
knitting (n.)
late 14c., "a fastening with a rope or thread;" mid-15c., "a joining or binding together," verbal noun from knit (v.). In Middle English also "unity; a bond, unifying force; interconnection; a relationship," but these are lost. Meaning "act of weaving a continuous thread by loops or knots" is from 1711. Meaning "knitted work, work done by a knitter" is from 1848. Knitting-needle is from 1590s.
