The art of knotting cord or string in patterns to make decorative articles such as wall hangings, plant hangers, or jewelry.
From Arabic migramah meaning 'fringe' or 'ornamental fringe,' derived from the verb qarama 'to weave.' The word entered Turkish as makrama, then passed into French as macramé in the 17th century through Ottoman cultural influence. English borrowed it from French in the 19th century when the decorative knotting technique became popular in Victorian crafts.
This 1970s craft craze has an Arabic name meaning 'fringe'! The knotting technique traveled from Arabic decorative arts through the Ottoman Empire into European fashion, and what started as fancy trim work became a whole art form of its own.
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