Thread (yarn)
A thread is a fabric of multiple interconnected / twisted fibers. He is long, thin and flexible. It may be woven, knitted, knitted, tufted, or otherwise further processed from a sheet - fabric, garment or other textiles, such as carpets - manufacture.
Special threads of plastic fibers are used in medicine to close by stitching wounds.
Demarcation
A thread is always only a portion of limited length of a twisted or untwisted yarn. Therefore, the use of the word is advised "yarn " when one speaks of (technical) unlimited lengths.
When thick thread, the term goes into the cord or rope or a cable, the thin filament in the filament. When packing one speaks of the so-called string or cord.
Symbolism
Cultural History
In pre-Christian and pre-Islamic religious systems of the thread was cross-culturally for the fate. The Greek Moirae and the Norns span the Norwegian fate by tension the thread for every life, dimensions and sections at the predetermined length. For this thread of destiny then people's lives was woven. People still talk of "life hangs by a thread " or " his life thread was cut ."
In Greek mythology, Ariadne's thread mentions a gift of Princess Ariadne to Theseus, by which he made his way out of a vast labyrinth - again found out that housed the Minotaur, he slew him - he had rolled the ball of thread when entering.
The fateful significance of the thread also led to varied superstitions. So it was forbidden to the commemoration of certain saints, to sew. In some Central European regions could be repaired no garment that bore the carrier still on the body, so as not to bring the thread is evil on him.
Losing the thread
In a figurative sense means " Someone has lost the plot " that someone can not lead to the end of a chain of reasoning or does not remember what was last said. The origin of the phrase is unclear: they could refer to the thread of Ariadne, Theseus led the way through the labyrinth of the Minotaur. More likely, however, is the origin of the weaver language where a lost thread, inter alia, loss of time meant until the thread was resumed.
The Red Thread
Europe
Under a red thread is defined as a basic motif, a leading idea, a way or a directive. " Something runs like a red thread through something " means, for example, that one can recognize in a continuous structure or a goal. The term is used since Goethe's Elective Affinities and figuratively. In the introductory remarks to a first excerpt from Ottilie's diary, he describes the tracer of the British Navy: " All Tauwerke the royal fleet are such spun that a thread passes through the whole thing, which you can not extricate themselves, without resolving anything, and what even the smallest pieces indicate that they belong to the crown. Similarly, runs through Ottilie 's diary a thread ... ". In the first book of the Bible, however, met the "red thread " as a distinguishing feature between twin brothers: " At birth, one put out his hand. The midwife grabbed, tied a red thread around the hand and said. He came out first " (Gen 38.28 EU)
In Hanover, feeds on the sidewalk painted red thread from one sight to the next.
East Asia
In China and from that in East Asia the common thread is (Chinese红线/红线, Pinyin hóng Xian, Japanese (運命 の)赤い 糸, ( unmei no) akai ito, " the red thread ( of Doom ) " ) for a fateful connection between man and woman, or the belief that a man and a woman who are destined to be together, to their ankles ( in Japan instead of their little fingers) are connected with an invisible red thread. It thus corresponds in part to the western concept of soul mates.
It is a popular motif in shōjo manga, but also in television series and films such as Takeshi Kitano's Dolls.
Historical
In Abri du Maras (middle Rhone Valley, Ardèche, France) were discovered in the immediate vicinity of stone tools to threads twisted plant fibers that do not occur in such a state of nature, are 90,000 years old and due to this dating Neanderthals were attributed. They are considered the oldest evidence for the production of a thread.