Knitting Circle

The Knitting Circle is the group of thirteen women who lead The Kin, a group mostly formed by White Tower initiates who failed to achieve the rank of Aes Sedai.

Structure and function

Unlike Aes Sedai, whose rank depends primarily, but not exclusively, on strength in saidar, the Kin choose their Knitting Circle based solely on age. The thirteen oldest Kinswomen in Ebou Dar comprise the Circle, which is led by the Eldest.

In order to maintain their secrecy, the Knitting Circle nears fanaticism in enforcing their rules. The women of The Kin lead very long lives as do Aes Sedai, and in many cases even longer than Aes Sedai, making the thirteen of the Knitting Circle some of the oldest women alive. They carefully rotate women out of Ebou Dari society on a strict schedule to avoid people noticing their longevity.

The leadership also makes sure there are enough women of "suitable age" (above three hundred) in Ebou Dar at all times. Women under three hundred were very rare in the Circle.

If a woman older than a member of the Knitting Cirlce ever visited Ebou Dar, she would assume a seat during her visit. Even the Eldest could be displaced in this manner.

The Eldest was, in many ways, absolute ruler; but she could also be called down for an offense. This is because of the Rule - all Kin must obey the Rule, and the Rule cannot be changed.

Recent activities

The discovery of the Kin and the advanced ages of some of them caused consternation and disbelief among the Aes Sedai. It is now known that the Aes Sedai tradition of swearing on the Oath Rod is the cause of their comparatively short lifespans.

Elayne, Nynaeve, Aviendha, and Birgitte ask the Knitting Circle to help them locate the Bowl of the Winds, which will supposedly counteract the Dark One's touch on the world, reverting the seasons back to normal conditions. The Kinswomen agree.

After fleeing Ebou Dar and the Seanchan invasion, technically the Knitting Circle were no longer the Circle because they were outside Ebou Dar. However, because they were still the eldest Kin present, they would continue acting as the Kin's leadership.

Members

The members of the Knitting Circle are given below, along with extra information from The Wheel of Time Companion. Key is as follows:

• Arr: Age of arrival at the White Tower
• Enr: Year of enrollment at the White Tower
• Nov: Years spent as a novice
• Acc: Years spent as Accepted (where applicable)
• Lvl: Strength in the One Power where Moiraine is at level 1
• Str: Strength in the One Power where Lanfear is at level 1
• Amyrlin: Who was Amyrlin when training
• Hair: Since we have very few examples of aging channelers, this is a description of hair in terms of graying.

Name	Born	Age	Nation	Occupation	Arr	Enr	Nov	Acc	Cause for Leaving	Lvl	Str	Amyrlin	Hair
Chilares Arman	657	343	Murandy	Rug seller	15	672	12	N/A	Refused Accepted test	25	37	Varuna Morrigan	Touch of gray
Dimana Corrand	677	323	None	Seamstress	17	694	3	N/A	Too weak	34	46	Cemaile Sorenthaine	Red, streaked white
Eldase Takashi	665	335	Kandor	Lacquerware	18	683	13	7	Too bad-tempered	29	41	Cemaile Sorenthaine	Streaks of white
Famelle Juarde	658	342	Tarabon	Goldsmith	14	672	11	N/A	Could not complete test	26	38	Varuna Morrigan	Pale honey, no gray
Ieine	629	371	Unknown	Wise woman	17	646	9	N/A	Refused to take three times	19	31	Varuna Morrigan	A little gray
Ivara	664	336	Tairen?	Goldsmith	16	680	12	N/A	Refused to take three times	27	39	Varuna Morrigan	Some white
Janira		>319	Saldaea	Wise woman				N/A	Too weak	<33	<45		Graying
Kirstian Chalwin	680	320	Cairhien	Weaver	18	698	<1	N/A	Ran away	2	14	Cemaile Sorenthaine	Youngest
Melore		>319	Arad Doman	Wise woman				N/A	Too weak	<33	<45		Touch of gray
Reanne Corly	588	412	Unknown		15	603	11	N/A	Refused after first pass	2	14	Gerra Kishar	Mostly gray
Sibella	613	387	Unknown	Wise woman	14	627	10	6	Failed test for Aes Sedai badly	10	22	Gerra Kishar	Yellow, no gray
Sumeko Karistovan	598	402	Arafellin?	Wise woman	16	614	5	5	Broke down during Aes Sedai test	6	18	Gerra Kishar	Black
Tamarla	681	319	Altara	Wise woman	15	696	2	N/A	Too weak	35	47	Cemaile Sorenthaine	More white than black