Every Pathfinder learns early that a rope with a loop solves half the campout: it hangs the lantern, holds the tarp to the stake, and becomes an anchor point in a pioneering project. A loop knot is that loop tied into the rope itself; the Portuguese requirements of the honor call it azelha. What separates a good knot from a dangerous one is how the loop behaves when someone pulls: if it slides and closes, it's a running loop; if it keeps its size, it's a fixed loop, the family the azelha belongs to.
Each knot mentioned here has its own page in the site's knots and lashings catalog, with video and step-by-step instructions. Here they show up in three situations (end of the rope, middle of the rope, and two loops), with when to use them, when to avoid them, and how to check them. The big picture is in essential knots and lashings.
What is a loop knot, and where does the word azelha come from?
The Portuguese word azelha literally means a little handle, like the handle of a cup. The Portuguese dictionaries Priberam and Michaelis list only the spelling aselha, with an s, for the small loop of thread or ribbon that holds a button on clothing, and trace it to the Latin ansicula. The requirements of the Knots and Lashings honor, written in Portuguese, spell it azelha, with a z. In English, the same idea goes by loop knot or fixed loop.
The term appears in the first requirement of the Knots and Lashings honor, which asks you to define ten technical terms, including the alça de azelha, or loop with a knot. A compilation with answers, the Manual de Especialidades de Desbravadores (a Portuguese-language honors manual) put together by Gerson Boiko dos Santos and kept in the Arquivos Adventistas collection, defines it as an “overhand knot that forms a loop” (our translation). The material is not an official South American Division (SAD) edition. This is the overhand loop: the end of the rope doubled back and an overhand knot tied in both strands. The requirements are explained in the guide to the Knots and Lashings honor.
The overhand loop (ABOK #1009) is the fastest loop to tie and has a serious flaw: after it takes a load, it jams so hard that sometimes the only way out is to cut the rope. It's fine for hanging a flashlight, not for a real load. At the opposite extreme is the running loop that slides shut under tension, which should never go around anyone's body or neck.
Which loop knot should you use? Three situations and a table
To choose, answer in this order: whether the loop goes at the end or in the middle of the rope, how many loops you need, and what the knot will face afterward (heavy load, pulls from several directions, being untied every week). The table gathers the 14 fixed loops in this guide.
In the club, checking by eye counts for a lot. A well-dressed figure 8 has a symmetrical pattern, with the strands running parallel through every curve, and a mistake jumps out at the Counselor.
| Knot | What it's for here | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| Bowline | End loop that won't slip or tighten and unties easily after loading | Medium |
| Water Bowline | Bowline with an extra hitch, more secure when the loop goes slack | Medium |
| Double Dragon Loop | End loop that works loose less than the bowline on slick rope | Medium |
| Figure 8 Follow Through Loop | Figure 8 loop retraced around a ring, carabiner, or harness, easy to check | Medium |
| Figure 9 Loop | A relative of the figure 8, bulkier and less likely to jam | Medium |
| Stopper Loop | Loop with a button knot above it, where another rope's loop hooks on | Easy |
| Surgeon's Loop Knot | Quick loop in fine line and cord, for loop-to-loop connections | Easy |
| Alpine Butterfly Loop | Mid-rope loop that takes load in three directions | Medium |
| Farmer's Loop | Mid-rope loop made by wrapping the rope around your hand | Medium |
| Figure 8 Directional Loop | Mid-rope loop for pulling in one direction only | Medium |
| Bowline on a Bight | Two fixed loops in the middle of the rope, without using the ends | Medium |
| Figure 8 Double Loop | Two figure 8 loops that don't steal rope from each other | Medium |
| Double Alpine Butterfly Loop | Two independent loops in the middle of the rope | Hard |
| Eye Splice | Permanent loop woven into the rope itself | Hard |
Difficulty per the site's knots and lashings catalog; uses checked against Animated Knots and Wikipedia (October 2026).
At the end of the rope: bowline or figure 8 loop?
The bowline (ABOK #1010) is the most famous fixed loop in seamanship; its name comes from the bow line, which held the windward edge of a square sail forward. Under load it won't slip or tighten, and afterward it unties easily. Its weak spot shows up without load: flapping loose, the knot can come undone on its own, and it can't be tied or untied while the rope is under tension. For climbing and any use with people, Animated Knots considers a safety knot, the backup, essential.
Two variations tackle that flaw. The water bowline (ABOK #1012) adds an extra hitch, which forms a clove hitch at the base and grips the tail better. The double dragon loop, which isn't in Ashley's book, is recommended by Animated Knots for slippery ropes such as Dyneema, because it works loose less than the bowline.
The figure 8 loop (azelha em oito in Portuguese) is the figure 8 knot tied in doubled rope (ABOK #1047), which some Portuguese speakers call aselha dobrada. When the loop has to go around a ring or a harness, you switch to the figure 8 follow through loop: the figure 8 is retraced along the same path around the object. It's the standard tie-in knot in climbing; Cornell University's climbing center requires it within 6 inches (about 15 centimeters) of the harness, with at least 6 inches of tail, and asks climber and belayer to check the system together before climbing. After a heavy load, though, the figure 8 can jam.
The figure 9 loop takes an extra half turn, uses more rope, and jams less than the figure 8. The stopper loop combines the loop with a button knot above it, the same one Brion Toss created for a rope shackle; on sailboats, the button serves as a hook-on point for sheets and halyards that end in a loop. The surgeon's loop is fishing's quick loop, for joining loop to loop in fine lines and cords.
Read alsoKnot to tighten a ropeIn the middle of the rope: what is the alpine butterfly knot used for?
When the ends are busy or far away, the loop goes in the middle of the rope, and the champion is the alpine butterfly loop (ABOK #1053), which the Knots and Lashings list calls simply the butterfly knot; the compilation's description, quoted alongside, matches it. It takes load in three directions: from the loop toward either end, from one end to the other with the loop slack, or on the loop with the weight shared between the ends. It unties fairly easily even after heavy loading and capsizes (flips and deforms under load) less than the bowline on a bight and the figure 8 loop.
The butterfly can also isolate a worn section of rope, which sits inside the loop without taking strain until the rope is replaced.
The farmer's loop (ABOK #1054) does the same job with turns wrapped around your hand. Ashley recorded it from a 1912 Cornell University reading-course leaflet and praised the method: once mastered, it's hard to forget. According to Animated Knots, the butterfly does the same job better, because it's more compact and easier to tie.
The figure 8 directional loop is a handhold loop for pulling in one direction only. Pulled from the wrong end, it capsizes into a running loop, with the loop closing under load. If the force might switch sides, Animated Knots points to the butterfly.
the best knot for making a loop that doesn't slip, in the middle of the ropeManual de Especialidades de Desbravadores (compiled by Gerson Boiko dos Santos, in Portuguese; our translation), note on the butterfly knot
What is a double loop knot, and which knots make two loops?
The name “double loop” (azelha dupla in Portuguese) has no single definition. Some use it for the figure 8 loop tied in doubled rope; others use it for knots with two loops. Before you tie, check the drawing with your Instructor. For true double loops, there are three options.
The bowline on a bight (ABOK #1080) makes two fixed loops in the middle of the rope without using the ends. The official Friend class list from the South American Division asks for a “double bowline” (laís de guia duplo) without showing a drawing, and the name invites confusion: Ashley gave the name double bowline (#1013) to a different knot, the bowline with a round turn, which forms only one loop. According to 2011 tests cited by Wikipedia, the bowline on a bight can slip when only one loop is loaded. Using two-loop knots as a rescue seat is covered in the guide to rescue knots, and each class's list is in knots by class.
The figure 8 double loop (ABOK #1085), nicknamed bunny ears, forms two stable loops: one doesn't grow at the other's expense. Animated Knots mentions its use as an improvised seat, a job for a trained team. Using it to share load between two climbing anchors is now discouraged: if one point fails, the slack sends a hard jolt to the other.
The double alpine butterfly loop gives two independent loops that don't collapse. It's the hardest of the group, and dressing it is easier with several hands pulling the ends and the loops at the same time.
Eye splice vs knot: when is a splice the better loop?
Any loop knot can be untied. When the loop will stay rigged for a long time or carry a critical load, as in a boat's mooring line, the eye splice (ABOK #2725) is the best choice: you unlay the end and weave the strands back into the rope itself, forming a permanent loop. In the Portuguese Knots and Lashings requirements it appears as costura de alça, alongside other rope splices, as the guide to the honor's requirements shows.
It works on three- or four-strand laid rope. On slippery synthetic rope, Animated Knots requires at least five full tucks of each strand and recommends seven for mooring lines, tow lines, and other critical uses. To unlay the end, allow about three times the diameter per tuck: on a 12 millimeter rope with five tucks, about 18 centimeters.
Splicing takes time and patience, and it makes a good meeting project with twisted sisal rope.
How do you test a loop knot before trusting it with weight?
Test in three steps. Look to see whether the knot is neatly dressed; in a figure 8, each section shows two strands side by side. Pull hard by hand on the loop against the standing end and see whether the knot sets firmly without sliding. Check the tail, which should be long enough not to slip out when the knot sets.
The most common mistakes at meetings:
- using an overhand loop where there will be load and then having to cut the rope;
- leaving the bowline without a backup on slick synthetic rope;
- pulling the figure 8 directional loop from the wrong side;
- trimming the tail flush with the knot;
- trusting the common name without checking the drawing.
A loop that will hold a person is a different matter. At height, in water, or in a rescue, the knot is just one piece of a system with certified rope and gear and a trained adult in charge, as in the Rock Climbing honor. The knot is the one the instructor specifies, with a long tail and a partner check. Never improvise at height, and never hang anyone from a loop just to test it.
Worn or expired rope doesn't hold people. The signs of wear and when to retire a rope are in the guide on how to care for a rope.