An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Litze
Litze, f., ‘twisted lace, bobbin,’ from MidHG. litze, f., ‘twisted lace, cord as a barrier’; from Lat. lîcium, n., ‘thread.’ The change made in the quantity when the word was borrowed in MidHG. as lĭtze is analogous to that in Lilie and Linie. From the Lat. lîcium (whence Fr. lice, ‘lists, arena’) are also derived Zwillich and Drillich, which see.