Etikets

Etikets refers to multiple concepts across languages, most commonly the ideas of etiquette and of labels or tags. In its social sense, etikets denotes the conventions that govern polite behavior in a given culture or community. Etiquette helps facilitate smooth interaction, signals respect, and reduces friction in social, professional, and ceremonial settings. Practices vary by country, context, and relationship, and they evolve over time. Online communication has given rise to netiquette, a term for the norms governing digital interactions such as emails, forums, and social media.

In its labeling sense, etikets refers to tags, labels, or tickets attached to objects to identify, describe, or price them, or to provide handling instructions. This includes physical labels on clothing or packaging, price tags, care labels, and inventory labels, as well as digital labels such as metadata, barcodes, and QR codes. Labeling standards are set by industry groups and authorities (for example GS1 for product identification, ISO standards for labeling practices). Labels help with inventory, safety, and consumer information, and they enable automated processes in logistics and data systems.

In many languages, the word etiket or etiqueta is used for the object-label sense, while etiquette is used for the social sense; the two senses are related historically through the French word etiquette, which originally referred to a label or card at a royal court but broadened to social rules. See also netiquette, branding, and labeling.