Social Etiquette - What Is Correct Serviette Or Napkin?

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There are many debates over correct language usage when it comes to etiquette standards. Whether it is the difference between "toilet" and "loo"; whether to say "excuse me", "pardon" or "what?" or whether it's correct to sit on a "settee" or a "sofa" there is a wide range of attitudes about the correct term to use in polite society.

One thing that should be noted is that what is deemed correct will also vary depending on which country you reside in. In Britain, the use of the word serviette rather than napkin is sometimes thought to be "common". Though in America where the term "napkin" is always used, the use of the word "serviette" tends to mark the speaker as British (but not "common") when it's heard! In Canada both words are used interchangeably and since both words actually originate from the same word in the French language, this has often been attributed to the French influence on that country. (Although, in direct contradiction to this, Canada decided to use the word "CV" over the term "resume" which would indicate that other factors may also have been at work)!

In Britain in the past few years many people have been using the term napkin, because the word serviette (as previously mentioned) is deemed common. When asked, many people cited the difference between the two words through their usage in everyday language and society. For example, "Imagine asking for more napkins in McDonalds - or for a serviette in a posh restaurant!". Many people consider a serviette to be made of paper with a napkin being made of linen. This attitude could be attributed to the popularity and increase of items such as paper napkins over linen ones. As a result of these changing perceptions many people would consider napkin to be the correct term to use, as linen or cloth napkins are the only acceptable form of napkin to use in polite society. In contrast, in America they have kept their original usage of napkin instead choosing to define the difference by saying "paper napkin" and "cloth napkin".

In fact both the words serviette and napkin stem from the French language with napkin originating from the French word "nappe" which translates as a cloth or covering for a table; the addition of "-kin" simply indicating a smaller version. With this in mind many now argue that the word napkin is still grammatically incorrect and the correct term to be used in polite society should actually be "table napkin" although many still class this as a pedantic detail. Ultimately, there is no absolutely correct answer and whichever term you choose to use is down to personal preference.

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Source by Caron J Rose