A carpet is a textile floor covering that consists of an upper layer and a backing. Carpets have a long history of use around the world, with many cultures well known for their production and design of carpets and rugs. carpeting (Teppichboden) is the term often used to describe the application of carpets, with millions of modern home using carpets as a way to create warmth, comfort, and decoration.
Before we go on however, it is important to address one issue, being the difference between the terms carpet and rug. In many places around the world, these two terms are used indistinguishably, although technically, they do have a different meaning. Many of the carpets that are produced by native cultures are actually better defined as rugs under modern usage, because carpets actually have to stretch from wall to wall. In contrast, a rug does not have to fill an entire room, and is normally not fixed to the floor like many carpets are.

The term carpet comes from the Old Italian term carpita, which means “to pluck”. The history of carpets is long and rich, with the traditional carpets from many cultures spread around the world through the introduction of new trade routes. It is impossible to understand the history of carpeting without a basic understanding of the cultures linked with carpet manufacture and design, including Persia, China, Turkey, Moroccan, India, and Pakistan. Carpets spread slowly from these countries into the rich nations of Europe, with countries like France and England also developed a rich carpet culture and economy.

The earliest carpets originated from southern Central Asia at some time between the second and third century BC. These carpets were hand knotted and were likely to use wool from goats and sheep that existed in this area. The earliest surviving pile carpet is likely to have come from Persia, and was excavated by Sergei Ivanovich Rudenko in 1949. However, a number of cultures around the world made carpets in these early times, with the modern carpet industry later spreading to Europe and the United States. The English town of Kidderminster is well known for its historical role in the UK carpet industry, while Dalton, Georgia in the United States is responsible for 90 percent of the domestic carpet manufacture.