WHAT IS A CARPET OR A RUG?

Carpet is any loom-woven floor covering.
The term was also used for table and wall
coverings, as carpets were not commonly
used on the floor in European interiors until
the 18th century. The hand-knotted pile
carpet probably originated in central Asia
between the 3rd and 2nd millennium BC.
Carpet-making was introduced to Spain in
10th century by the Moors. The Crusades
brought Turkish carpets to all of Europe,
where they were primarily hung on walls or
used on tables. Only with the opening of
trade routes in the 17th century were
significant numbers of Persian rugs
introduced to Western Europe.

Some use the words carpet and rug
interchangeably. Historically, however, some
have distinguished between carpet and rug
based on size (the former being larger) or
use (carpets on floors, rugs on beds or on
the hearth). For the sake of clarity, some
textile scholars also differentiate between
carpets and carpeting. In this usage, the
latter are wall-to-wall and are often woven or
tufted as "roll goods", most often in 12 foot
widths but sometimes in up to 15 foot widths.
In the real estate and home improvement
industries a distinction is made between
carpet (or carpeting) and rug. The former
indicates a covering that is affixed to a floor
and the latter a floor covering that is
loose-laid, most often for decorative
purposes.