The short answer: The 30 most-used Persian rug terms cover three categories — construction (warp, weft, knot, KPSI, pile, foundation, asymmetric/symmetric knot), materials (wool, kork wool, silk, viscose, abrash, vegetable dye), and design (medallion, mihrab, gul, boteh, herati, shou, spandrel, field, border, guard). Knowing these terms turns a confusing shopping experience into a clear one. Below is the plain-English glossary from our Sacramento showroom — not the marketing versions, the honest ones.
A field guide from our Sacramento showroom. We hear these terms used incorrectly in online listings every day — here is what they actually mean.
Construction terms
Warp. The vertical threads stretched on the loom that form the rug’s structural backbone. Usually cotton on Persian rugs, sometimes wool (tribal pieces) or silk (very fine Qum and Hereke).
Weft. The horizontal threads woven between rows of knots that lock the structure together. Usually cotton; sometimes wool. You can see the wefts at the back of any hand-knotted rug.
Foundation. Warp + weft together. The skeleton of the rug, hidden under the pile.
Knot. A loop of yarn tied around two warps. Each knot creates one pile tuft. Hand-knotted rugs have one knot per pile tuft — hand-tufted rugs have no knots, only glued loops.
Asymmetric (Persian / Senneh) knot. One end of the knot wraps fully around a warp, the other end passes behind two warps. Used in Persia (Iran), India, China. Allows finer detail in curvilinear patterns.
Symmetric (Turkish / Ghiordes) knot. Both ends of the knot wrap around two warps. Used in Turkey, the Caucasus, and Turkmen tribal weaving. Stronger, slightly less fine, traditional for bold geometric patterns.
KPSI — knots per square inch. The standard measure of weaving density. Low: 80–120 KPSI (tribal, durable, everyday). Medium: 120–300 (most Persian city rugs). Fine: 300–500 (Tabriz fine, Isfahan). Very fine: 500–1,500 (Qum silk, Hereke silk). Sometimes given as KPSI or as raj (Persian measurement). Higher KPSI = finer detail, not necessarily better quality.
Pile. The visible tufts that form the rug’s walking surface. Cut from each knot after weaving.
Pile height / pile depth. The vertical length of the cut tufts. Low: under 1/4″. Mid: 1/4–1/2″. High: 1/2–1″. Shag: 1″+.
Selvedge. The reinforced side edges of the rug, overcast with wool or cotton thread. Protects the foundation from unraveling.
Fringe. The exposed ends of the warp threads at the rug’s top and bottom. On hand-knotted rugs the fringe is structural — it’s literally the warps. On machine-woven rugs it’s often sewn on as a decoration.
Material terms
Wool. Sheep fiber. The default material for Persian rug pile. Naturally elastic, dye-receptive, lanolin-coated (water-resistant for 30–60 seconds).
Kork wool. The finest wool, taken from the chest and shoulder of young lambs. Softer, finer, more lustrous than standard fleece. Used in Qum, Isfahan, Tabriz, and Nain. A hallmark of high-quality rugs.
Manchester wool. Long-staple wool imported from Manchester, England, and used in fine Persian rugs (especially Tabriz and Sarouk) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Older Manchester-wool rugs are sought-after.
Silk. Continuous-filament fiber from silkworm cocoons. Used as accents in wool-and-silk rugs, or as the entire pile in silk-on-silk pieces. See our silk rug guide.
Viscose / art silk / bamboo silk / banana silk. NONE of these is silk. All are regenerated cellulose fibers (wood pulp processed into thread). They look like silk briefly, then stain permanently with any liquid contact. Sold misleadingly as “silk” in budget rugs.
Cotton. The standard foundation material in Persian rugs. Strong, stable, holds its shape over generations.
Vegetable dye / natural dye. Dyes derived from plants and insects — indigo (blue), madder (red), pomegranate (yellow), walnut (brown), cochineal (crimson). Used in antique rugs and in modern artisan revival pieces. Age beautifully; water-sensitive.
Synthetic dye. Modern aniline and chrome dyes. Stable, colorfast, the standard since roughly 1920–1960. Less luminous than vegetable dyes but more predictable.
Abrash. Deliberate or accidental color variation across a rug, caused by using different dye batches during weaving. In tribal and antique rugs, abrash is a sign of authentic hand-dyed wool. Modern reproduction rugs sometimes simulate it; real abrash is a quality marker. See our real Persian guide for how abrash relates to authenticity.
Design and pattern terms
Field. The central area of the rug, inside the borders. The main “picture” of the rug.
Border. The framing band(s) around the field. Most Persian rugs have one main border and 2–4 minor (guard) borders.
Guard border. The narrower border(s) flanking the main border. Adds visual rhythm.
Medallion. The large central design element in the field. Common in city weaves (Kashan, Tabriz, Nain). Tribal pieces often have no medallion (repeating motifs instead).
Spandrel. The corner ornaments at the four corners of the field, usually quarter-medallions echoing the central one.
Mihrab. The arch motif on prayer rugs. Aligned toward Mecca during prayer. See our prayer rug guide.
Gul. An octagonal or geometric medallion motif, characteristic of Turkmen tribal rugs (Tekke, Yomut, Salor). Each tribe has its own gul.
Boteh. The pear/teardrop-shaped motif, ancestor of the Western paisley. Used in many Persian and Indian weaves.
Herati. A repeating pattern of a central rosette inside a diamond, flanked by curved leaves. One of the most common all-over Persian patterns.
Shou. A Chinese character motif sometimes adapted into Persian and Turkmen rugs through historical trade.
Kilim. A flat-woven rug (no pile, no knots). Made by interweaving warp and weft directly. Used as floor coverings, wall hangings, prayer rugs, and bag-faces. Different category from hand-knotted pile rugs.
Soumak. A flat-woven technique using wrapped-yarn weft, creating a herringbone surface. Distinctive Caucasian craft tradition.
Hand-knotted vs hand-tufted vs machine-woven. Three fundamentally different categories with three different lifespans. Hand-knotted = one knot per tuft, no glue, 35–80+ years. Hand-tufted = looped pile glued to a backing, 5–10 years. Machine-woven = synthetic mass production, 5–15 years. Full comparison in our honest comparison.
Regional / weave terms (a short list)
- Tabriz — northwestern Iran. Fine curvilinear medallion rugs.
- Kashan — central Iran. Classical medallion, deep reds and blues.
- Isfahan — central Iran. Very fine, kork wool, often signed.
- Qum — central Iran. Fine wool and silk. Mostly 20th century.
- Heriz — northwestern Iran. Bold geometric medallion.
- Bidjar — western Iran. Extremely dense, durable. “The iron rug of Persia.”
- Hereke — Turkey. The finest Turkish silk.
- Ladik / Konya — Turkey. Bold prayer rugs.
- Bokhara / Tekke — Turkmen tribal. Repeated guls.
- Ziegler / Mahal — Pakistani revival of Persian patterns, large-format, less expensive.
When to come see us
If you’re trying to identify a specific rug — inherited, recently bought, or considered for purchase — bring it (or detailed photos) to the showroom. We’ll walk through the terminology in person and identify the construction, region, age, and value. Plan a visit, or browse our hand-knotted Persian collection. For a custom-commissioned piece in a specific weave or palette, see our commission program. For questions about specific terms, see the rest of our rug FAQs.
— The Stylish Rugs Editorial Desk · Sacramento, CA · 2023-04-23