Terminology Used in Standardisation: An International (and Culture-Specific) Perspective

What are the terms used for standards, and who uses which term in which context? These are questions that need to be answered when working together in standardisation across languages and cultures. This means not only agreeing on technical requirements but also understanding the context in which negotiations take place: contexts and connotations that all participants bring with them and that need to be decoded in order to understand and use the instrument of standardisation beyond its technical content—and to understand how the other side sees it. This chapter offers interpretations and insights into the world of terminology used in standardisation, such as ‘standard’, ‘specification’ and ‘norm’.