A napkin, napkin, or face towel is a rectangular piece of cloth on the table that wipes the mouth and fingers while eating. It is usually small and folded, sometimes in complex designs and shapes. The word comes from medieval English, borrowed from French diapers (a piece of cloth on a table), and added the small suffix - kin.

Usually, the napkin is folded and placed on the left side of the outermost fork position setting. In a restaurant or banquet hall, it can be folded into a more refined shape and displayed on an empty plate. You can use origami technology to create 3D designs. Napkins can also be tied together with tableware through napkin rings. Alternatively, napkins can be accommodated in napkin racks.

Napkins were used in Roman times. One of the earliest English napkins can be traced back to 1384 – 85.

The historical summary of napkins often says that the ancient Greeks wiped their hands with bread. This is implied by a paragraph (3:44) in a letter from alciphron and some comments by sausage sellers in Aristophanes' play the knight. Bread in both texts is called "muddleheaded bread", which only refers to the bread inside the crust, called bread crumbs, rather than special "napkin bread". The use of napkins has been recorded in ancient China. Paper was invented in the 2nd century BC. Napkins, known as Chih PHA, are folded into squares to serve tea. The textual evidence of napkins appears in the description of the property of more than one family in Hangzhou