Abstract:
Communication is such an important tool for people to know each other, and etiquette is the rule for communication. Nowadays, with the rapid development of globalization, people all over the world have more chances to communicate with each other. But etiquette cultural differences sometimes are barrier to their interaction. Based on the former studies, this paper will take Chinese culture and American culture for example to illustrate etiquette differences. Through a brief comparison of social etiquette differences between Chinese and American cultures, the author aims to seek the reason for the differences, to find some ways of avoiding misunderstandings, and to make cross-cultural communication smooth. Another purpose of this essay is to get more knowledge about American etiquette and to build up correct attitudes of people towards other cultures: face the difference and seek the common interest.

Key Words: Etiquette Differences; Culture; Cross-cultural Communication

摘  要：
交流是人类互相了解的重要工具，而礼仪是交流的准则。如今，随着全球化经济的迅速发展，世界各地的人们获得了更多相互交流的机会，但有时，各国礼仪文化的差异成为沟通的障碍。在前人研究的基础上，本文将以中美文化为例来分析礼仪文化的差异。通过简单比较中美两国社交礼仪文化的不同，作者意在分析造成差异的原因，寻找避免误解，促使跨文化交流顺利进行的方法。本文的另一个写作意图是使读者获取更多关于美国礼仪文化的知识，建立对待其它文化的正确态度，即“求同存异，共同进步”。

关键词：礼仪差异；文化；跨文化交际

1    Introduction
Etiquette, the measure of how we treat one another, reaches across class, race, gender and culture. “Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group”. Etiquette is a language tool and the rule for communication. People have different religious beliefs and obey different etiquette rules. The etiquette in China started from Xia Shang Zhou dynasties, and became popular in Tang dynasty and Song dynasty. During a long period of development, a complete etiquette system has been established. While in western countries, take America for example, the rules of etiquette were formed in the history period of the Renaissance, Capitalism, and modern civilization. China’s policy of reform and opening offers China more opportunities to have contact with foreign countries. At the same time, the differences in etiquette come out. So we need to get some knowledge about the etiquette differences.