It is of great value to understand other people’s etiquettes, as well as their languages, cultures and taboos, in this age of globalization. But it is important to keep in mind that the country etiquette guidebooks play the role of basic and general introductions only. They are in no way definitive. We do not mean to stereotype, pigeon-hole or try to quantify any culture or people.
Each society, country and culture will have a large number of minor differences that would make it impossible to find a uniform approach to understanding any country’s social/ business culture or etiquette. One also has to take into consideration the personal cultures of individuals, whether they be religious, regional, gender, corporate or otherwise. However, loose guidelines can help to better understanding and avoid offence; and these guides are intended only to achieve that.