📑 Contents

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What Is a Label?

Before looking at the history of labels, it helps to define what a label actually is.

A label is a piece of material, marker, word, or category used to identify, describe, organize, or classify something.

On a physical product, a label might be made from paper, plastic, or another material. It may contain a name, description, price, barcode, logo, instructions, or other information.

But the word can also be used as a verb.

To label something means to identify or categorize it.

But we can also say:

Both examples have the same basic function: they attach information to something so that it can be recognized or understood.

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The Earliest Labels: Ancient Tags and Identification

There is no single moment when the first "label" was invented.

The word label describes a modern concept, so applying it to objects from thousands of years ago requires some interpretation. However, ancient civilizations used objects that performed many of the same identification and information functions as modern labels.

Some of the earliest known examples come from ancient Egypt.

Around the late fourth millennium BCE, Egyptians used small tags and markers associated with objects, goods, and administrative systems. Some early examples contained marks or writing that helped identify what an object was or where it came from.

These ancient tags were not adhesive stickers. They did not look like the labels we buy today.

But they solved a similar problem:

A tag attached with string, a mark written on a container, a paper label attached to a product, and a modern QR code can all perform a similar fundamental function: connecting an object with information.

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From Tags to Paper Labels

As trade, manufacturing, and commerce became more complex, identifying products became increasingly important.

Paper eventually became an important material for labels because it was relatively easy to write on, print, cut, and attach.

Labels could communicate information such as:

• Product names
• Prices
• Quantities
• Manufacturers
• Contents
• Destinations
• Ownership
• Instructions

Early labels were often attached using glue, paste, string, or other methods.

This period also shows an important change in the purpose of labels.

Labels were no longer used only to identify an object. They increasingly became a way to communicate information about a product.

That idea remains central to labeling today.

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The Rise of Gummed and Adhesive Labels

During the development of mass manufacturing and retail, businesses needed faster and more consistent ways to identify products.

Gummed paper labels became increasingly useful because an adhesive coating made them easier to attach to surfaces.

Instead of tying a tag around an object or applying glue separately, a prepared label could be moistened and attached.

This may sound simple, but it represented an important step toward modern labeling.

As manufacturing and retail continued to expand, labels became an increasingly familiar part of everyday products.

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The Self-Adhesive Label Changes Everything

One of the most important developments in label history came in the 20th century: the self-adhesive label.

According to Avery Dennison's history, R. Stanton Avery developed the world's first self-adhesive label in 1935.

The concept was simple but powerful.

Instead of requiring separate glue or moisture, the label already had an adhesive backing. The user could simply peel it away and apply it.

This dramatically improved convenience.

Self-adhesive labels could be produced in rolls and applied quickly to products, packages, shelves, documents, and other surfaces.

The label was becoming faster, easier, and more practical to use.

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Labels Become Something Everyone Can Create

For much of history, creating labels required specialized printing or handwriting.

The rise of desktop printers changed that.

Instead of ordering every label from a professional printer, businesses and consumers could increasingly create their own labels whenever they needed them.

This was particularly useful for:

• Home organization
• Small businesses
• Offices
• Schools
• Warehouses
• Shipping
• File organization
• Product packaging

The label was becoming an on-demand information tool.

You no longer needed to print thousands of identical labels. You could create exactly what you needed, when you needed it.

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The Barcode Revolution

Another major transformation came when labels became readable not only by humans, but also by machines.

Barcodes allowed information to be encoded into a visual pattern that scanners could read.

The development of the Universal Product Code (UPC) in the 1970s was a major milestone. GS1's historical timeline records the adoption of the UPC system in 1973, followed by the first retail barcode scan in 1974.

This changed the role of a product label.

A barcode could connect a physical product to information stored elsewhere, such as:

• Product identification
• Pricing
• Inventory data
• Sales records
• Supply-chain information

The label had become a bridge between the physical and digital worlds.

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Thermal Labels Make Printing Faster

Modern businesses also increasingly rely on thermal printing.

Thermal printers create images by applying heat to specially designed materials or ribbons. Two common approaches are direct thermal and thermal transfer printing.

Direct thermal printing creates an image directly on heat-sensitive material. Thermal transfer printing uses a heated ribbon to transfer ink onto the label surface.

Thermal printing is widely used for applications such as:

• Shipping labels
• Receipts
• Product identification
• Inventory labels
• Warehouse organization
• Retail labels

One reason thermal printing is so useful is that it is designed for fast, practical, on-demand printing.

For shipping and logistics, for example, a label can be generated when an order is created rather than being prepared weeks in advance.

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QR Codes: When a Label Becomes a Digital Gateway

Barcodes were not the end of label technology.

Two-dimensional codes, especially QR codes, made it possible to store more information in a compact visual format.

A QR code printed on a label can connect a physical object to a digital destination.

For example, scanning a QR code might open:

• A product manual
• A website
• Product information
• A registration page
• A digital menu
• A tracking page
• A promotional offer

This represents another major shift.

The physical label has effectively become a doorway between the physical and digital worlds.

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Why Do Humans Need Labels?

Looking at this history, an interesting pattern appears.

The technology keeps changing, but the fundamental purpose remains remarkably consistent.

The technology changed, but the underlying need did not.

Humans need labels because humans need information to be organized and recognizable.

And this brings us back to the other meaning of the word label.

We label things.

But we also label people.

We use categories to make complicated information easier to understand. Sometimes these labels are useful. Sometimes they are too simplistic.

When someone is described as "a beginner," "an expert," "an introvert," or "a leader," the label is not physically attached to them. Yet it still performs a similar conceptual function: it gives us a quick way to categorize something complex.

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From Ancient Tags to Modern Label Printers

The history of labels is therefore more than a history of paper and adhesive.

It is a history of information.

From ancient tags to modern thermal labels, the basic idea has remained surprisingly simple:

Today, a single label might contain a product name, logo, barcode, QR code, tracking number, instructions, and other information—all on a small piece of material.

And the next generation of labeling will likely continue this trend, making physical objects increasingly connected to digital information.

The materials may change.

The printing technology may change.

The codes may change.

But the basic purpose remains the same:

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Frequently Asked Questions About the History of Labels

When were labels invented?

There is no single date for the invention of labels. Ancient civilizations used tags and markers thousands of years ago to identify and organize objects. Modern adhesive labels developed much later as paper, printing, adhesives, and mass manufacturing evolved.

What were the earliest labels?

Some of the earliest known examples of label-like objects are ancient tags used in Egypt during the late fourth millennium BCE. They were not modern adhesive labels, but they served similar identification and information functions.

Who invented the self-adhesive label?

Avery Dennison credits R. Stanton Avery with developing the world's first self-adhesive label in 1935.

When were barcodes introduced?

The UPC barcode system was adopted in 1973, and the first retail barcode scan took place in 1974.

What is the difference between a label and a tag?

A tag is often a separate piece of material attached to an object, frequently with string, wire, or another fastener. A label is a broader term that can describe an attached identifier, printed marker, adhesive label, or even a conceptual category.

Are labels only physical?

No. In English, label can also mean a category or description applied to a person, group, idea, or thing. For example, "to label someone as an expert" means to assign that person a particular category or description.

Why are labels important?

Labels make information easier to identify, organize, communicate, and process. They help people understand objects and products, while barcodes and QR codes also allow machines and digital systems to interact with physical items.

How have labels changed over time?

Labels have evolved from simple tags and markers into printed paper labels, adhesive labels, self-adhesive labels, printable labels, barcodes, thermal labels, and QR codes. Each development has made it easier to attach, communicate, process, or access information.

From ancient tags to self-adhesive labels, from product labels to barcodes, and from thermal printing to QR codes, the goal has remained remarkably consistent: to make information easier to identify, organize, and understand.