ISO 8159:2025

Textiles — Morphology of fibres and yarns — Vocabulary

This document defines the principal terms used to describe the various forms into which textile fibres can be assembled, up to and including cabled yarns. It contains only terms of general application. Terms and definitions which are specific to particular fibres (such as hemp, silk, textile glass fibre, metal fibre, carbon fibre, etc.) are excluded. A morphological scheme as shown in REF Annex_sec_A \r \h Annex A 08D0C9EA79F9BACE118C8200AA004BA90B02000000080000000C00000041006E006E00650078005F007300650063005F0041000000 is included which illustrates the relationship among various terms from a production point of view. This document does not include terms which describe the manufacturing or processing methods, or terms used to quantify fibre and yarn properties.

Textiles — Morphologie des fibres et fils — Vocabulaire

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 07-Dec-2025
• ICS: 01.040.59 - Textile and leather technology (Vocabularies)
• ICS: 59.060.01 - Textile fibres in general
• ICS: 59.080.20 - Yarns
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 38/SC 23 - Fibres and yarns
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 38/SC 23 - Fibres and yarns
• Current Stage: 6060 - International Standard published
• Start Date: 08-Dec-2025
• Due Date: 18-Mar-2026
• Completion Date: 08-Dec-2025

Relations

• Revises: ISO 8159:1987 - Textiles — Morphology of fibres and yarns — Vocabulary
• Effective Date: 23-Mar-2024

Standards Content (Sample)

International
Standard
ISO 8159
Second edition
Textiles — Morphology of fibres and
2025-12
yarns — Vocabulary
Textiles — Morphologie des fibres et fils — Vocabulaire
Reference number
ISO 8159:2025(en)
© ISO 2025
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
ISO 8159:2025(en)
Contents  Page
Foreword .iv
1  Scope . 1
2  Normative references . 1
3  Terms and definitions . 1
3.1 Terms related to fibres .1
3.2 Terms related to yarns .2
Annex A (informative)  Morphological scheme . 7
Bibliography . 8
Index . 9

iii
ISO 8159:2025(en)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through
ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee
has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations,
governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely
with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types
of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent
rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a)
patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that
this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at
www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 38, Textiles, Subcommittee SC 23, Fibres and yarn.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 8159:1987), which has been technically
revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— some terms and definitions have been added: core-spun yarn (3.2.13), wrapped yarn (3.2.14), fancy yarn
(3.2.15), slub yarn (3.2.15.1), knot yarn (3.2.15.2), caterpillar yarn (3.2.15.3), chenille yarn (3.2.15.4),
loop yarn (3.2.15.5), boucle yarn (3.2.15.6), braid yarn (3.2.15.7), spiral yarn (3.2.15.8);
— morphological scheme has been revised and moved to an informative annex (Annex A).
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

iv
International Standard ISO 8159:2025(en)
Textiles — Morphology of fibres and yarns — Vocabulary
1  Scope
This document defines the principal terms used to describe the various forms into which textile fibres can
be assembled, up to and including cabled yarns.
It contains only terms of general application. Terms and definitions which are specific to particular fibres
(such as hemp, silk, textile glass fibre, metal fibre, carbon fibre, etc.) are excluded.
A morphological scheme as shown in Annex A is included which illustrates the relationship among various
terms from a production point of view.
This document does not include terms which describe the manufacturing or processing methods, or terms
used to quantify fibre and yarn properties.
2  Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3  Terms and definitions
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1  Terms related to fibres
3.1.1
textile fibre
material characterized by its flexibility, fineness and high ratio of length to cross-section, suitable for textile
applications
3.1.2
staple fibre
textile fibre (3.1.1) of limited length
3.1.3
filament
textile fibre (3.1.1) of very great length considered as continuous
Note 1 to entry: Filament includes monofilament and multifilament.
3.1.4
textile film
textile material in film form in which the mo
...