Distinguished from most traditional carpets by its lack of a raised surface or pile, the kilim is a type of flatweave rug historically made in parts of West, Central and South Asia, as well as the Balkans, Caucasus and northern Africa. Named after the Turkish for ‘rug’, the kilim is also known as gelim, killim and kelim in various regions. It has traditionally been handwoven using yarn-dyed wool by women in nomadic communities, particularly in present-day Türkiye (or Turkey), Iran and Afghanistan. It uses primarily the slit tapestry weave, which restricts curved designs and lends the kilim its distinctive straight-edged patterns. Holding significant socio-cultural value in the communities they are made in, kilim textiles have been used, besides floor coverings, as hangings, prayer rugs, tent fabrics and for bags and satchels, among other everyday objects. From the nineteenth century onwards, the kilim has been an important export in international trade.

While the precise origins of kilim weaving are difficult to ascertain, some scholars have been able to identify kilims from Egypt and Anatolia (largely present-day Türkiye) dating to the fourth and fifth centuries CE; the slit weave more broadly has been dated as far back as roughly 1000 BCE. The weaving of kilims was an established practice among the nomadic communities in Anatolia and Persia (present-day Iran), who used the hair and wool of their domesticated animals, dyed with locally available natural dyes, to make them. It is believed that the earliest kilims were woven on looms made from bushes and trees, mostly during the winter months when agrarian activity was low. Besides their utilitarian value for warmth, kilims were valued as currency, alongside jewellery, livestock, precious metals and knotted rugs — and were thus seen as a symbol of wealth among these communities. The skill of weaving kilims played an important role in the life of young brides as an additional source of income for their families after marriage.

While most kilims are made entirely of wool dyed in natural pigments drawn from plants, animals and minerals, some types use wool as the weft yarn and cotton as the warp yarn. Others also use silk, or the hair of goats, horses or camels. 

The warp and weft in a kilim are tightly interlocked in a flat weave using a narrow loom, and no additional yarn is knotted into it to create a pile. Traditionally, the kilim is woven using the slit-weave technique, in which a number of wefts are woven around the last warp of a single colour, leaving small vertical gaps or slits between two or more wefts of different colours. This restricts the kinds of designs possible, and most weavers prefer rectilinear or diagonal geometrical patterns as these preserve the strength of the slitted textile. Moreover, unlike the evenly spaced warp and weft of plain weaves, the kilim is a weft-facing textile, where the visible pattern is determined by the tightly wound and densely packed weft, which completely obscures the warps underneath. This also allows for reversible kilims showing similar patterns on both sides. 

In the period since it was first used, weavers have experimented with a number of improvisations on the slit-weave technique. One such is dovetailing, in which two wefts of different colours return from opposite directions to the same warp, which forms a boundary between them. Another is double-locking, in which two wefts interlock and cover the slit between two evenly spaced warps. However, neither of these techniques is widely used. Besides the slit-weave, kilims are sometimes embellished with other techniques that help create complex patterns. In somak weaving, weft yarns are alternatingly wrapped over and under the warp yarns, giving rise to discontinuous, embroidery-like patterns. In brocading, extra weft is added to the surface of the rugs to create raised designs. Depending on the weaving technique used, kilims may feature geometric or fluid designs. For example, the slit-weave technique often produces diamond-shaped or triangular designs with cascading patterns, while the somak weaving technique creates continuous, flowing patterns. Decorative beads and silver, gold and silk threads are sometimes incorporated into the design.