However, many in the body-piercing industry give it the pseudo-French pronunciation /lɒˈbreɪ/ lo-BRAY, though the French word is in fact borrowed from the English.

So, for 4,000 years on the northwest coast, it was important to distinguish certain individuals in a very direct manner; either by cranial deformation or by labret wear.

The wearing of labrets was widely observed among Tlingit women of high status at the time of European and American arrivals in Southeast Alaska.

[4] Based on analysis of the history and social context of the labret (lip plug) on the Northwest Coast of British Columbia over the last 5,000 years, Marina LaSalle asserts that "while simple correlations of the labret with 'status' and 'gender' are not wrong, nonetheless they betray the complexity of body ornamentation which, though manifested materially, is highly contextual" and that "the labret is a symbol and expression of social identity that continues to hold significant meaning for the descendants of this heritage.

"[5][6] In contemporary styles, there are several different labret variations based on precisely where the piercing is positioned on the lower lip.