- Touching a royal is off-limits for commoners.
- When members of the British royal family meet royals from other countries, they can be more relaxed.
- They're all distantly related, anyway.
- They often embrace and kiss each other on the cheeks.
Touching a member of the royal family is off-limits for commoners, both for security reasons and out of respect for their position. Bowing and curtsying are the traditional greetings, and perhaps a handshake if they offer one. But when British royals meet royals from other countries, they can be much more relaxed.
Photos from Prince William and Kate Middleton's recent royal tour to Sweden and Norway show them greeting the countries' royal families with warm hugs and kisses on the cheek like old friends.
According to royal expert Victoria Arbiter, that's because they are.
"They've all known each other for a million years," she told INSIDER. "These royal families are all connected one way or another — when you look at the family tree they all go way back. They've all interacted a fair bit and there is much more of a familiarity."
Because they're all royal, they can interact as equals.
"They're all royal, so there's allowed to be a slightly more familial approach than if they were meeting the head of a charity or somebody that wasn't royal," Arbiter said. "These are extended family members and everybody's on a level playing field, so that's why you see that slightly more relaxed approach."
Of course, this all depends on how well they know said other heads of state, and that head of state's culture, but generally rules can be a little more lax from royal to royal.
