Lists and tables are two different ways to format multiple, similar items on a page. Lists and HTML tables go back to Wikipedia's early days. The current wikicode tables (see the section about tables), which you can edit more easily and even sort, came later.
You'll find many more lists than tables on Wikipedia. For example, the External links sections that appear in almost every Wikipedia article are lists. Tables are less common, but they're making up ground fast. You'll probably have occasion to edit a table, if not make one. This chapter shows you how to create and edit both lists and tables.