Coal is a natural mineral that forms over the span of millions of years while charcoal is a manufactured product created from wood. While coal in its natural state is never used alone in a barbeque or smoker, it is commonly added to charcoal briquettes to increase the energy density.
Ehrm yes, that’s also ‘real’ coal. There are multiple types of coal.
It might have a bit of coal in it, but it’s not coal.
https://rootsofprogress.org/what-is-charcoal
https://zgrills.com.au/coal-vs-charcoal