The Meaning of Color
Remember, context is key. And, while most “facts” about color psychology lack scientific basis, a deeper look at the palette can reveal some essential insights:
RED
Red has a range of symbolic meanings through many different cultures, including life, health, vigor, war, courage, anger, love and religious fervor. The common thread is that all these require passion.
In moments of rage, lust or embarrassment, bright red oxygenated blood rushes to the skin's surface as a response to your “fight or flight” sympathetic nervous system. There are many theories as to why human and non-human species have evolved this physiological trait, however many center their conclusions around asserting dominance or appearing more attractive to a potential mate, according to the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.
In relation to dominance, the colour red has even been found to impact the world of sport. A study published in the journal Nature found that several soccer teams achieved greater match results while wearing predominantly red shirts than while playing in other colours, such as white and blue.
Colors were so powerful in traditional cultures that red objects were believed to convey health through their color alone. For example, most red stones such as garnets and rubies were believed to have health-giving and disease-preventing properties. In Rome, children wore red coral as a talisman to protect them from diseases, and in China, for similar reasons, children always wore a piece of red clothing.
Red. The color of love, education, violence, danger, anger, and adventure. In some cultures, red is the symbol of good luck.
Red — typically associated with power, passion, or energy, and can help encourage action on your site
Red – Scarlet and crimson are among the variations that make red sexy and dangerous to Western eyes. Red may be bloody and arresting in the form of revolutionary rage and wounded bank balances, but red’s far less dramatic to Eastern eyes.
Red = Love, Passion, Strength, Power, Danger, Excitement, Energy
RED: warmth, love, anger, danger, boldness, excitement, speed, strength, energy, determination, desire, passion, courage, socialism, republicans, chaos
Eastern: luck, prosperity, happiness, long life, fertility, power.
Some Africa: mourning.
The color of passion and energy. Red draws attention like no other color and radiates a strong and powerful energy that motivates us to take action. It is also linked to sexuality and stimulates deep and intimate passion. Red is ubiquitously used to warn and signal caution and danger.
ORANGE
Similarly to red, orange has a range of symbolic meaning and connotations – for example – in many Western cultures orange is often used for fun, strength, courage and creativity, according to the Huffington Post.
In recent history, though, orange has come to denote a warning, and is used for high visibility clothing (such as spacesuits ) and safety equipment (such as traffic cones). This association is a practical one: Orange contrasts most strongly with the color blue and therefore is highly visible against a clear sky.
Orange. Made by mixing red and yellow. Orange is vibrant, healthy, and abrasive. Thus, making it a very polarising color.
Orange — joy and enthusiasm, making it a good choice for positive messaging
Orange – Linked with creativity and happiness, orange declares national and religious identity and defines athletic applications. Like red, it can grab attention (e.g., prisoner jumpsuits). Consider it for youthful, energetic brands as opposed to luxury, traditional or serious ones.
Orange = Warmth, Creativity, Adventure, Freshness, Happiness, Attraction, Success
ORANGE: cheerfulness, low cost, affordability, enthusiasm, stimulation, creativity, aggression, food, halloween, liberal (politics)
Eastern: happiness, spiritual
Because orange is associated with happiness and creativity it is well suited to youthful, energetic brands and best avoided for luxury, traditional or serious products.
The color of enthusiasm and emotion. Orange exudes warmth and joy and is considered a fun color that provides emotional strength. It is optimistic and upliftning, adds spontaneity and positivity to life and it encourages social communication and creativity. It is a youthful and energetic color.
YELLOW
It isn't surprising that yellow symbolizes happiness, warmth and sunshine in most cultures; these are characteristics of the yellow sun and its effects.
In ancient cultures where a god or gods were associated with the sun, such as Egypt and China, yellow was the highest and noblest of colors and thus, the color of religious figures and royals (who were thought to be descendants of the gods).
Conroy explains that all colors have a flipside, a degraded meaning that traditionally opposed the positive one. Along with warmth and happiness, yellow also represents cowardliness and deceit. "We recognize the deceitful Judas very often in ancient pictures from the fact that he is given dingy yellow robes," she wrote.
Yellow. The most attention grabbing hue on the color spectrum. It has a variety of meanings ranging from happiness and creativity to cowardice, caution, and betrayal. Yellow, in some cultures, is associated with deities .
Yellow — happiness and intellect, but be wary of overuse
Yellow – The color of the Sun highlights with eye-catching warmth. Yellow can represent happiness, warmth, alarm, sickness, cowardice; take your pick. Some shades can look cheap, though, so it’s a noteworthy example of the need to research users’/customers’ reactions.
Yellow = Optimism, Cheer, Happiness, Warmth, Caution, Energy, Intellect
Some shades of yellow can look cheap — although this may suit your product image. So, yellow is a great example of when to research consumer reaction to color appropriateness and make sure it is the right color for your product.
YELLOW: attention-grabbing, comfort, liveliness, cowardice, hunger, optimism, overwhelm, Summer, comfort, liveliness, intellect, happiness, energy, conflict
Eastern: sacred, imperial, wisdom, male
Some Middle-East: mourning
Africa: high rank
France: jealousy
Greece: sadness
The color of happiness and optimism. Yellow is a cheerful and energetic color that brings fun and joy to the world. It makes learning easier as it affects the logical part of the brain, stimulating mentality and perception. It inspires thought and curiosity and boosts enthusiasm and confidence.
GREEN
For obvious reasons, the color green represents nature and the environment; more abstractly, it symbolizes wisdom. The latter association has ancient roots.
According to Conroy, the Egyptians believed that a god named Thoth led the souls of the dead to "a green hill of everlasting life and eternal wisdom." Later, the Romans based their god Mercury on Thoth, and the planet Mercury was in turn based on the god. For this reason, in astrology,"green is sometimes said to be the color of the planet Mercury, which is the planet governing the mind and conferring knowledge knowledge not only of the kind essential to material success, but also inspirational knowledge and celestial wisdom," Conroy wrote.
Aside from its association with wisdom, there's a flipside to green. "Green in its degraded sense gives us 'the green-eyed monster jealousy,' which is the direct opposite of celestial wisdom, for jealousy is always due to the intrusion of the desires of the self, while celestial wisdom wishes to give rather than to receive," Conroy wrote.
The color green has also been firmly attributed to the environment – in particular when used to illustrate products or campaigns which support the health of the planet. According to the BBC the word “green” comes from the Proto-Indo-European (ancient people that lived around the 4th millenium BC) word “ghre”, which means “grow”. It is fair to assume that green’s connection to nature lies in its abundance amongst it. The majority of plant’s naturally produce green-colored pigments called chlorophyll which are the sites for the conversion of atmospheric carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen, known as photosynthesis.
Green. Made by mixing yellow and blue. Universally associated with nature, green is both a lucky and unlucky color depending on whom you ask.
Green — often connected to growth or ambition, green can help give the sense that your brand is on the rise
Green – It’s the color of Mother Nature and her life-sustaining bounty, with connotations of recycling and healthy finances. Green also means “proceed”; but there’s also inexperience and envy. The shade matters. Brighter, lighter greens indicate growth, vitality and renewal; darker, richer greens represent prestige, wealth and abundance.
Green = Nature, Growth, Wealth, Luck, Envy, Freshness, Quality
Pick your shade of green carefully as brighter, lighter greens indicate growth, vitality and renewal; while darker, richer greens represent prestige, wealth and abundance.
GREEN: durability, reliability, environmental, luxurious, optimism, healing, well-being, nature, calm, relaxation, Spring, safety, honesty, optimism, harmony, freshness
Eastern: birth, hope, new beginnings, youth, immortality, fertility
Middle East: Islam, strength, luck, fertility, prestige
Africa: corruption
South America: death
The color of harmony and health. Green is a generous, relaxing color that revitalizes our body and mind. It balances our emotions and leaves us feeling safe and secure. It also gives us hope, with promises of growth and prosperity, and it provides a little bit of luck to help us along the way.
BLUE
According to Conroy, the primary association of the color blue for most of recorded history was with truth a meaning that leaves a remnant in our language in the phrase "true blue." This was because blue is the color of a calm and clear sky, and it is in calm reflection that leads to truth.
Today, though, blue mainly conveys sadness and despair. When you've "got the blues," you're down in the dumps. The connotation may relate to tears and rain , as water was typically represented in people's minds as blue.
However, research has shown that the colour blue has many positive effects on people. For example, research exploring crime on the streets of both Glasgow, Scotland, and Nara, Japan, found that crime levels decreased in areas where blue streetlights had been installed, according to Psychology Today.
Blue. A favourite color among many, it is almost the opposite to red in its meaning. Different shades have different significance, but with an overarching theme of trust, serenity, and dignity.
Blue — tranquility and confidence, depending on the shade — lighter shades provide a sense of peace, darker colors are more confident
Blue – People find blue trustworthy, assuring, calming and masculine. It’s a tranquil sea and peaceful wonder at the sky; but then it can “mood-swing” to depression. You can bank on blue for designing financial and corporate dependability, although the right shade is vital.
Blue = Trust, Calm, Sadness, Peace, Loyalty, Depth, Authenticity
Blue runs the gamut from corporate and dependable, to calming and tranquil, to feeling down in the dumps. So, choose your shade wisely.
BLUE: peace, professionalism, loyalty, reliability, honor, trust, melancholia, boredom, coldness, Winter, depth, stability, professionalism, conservatism, democrats
Eastern: immortality, life, feminine
Middle East: protection
Mexico: mourning
The color of trust and loyalty. Blue has a calming and relaxing effect on our psyche, that gives us peace and makes us feel confident and secure. It dislikes confrontation and too much attention, but it is an honest, reliable and responsible color and you can always count on its support.
TURQUOISE
The color of calmness and clarity. Turquoise stabilizes emotions and increases empathy and compassion. It emits a cool calming peace, gives us a boost of positive mental energy that improves concentration and clarifies our mind, and creates a balance that clears the path to spiritual growth.
PURPLE
Purple symbolizes royalty, nobility and imperialism. In many European societies, the symbolism was even established by law: From ancient Rome to Elizabethan England, "sumptuary laws" forbade anyone except close members of the royal family to wear the color, according to Harvard Law School.
Purple's elite status stems from the rarity and cost of the dye originally used to produce it. Fabric traders obtained "Tyrian purple," as the dye was called, from a small mollusk that was found only in a region of the Mediterranean Sea near Tyre, a Phoenician trading city located in modern-day Lebanon, according to the journal Molecules. More than 9,000 mollusks were needed to create just one gram of Tyrian purple, and because only wealthy rulers could afford to buy and wear fabrics dyed with the color, it became associated with the imperial classes of Rome, Egypt and Persia.
Another consequence of this is that purple also came to represent spirituality and holiness, because the ancient emperors, kings and queens that wore the color were often considered to be gods or descendants of the gods.
Purple. Made by mixing red and blue. The most expensive color to create, purple often has a supernatural aura. It can also have dual meanings ranging from intellectual and dignified to decadent, pompous or even a symbol of mourning.
Purple — luxury or creativity, especially when used deliberately and sparingly on your site
Purple – Long associated with royalty, purple connotes luxury and indulgence. But its majesty doesn’t always translate to design; for example, only women favor it as a top-tier color. Purple is uncommon in branding.
Purple = Royalty, Nobility, Wisdom, Luxury, Imagination, Mystery, Spirituality
Purple is best used for targeting a female audience as research suggests women list purple as a top-tier color while it doesn’t even rank for men. Overall, purple is not a common color for branding and, in fact, Cadbury is the only purple brand in the Forbes list of the 100 most valuable brands from 2014.
PURPLE: power, royalty, nobility, elegance, sophistication, artificial, luxury, mystery, royalty, elegance, magic
Eastern: wealth, privilege, sorrow, mourning
Brazil: death, mourning
The color of spirituality and imagination. Purple inspires us to divulge our innermost thoughts, which enlightens us with wisdom of who we are and encourages spiritual growth. It is often associated with royalty and luxury, and its mystery and magic sparks creative fantasies.
PINK
The color of love and compassion. Pink is kind and comforting, full of sympathy and compassion, and makes us feel accepted. Its friendly, playful spirit calms and nurtures us, bringing joy and warmth into our lives. Pink is also a feminine and intuitive color that is bursting with pure romance.
Belgium: boys (rest of Europe is girls)
BROWN
BROWN: relaxing, confident, casual, reassuring, nature, earthy, solid, reliable, genuine, Autumn, endurance
Eastern: earth, mourning
The color of stability and reliability. Brown is dependable and comforting. A great counselor and friend full of wisdom. You can count on its help if you need an honest opinion, support and protection. It stabilizes us, helps us stay grounded and inspires us to appreciate the simple things in life.
BLACK
The colour – or rather adsense of colour– black is often linked with negative associations, such as death, fear or sadness, according to the Journal of international Colour Association.
Many ancient cultures believed that black was "the color of mystery and of the mysterious ways and wisdom of God," historian Ellen Conroy wrote in her book "The Symbolism of Colors" (1921). This was because night, the absence of light, transcended human perception in the same way that the wisdom of God was thought to be beyond comprehension.
Of all mysteries, death may have been the biggest. Ancient people were completely "in the dark" about what would happen to them after death, and so it was (and is) represented by the color black in many cultures. There was the added coincidence of death sharing similarities with sleep, which happens in the darkness of night and when closed eyelids block out all light. Throughout history the color black has also been attached to fearful and mysterious things, such as black magic, black holes, the black plague and so on.
Of course the black isn’t always synonymous with death and despair, especially in the world of fashion. A study published in the journal Color Research and Application found that black was the overall favourite color to wear amongst female study participants.
Black — power and mystery, and using this color can help create necessary negative space
Black –Black means serious business, with overtones of severity and mystery, of death and grief. However, its inherent darkness doesn’t always convey negativity. It’s also a positive bank balance and smart, attractive clothing. It’s best to consider contrasting it with a bright color: gold for luxury or white for a bold, simple statement. Also, its texture and glossiness can influence your brand’s message.
Black = Sophistication, Formality, Sorrow, Boldness, Elegance, Death, Mystery
Contrast a bright color against black; use gold foil for a touch of luxe, or combine it with white for a bold and simple statement. Think about texture and how matte or glossy black might change the message of your brand.
BLACK: Elegance, sophistication, formality, power, strength, illegality, depression, morbidity, night, death
Eastern: wealth, health, boys, mystery, evil
The color of power and sophistication. Black is an incredibly strong and intimidating color that exudes authority and makes us feel secure and protected. Often seen at formal and prestigious events, this mysterious marvel arouses and seduces our senses with its elegance and sexiness.
GRAY
GRAY: conservatism, traditionalism, intelligence, serious, dull, uninteresting
The color of compromise and control. Gray is neutral, conservative and unemotional. It is practically solid as a rock, making it incredibly stable, reliable and calming. It has a peaceful, relaxing and soothing presence. Gray avoids attention but offers mature, insightful advice to anyone who asks.
WHITE
Throughout history, white has been synonymous with purity and virtue, which lends itself to many religious ceremonies. For example, wearing white to a wedding dates back more than 2,000 years when Roman brides wore white tunics to signal a woman’s virginity, according to Ohio State University.
However, it wasn’t until Queen Victoria walked down the aisle in a white lace dress to wed Prince Albert in 1840, that wearing white wedding gown became popular. In many Asian cultures, particularly in China, white is not a traditional used for wedding gowns – red or gold may be more commonly seen wedding colors – but is worn instead of black at funeral services and is a symbol of mourning, according to Yerevan State University.
Although white is often referred to as a “color”, white is actually the combination of all the wavelengths of color that are reflected off an object, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.
White — safety and innocence, making it a great choice to help streamline your site
White – Cleanliness, goodness, innocence and simplicity are all associated with white. It’s as pure as a fresh snowfall, yet it signifies mourning in the East and means surrender internationally. Although innately positive, white lacks a dynamic personality, so it’s best left for brands that are indeed pure, simple and transparent.
White = Purity, Simplicity, Innocence, Peace, Cleanliness, Emptiness, Goodness
It’s difficult to inject personality into your brand when using white, so make sure your brand is about simplicity, purity and transparency.
WHITE: Cleanliness, purity, newness, virginity, peace, innocence, simplicity, sterility, snow, ice, cold
Eastern: death, mourning, funerals, sadness, purity, age, misfortune
Middle East: purity, mourning
The color of purity and innocence. White is a true balance of all colors and is associated with cleanliness, simplicity and perfection. It loves to make others feel good and provides hope and clarity by refreshing and purifying the mind. It also promotes open-mindedness and self-reflection.
LINKS
Color Theory 101: A Complete Guide to Color Wheels & Color Schemes
6 Color Theories: A Guide to Color Scheme
What Is Color Theory?
Color Symbolism
The Meaning of Colors
Color Meanings – The Power and Symbolism of Colors
Color Symbolism and Culture
Color Symbolism Theories
Color Theory: Symbolism and Harmony
10 color meanings: the psychology of using different colors
Color Psychology
The meaning of colors: How 8 colors became symbolic
OTHER INFO
Temperature
The more towards the red end of spectrum you go, the hotter it gets.
The more towards the blue/purple end of the spectrum you go, the colder it gets.
Weight:
Darker and more intense colors seem heavier.
Lighter colors seem, unsurprisingly, lighter.
Money:
Darker colors, such as burgundy red, tend to show opulence (they are often called 'rich' colors).
Dull shades, such as gray and dark browns indicate poverty.
Seasons:
Pastel and light shades are delicate, feminine, springtime.
Bright shades of primary colors indicate summer.
Earthy shades of brown, yellow and orange speak of nature and the fall.
Cool shades of white, black and blue represent winter.
Use in retail and business
Here are some ways in which colors are used in retail and business:
Red: Creates urgency - often used in sales and impulse sales
Green: Easy, calm - used to relax people
Blue: Creates trust - used by financial institutions such as banks
Navy blue: Cheaper - selling to price-sensitive
Royal blue: Urgency - selling to impulse buyers
Pink: Romantic - selling to women and girls
Yellow: Grabbing attention - used in displays and windows
Orange: Energizing - used to push for action, as in impulse buying
Purple: Calm - used in anti-aging products
Black: Power - selling luxury, aggressive products, or to impulse buyers
Color can even change what you taste. Customers who bought 7-Up cans that had their color changed to yellow reported that the drink tasted more lemony.
Gender effects
Men and women see colors differently. Men are generally less sensitive to color, so a subtle shade of orangey-red will just appear red. Men also see green things as more yellow than women. Women are less sensitive to color in the detail of objects and also in things which are moving quickly.
Red has been associated with romance and an American experiment offering dates with identical pictures of the same woman in different colored dresses found that a red dress was most effective in stimulating male desire.
Cultural effects
Remember that color can be culturally dependent. For example, although Black is the color of death in many countries, in China the color associated with death is White.
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