The Meaning of Colors - Color Symbolism

Just imagine how this world would be without colors or better still imagine yourself living in a world that is only in black and white. Would life be as beautiful, enjoyable and splendid as how it is now with regards to color? The beautiful blue sky would lose its unique color, trees and flowers their splendid colors just to name a few. Our behavior towards a lot of things that control our present lives would not exist. No it wouldn’t, color affects us both physiologically and psychologically that impacts on our lives greatly both consciously and unconsciously. Color from ever since has been used to shape and define our lives, our habits, our values, and our feelings. The colors we chose to wear, to decorate our homes, our gardens, and so on gives us a personal insight about what is going on inside our innermost feelings and emotions. Even the food we eat, the color is taken into account by food industries and advertising companies when packaging and marketing their products. For example, how many of us would find a green drink appealing? We usually associate this color with a poisonous substance. Color is a silent language that we all react to based on whether it is a behavioral response or a learned response. For example, our color preferences that we have is based on our experience of past events in our daily social life. This would be a learned response. While on the other hand, a behavioral response happens naturally without us being aware of it. For example, the color red can heighten our perception of danger just by seeing it - the color of blood.

Color symbolism can vary dramatically between various cultures around the world that perceive colors completely different. For example, unlike Western cultures, the Chinese use white instead of black during funerals. Why you might ask? This is due to the fact that they associate white with the winter time in which nature is dead. Color is also associated with different religious and spiritual meanings in various cultures. Thus, this article will mostly cover the meaning of colors in the Western world however, if it is possible, a note will be made of its meaning in different cultures.

---

Red
Excitement, energy, passion, desire, movement, speed, strength, health, good fortune, vigor, power, heat, love, all things intense and passionate.

Negative: aggression, danger, fire, blood, war, violence, lust, stop, revolution, overwhelming and agitated.

Some Cultures :
China - symbol of celebration and luck, used in many cultural ceremonies that range from funerals to weddings.
India - color of purity (used in wedding outfits).
United States - Christmas color when combined with green, Valentines Day when combined with pink, indicates stop (danger) at traffic lights.
Eastern cultures - signifies joy when combined with white.

Associations:
Holiday: Yule (Christmas)
Planet: Mars
Day: Tuesday
Astrological: Scorpio

---

Yellow
Joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, cheerful, laughter gold, philosophy, caution, brightness, intelligence, knowledge, learning, concentration, persuasion, charm, confidence, creativity, happiness, organization and Spring time.

Negative: dishonesty, cowardice, betrayal, jealousy, covetousness, deceit, illness, hazard, criticism, laziness, or cynicism.
*Note: said that too much causes babies to cry and tempers to flare. Also, speeds up metabolism and creativity increases sales.

Some Cultures :
Asia - sacred, imperial.
Western cultures - joy, happiness.

Associations:
Planet: Mercury
Day: Wednesday
Astrological: Gemini, Leo

---

Blue
Peace, tranquility, calm, devotion, sincerity, honor, steadfast, dependable, loyal, productive, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence, spirituality, intuition, inspiration, conservatism, security, cleanliness, order, loyalty, sky, water, ice, coolness, technology, appetite suppressant, love, acceptance, patience, understanding, cooperation, comfort and loyalty.
* Pale blue (baby blue) stands for an infant boy.

Negative: depression, obscenity, fear, coldness, and passivity.

Some Cultures :
China - associated with immortality.
Colombia - associated with soap..
Hindus - the color of Krishna.
Jews - holiness.
Middle East - protective color.
* Note: Blue is often considered to be the safest global color.

Associations:
Planets: Moon,Venus, Saturn, Jupiter
Days: Monday, Friday, Saturday, Thursday
Astrological: Libra, Sagittarius

---

Orange
Balance, encouragement, warmth, enthusiasm, vibrant, expansive, flamboyant, demanding of attention, steadfastness, courage, confidence, friendliness, cheerfulness, warmth, excitement, energy fun times, plenty, kindness, adaptability, stimulation, attraction, happy energetic days and ambition.

Negative: Ignorance, inferiority, warning, danger, fire, sluggishness and superiority.

Some Cultures :
Ireland - religious significance (Protestant).
United States - inexpensive goods, Halloween (with black).

Associations:
Holiday: Candlemas
Deities: Brigid
Planets: Sun, Mars, Mercury
Days: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Astrological:

---

Green
Nature, environment, healthy, masculine, calming, good luck, prosperity, vitality, renewal, youth, vigor, spring, generosity, fertility, money, food, go, grass, hope, growth, charity, wealth, freshness, youth, soothing, sharing and responsiveness.

Negative: jealousy, inexperience, envy, misfortune, greed, constriction, guilt, and disorder.

Some Cultures :
China - studies indicate this is not a good color choice for packaging, green hats mean a man's wife is cheating on him.
France - studies indicate this is not a good color choice for packaging.
India - the color of Islam.
Ireland - religious significance (Catholic).
Some tropical countries - associated with danger
United States - indicates go (safe) at traffic lights, environmental awareness, St. Patrick's Day, Christmas color (red and green).

Associations:
Planets: Venus
Mercury
Days: Friday, Wednesday
Holidays: Spring Equinox, Beltane
Astrological: Taurus

---

Purple
Royalty, piety, sanctity, sentimentality, spirituality, nobility, ceremony, power, mysterious, transformation, wisdom, enlightenment, sophistication, respect and religion.

Negative: cruelty, tension, arrogance, mourning, bruised or foreboding.

Some Cultures :
Western cultures - royalty.

Associations:
Planet: Jupiter
Day: Thursday
Astrological: Sagittarius

---

Gray
Security, reliability, balance, neutrality, intelligence, staid, modesty, practical, dignity, maturity, timeless, solid, conservative.

Negative: old age, sadness, boring, death, canceling, depression, and loss of direction.

Some Cultures :

Associations:
Planet: Moon
Day: Monday
Deity: Athena
Astrological: Virgo

---

Brown
Earth, hearth, home, outdoors, friendship, reliability, comfort, Earth, grounding, endurance, stability, simplicity and comfort.

Negative: mourning

Some Cultures :
Colombia - discourages sales.

Associations:
Planets: Moon (tan browns), Venus (all), Saturn (dark browns)
Days: Monday/ Friday/ Saturday
Deity: Gaia
Astrological: Capricorn
Holiday: Mabon

---

White {this color is used since background color is white}
Reverence, purity, simplicity, cleanliness, peace, truth, glory, cleansing, healing, protection, humility, precision, innocence, youth, birth, winter, snow, good, marriage (Western cultures), cold, clinical, sterile, the full moon, healing, peace, spiritual strength, exorcism, consecration, meditation, divination.

Negative: Blind, winter, unimaginative, surrender, cold, sterility, distant, death (Eastern cultures).

Some Cultures :
Eastern cultures - mourning, death.
Japan - white carnations signify death.
United States - purity (used in weddings).
China- it symbolizes age, autumn, death, misfortune, virginity and purity.

Associations:
Planet: Moon
Day: Monday
Astrological: Cancer

---

Black
Dramatic, classy, committed, serious, power, authority, sexuality, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, depth, style, absence of color, good technical color.

Negative: mystery, fear, evil, anonymity, unhappiness, sadness, remorse, anger, mourning, ignorance, coldness, unconscious, underground, satanic rituals, darkness, death (Western cultures).

Some Cultures :
Western cultures - mourning, death.

Associations:
Holiday: Samhain
Planet: Saturn
Day: Saturday
Deities: The Crone
Astrological: Scorpio & Capricorn

---

Pink
Friendship, unconditional love, conviviality, affections, unselfish emotions, spiritual healing, emotional love.
* pale pink stands for an infant girl.

Negative:

Some Culture:

Associations:
Planet:Venus
Day: Friday

---

Silver
Purity, the moon, treasure, values, female energy, the unconscious mind.

Negative:

Some Culture:

Associations:
Day: Monday
Astrological: Gemini
Deity: Artemis and other Moon Goddesses

---

Gold
The sun, male energy, wealth, financial wisdom, security, understanding, luck, conscious mind, attracting happiness, activity, intelligence.

Negative:

Some Culture:

Associations:
Planet: Sun
Day: Sunday
Astrological: Leo
Deity: Apollo and other Sun Gods

---

Did You Know ?

Due to the fact that color affects us both physiologically and psychologically companies such as advertisers, food manufactures, packaging companies , professional webdesigners, car designers, office decorators and so on all use certain colors, shades and tone that will have a positive effect on us. This will influence us buying a product based on its color and the package it comes in. Buildings that are decorated with the right colors can let us feel relaxed and calm.

Colors can be broken into three different categories: neutrals, warms and cools:
Neutral colors
Black, white, gray, beige, brown
Warm colors
Red, orange, yellow, yellow-green, purple
Cool colors
Blue, violet, turquoise, sea-green, green

Need to know what color are you?
Find out at Spacefem.com

Related articles of interest:
How Rainbows Are Formed - What Causes a Rainbow?
Why are traffic lights Red, Yellow and Green?
Why leaves change color in fall?
What causes hair to turn gray?
Why do people have different colors of skin?
Why is the sky blue?
What Colors Say About Your Personality | Color Theory in Action