Yellow

This article is about the color. For other uses, see Yellow (disambiguation).
For technical reasons, "Yellow #5" redirects here. For that title, see Yellow No. 5.

Yellow
 
Spectral coordinates
Wavelength575–585[1] nm
Frequency521–512 THz
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#FFFF00
sRGBB (r, g, b)(255, 255, 0)
HSV (h, s, v)(60°, 100%, 100%)
CIELChuv (L, C, h)(97, 107, 86°)
SourceHTML/CSS[2]
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575–585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In the RGB color model, used to create colors on television and computer screens, yellow is a secondary color made by combining red and green at equal intensity. Carotenoids give the characteristic yellow color to autumn leaves, corn, canaries, daffodils, and lemons, as well as egg yolks, buttercups, and bananas. They absorb light energy and protect plants from photo damage in some cases.[3] Sunlight has a slight yellowish hue when the Sun is near the horizon, due to atmospheric scattering of shorter wavelengths (green, blue, and violet).

Because it was widely available, yellow ochre pigment was one of the first colors used in art; the Lascaux cave in France has a painting of a yellow horse 17,000 years old. Ochre and orpiment pigments were used to represent gold and skin color in Egyptian tombs, then in the murals in Roman villas.[4] In the early Christian church, yellow was the color associated with the Pope and the golden keys of the Kingdom, but it was also associated with Judas Iscariot and used to mark heretics. In the 20th century, Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe were forced to wear a yellow star. In China, bright yellow was the color of the Middle Kingdom, and could be worn only by the emperor and his household; special guests were welcomed on a yellow carpet.[5]

According to surveys in Europe, Canada, the United States and elsewhere, yellow is the color people most often associate with amusement, gentleness, humor, happiness, and spontaneity; however it can also be associated with duplicity, envy, jealousy, greed, justice, and, in the U.S., cowardice.[6] In Iran it has connotations of pallor/sickness,[7] but also wisdom and connection.[8] In China and many Asian countries, it is seen as the color of royalty, nobility, respect, happiness, glory, harmony and wisdom.[9]

  1. ^ Elert, Glenn (2021). "Color". The Physics Hypertextbook. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  2. ^ "CSS Color Module Level 3". 19 June 2018. Archived from the original on 29 November 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2007.
  3. ^ Armstrong, G.A.; Hearst, J.E. (1996). "Carotenoids 2: Genetics and molecular biology of carotenoid pigment biosynthesis". FASEB J. 10 (2): 228–37. doi:10.1096/fasebj.10.2.8641556. ISSN 0892-6638. PMID 8641556. S2CID 22385652. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  4. ^ "Antiquity". Pigments through the Ages. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023.
  5. ^ Cited in Eva Heller (2000), Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques, p. 82.
  6. ^ Eva Heller (2000), Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques, pp. 69–86.
  7. ^ Price, Massoume (December 2001). "Culture of Iran: Festival of Fire". Iran Chamber Society. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023.
  8. ^ Amjadi, Maryam Ala (2012). "Shades of doubt and shapes of hope: Colors in Iranian culture". Payvand. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022.
  9. ^ Eva Heller (2000), Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques, pp. 69–86