Chartreuse (, , ), also known as yellow-green, is a color between

yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In the ...

and

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a combi ...

. It was named because of its resemblance to the green color of a French liqueur called '' green chartreuse'', introduced in 1764. Similarly, ''chartreuse yellow'' is a yellow color mixed with a small amount of green; it was named because of its resemblance to the color of another French liqueur called '' yellow chartreuse'', introduced in 1838.

Shades of chartreuse

History and etymology

The French word ''chartreuse'' means "

charterhouse Charterhouse may refer to: * Charterhouse (monastery), of the Carthusian religious order Charterhouse may also refer to: Places * The Charterhouse, Coventry, a former monastery * Charterhouse School, an English public school in Surrey Londo ...

". The

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

of the monks of the

Carthusian The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has i ...

order, of which the first one was established in 1082 by Saint Bruno, are called charter houses because they were chartered—and given generous material support—by the

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy (french: duc de Bourgogne) was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by France in 1477, and later by Holy Roman Emperors and Kings of Spain from the House of Habsburg ...

, known as

Philip the Bold Philip II the Bold (; ; 17 January 1342 – 27 April 1404) was Duke of Burgundy and ''jure uxoris'' Count of Flanders, Artois and Burgundy. He was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg. Philip II w ...

, when he took over the area in 1378. Philip the Bold's elaborately decorated tomb was initially installed at a Carthusian charterhouse when he died in 1404. These monks started producing

Chartreuse liqueur Chartreuse (, , ) is a French herbal liqueur available in green and yellow versions that differ in taste and alcohol content. The liqueur has been made by the Carthusian monks since 1737 according to the instructions set out in a manuscript ...

in 1764.

Chartreuse in nature

Yellow-green algae, also called ''Xanthophytes'', are a class of algae in the Heterokontophyta

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

. Most live in fresh water, but some are found in marine and soil habitats. They vary from single-celled flagellates to simple

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

and filamentous forms. Unlike other heterokonts, the plastids of yellow-green algae do not contain

fucoxanthin Fucoxanthin is a xanthophyll, with formula C42H58O6. It is found as an accessory pigment in the chloroplasts of brown algae and most other heterokonts, giving them a brown or olive-green color. Fucoxanthin absorbs light primarily in the blue-green ...

, which is why they have a lighter color.

In popular culture

Traffic safety

Chartreuse yellow is used on traffic safety vests to provide increased visibility for employees working near traffic. The chartreuse yellow background material, together with a retro-reflective satisfy th
ANSI 107-2010 standard
since 1999.

High-visibility clothing High-visibility clothing, sometimes shortened to hi vis or hi viz, is any clothing worn that is highly luminescent in its natural matt property or a color that is easily discernible from any background. It is most commonly worn on the torso and ...

ANSI Standards were adopted as an

Occupational Safety and Health Act (United States) The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 is a US labor law governing the federal law of occupational health and safety in the private sector and federal government in the United States. It was enacted by Congress in 1970 and was signed by ...

requirement in 2008.

Film and television

The 1960 Universal film ''

Chartroose Caboose ''Chartroose Caboose'' is a 1960 American comedy film directed by William 'Red' Reynolds and written by Rod Peterson. The film stars Molly Bee, Ben Cooper, Edgar Buchanan, Michael McGreevey, O. Z. Whitehead and Slim Pickens. The film was releas ...

'' featured a "bright green" colored train car.

Firefighting

Since about 1973, a sort of

fluorescent Fluorescence is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other electromagnetic radiation. It is a form of luminescence. In most cases, the emitted light has a longer wavelength, and therefore a lower photon energy, ...

chartreuse green has been adopted as the color of

fire engines The Fire Engines were a post-punk band from Edinburgh, Scotland. The Fire Engines were an influence on many bands that followed, including Franz Ferdinand and The Rapture, with Meat Whiplash and The Candyskins both taking their names from Fire ...

in parts of the United States and elsewhere. The use of chartreuse fire engines began when New York ophthalmologist Stephen Solomon produced research claiming that sparkling bright lime-green paint would boost the night time visibility of emergency vehicles compared to those painted the traditional

fire engine red Fire engine red is an informal name for an intense, bright red commonly used on emergency vehicles in many countries on fire service vehicles. There is no unique shade, although different fire services may have a required specification. The col ...

. The reason for this is the

Purkinje effect The Purkinje effect (; sometimes called the Purkinje shift, often incorrectly pronounced ) is the tendency for the peak luminance sensitivity of the eye to shift toward the blue end of the color spectrum at low illumination levels as part of da ...

, i.e., the

cones A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines conn ...

do not function as efficiently in dim light, so red objects appear to be black. In Australia and New Zealand this form of chartreuse yellow is also known as "ACT yellow" as this is the color of the fire engines in the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. I ...

Flags

When

Bharatpur State Bharatpur State, which is also known as the Jat State of Bharatpur historically known as the Kingdom of Bharatpur, was a Hindu Kingdom in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. It was ruled by the Sinsinwar clan of the Hindu Jat ...

was a princely state, it was the only political entity ever to have a chartreuse yellow-colored flag.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chartreuse (Color) Tertiary colors Quaternary colors Shades of green