Varieties of the color

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 t ...

may differ in hue, chroma (also called saturation, intensity, or colorfulness) or

lightness Lightness is a visual perception of the luminance (L) of an object. It is often judged relative to a similarly lit object. In colorimetry and color appearance models, lightness is a prediction of how an illuminated color will appear to a stand ...

(or value, tone, or

brightness Brightness is an attribute of visual perception in which a source appears to be radiating/reflecting light. In other words, brightness is the perception dictated by the luminance of a visual target. The perception is not linear to luminance, and ...

), or in two or three of these qualities. Variations in value are also called

tints and shades In color theory, a tint is a mixture of a color with white, which increases lightness, while a shade is a mixture with black, which increases darkness. A tone is produced either by mixing a color with gray, or by both tinting and shading. M ...

, a tint being a yellow or other hue mixed with white, a shade being mixed with black. A large selection of these various colors is shown below.

Web colors

Yellow (RGB) (X11 yellow) (color wheel yellow)

The color box at right shows the most intense yellow representable in 8-bit

RGB color model The RGB color model is an additive color, additive color model in which the red, green, and blue primary colors of light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials ...

; yellow is a ''secondary'' color in an additive RGB space. This color is also called color wheel yellow. It is at precisely 60 degrees on the HSV color wheel, also known as the RGB color wheel. Its

complementary color Complementary colors are pairs of colors which, when combined or color mixing, mixed, cancel each other out (lose Colorfulness, chroma) by producing a grayscale color like white or black. When placed next to each other, they create the stronge ...

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

Yellow (CMYK) (process yellow) (canary yellow)

Process yellow (also called pigment yellow or printer's yellow), also known as canary yellow, is one of the three colors typically used as subtractive

primary color Primary colors are colorants or colored lights that can be mixed in varying amounts to produce a gamut of colors. This is the essential method used to create the perception of a broad range of colors in, e.g., electronic displays, color prin ...

s, along with

magenta Magenta () is a purple-red color. On color wheels of the RGB color model, RGB (additive) and subtractive color, CMY (subtractive) color models, it is located precisely midway between blue and red. It is one of the four colors of ink used in colo ...

and

cyan Cyan () is the color between blue and green on the visible spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a predominant wavelength between 500 and 520 nm, between the wavelengths of green and blue. In the subtractive color system, or CMYK c ...

. Canary yellow is derived from the colour of an average canary bird, though canaries can vary in colour from dark yellow to light pink. Process yellow is not an

RGB The RGB color model is an additive color model in which the red, green, and blue primary colors of light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials of the three ...

color, and in the

CMYK color model The CMYK color model (also known as process color, or four color) is a subtractive color model, based on the CMY color model, used in color printing, and is also used to describe the printing process itself. The abbreviation ''CMYK'' refers ...

there is no fixed conversion from CMYK primaries to RGB. Different formulations are used for printer's ink, so there can be variations in the printed color that is pure yellow ink. The first recorded use of ''canary yellow'' as a color name in English was in 1789.

Yellow (NCS) (psychological primary yellow)

The color defined as yellow in the NCS or

Natural Color System The Natural Colour System (NCS) is a proprietary perceptual color model. It is based on the color opponency hypothesis of color vision, first proposed by German physiologist Ewald Hering. The current version of the NCS was developed by the ...

is shown at right (NCS 0580-Y). The Natural Color System is a color system based on the four

unique hues Unique hue is a term used in perceptual psychology of color vision and generally applied to the purest hues of blue, green, yellow and red. The proponents of the opponent process theory believe that these hues cannot be described as a mixture of ...

or psychological primary colors red, yellow, green, and blue. The NCS is based on the

opponent process The opponent process is a color theory that states that the human visual system interprets information about color by processing signals from photoreceptor cells in an antagonistic manner. The opponent-process theory suggests that there are thre ...

theory of vision. The “Natural Color System” is widely used in

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

Yellow (Munsell)

The ''

Munsell color system The Munsell color system is a color space that specifies colors based on three properties of color: hue (basic color), value (lightness), and colorfulness, chroma (color intensity). It was created by Albert Henry Munsell, Albert H. Munsell in the ...

'' is a

color space A color space is a specific organization of colors. In combination with color profiling supported by various physical devices, it supports reproducible representations of colorwhether such representation entails an analog or a digital represe ...

that specifies

colors Color (or colour in Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though color is not an inherent property of matter, color perception is related to an object's light absorpt ...

based on three color dimensions: hue, value (

), and chroma (colorfulness), spaced uniformly (in terms of

human perception Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

) in three dimensions in the Munsell

color solid A color solid is the Three-dimensional space, three-dimensional representation of a color space or Color model, model and can be thought as an analog of, for example, the One-dimensional space, one-dimensional color wheel, which depicts the v ...

. In order for all the colors to be spaced uniformly, it was found necessary to use a color wheel with five, non-arbitrary, equally spaced primary colors: red, yellow, green, blue, and purple. The color of the sample is the most chromatic (colorful) yellow in the sRGB gamut that falls in the hue of 5Y (primary yellow) in the Munsell color space.

Yellow (Pantone)

The color that is called yellow in

Pantone Pantone LLC (stylized as PANTONE) is an American limited liability company headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey, and best known for its Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color order system used in a variety of industries, notably gr ...

is displayed at right. The source of this color is the "Pantone Textile Paper eXtended (TPX)" color list, color #C, EC, M, PC, U, or CP—Yellow.

Tints of yellow

Light yellow

Displayed at right is the

web color Web most often refers to: * Spider web, a silken structure created by the animal * World Wide Web or the Web, an Internet-based hypertext system Web, WEB, or the Web may also refer to: Computing * WEB, a literate programming system created by D ...

light yellow.

Cream

Displayed at right is the web color cream, a pale tint of yellow.

Lemon chiffon

Displayed at right is the web color lemon chiffon. Lemon chiffon is a color that is reminiscent of the color of

lemon The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some ...

chiffon cake.

Additional definitions of yellow

Lemon

Lemon is a color somewhat resembling yellow and named after the

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

. The color ''lemon'' is a representation of the color of the outer skin of a lemon. The first recorded use of ''lemon'' as a color name in English was in 1598.

Mellow yellow

The color mellow yellow is displayed at right. ''Mellow yellow'' was first used as a color name in English in 1948 when it was formulated as one of the colors on the Plochere color list. The source of this color is the ''Plochere Color System'', a color system formulated in 1948 that is widely used by

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a Creativity, creative flair, an ...

ers.

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965 and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles ...

's album ''

Mellow Yellow "Mellow Yellow" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. Released in the US in 1966, it reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Outside the US, "Mellow Yellow" peaked at No. 8 in the UK in early 1967. Content ...

'', named after the song "

", was popular during the

Summer of Love The Summer of Love was a major social phenomenon that occurred in San Francisco during the summer of 1967. As many as 100,000 people, mostly young people, hippies, beatniks, and 1960s counterculture figures, converged in San Francisco's Haig ...

in 1967.

Royal yellow

At right is displayed the color royal yellow. The color ''royal yellow'' is a representation of the color of the robes worn by the

Emperor of China Throughout Chinese history, "Emperor" () was the superlative title held by the monarchs of imperial China's various dynasties. In traditional Chinese political theory, the emperor was the " Son of Heaven", an autocrat with the divine mandat ...

. The first recorded use of ''royal yellow'' as a color name in English was in 1548. Other names for this color are Chinese yellow and imperial yellow.

Gold (golden)

Gold, also called golden, is a

- orange color which is a representation of the color of the element

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

. The web color ''gold'' (also referred to as ''orange-yellow'') is sometimes referred to as golden to distinguish it from the color '' metallic gold''. The use of ''gold'' as a color term in traditional usage is more often applied to the color "metallic gold". The first recorded uses of ''golden'' as a color name in English were in 1300 to refer to the element gold and in 1423 to refer to

blonde Blond () or blonde (), also referred to as fair hair, is a human hair color characterized by low levels of eumelanin, the dark pigment. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can be ...

hair.Maerz and Paul ''A Dictionary of Color'' New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 195

Tartrazine

The color ''tartrazine'' is a vibrant, warm-toned shade of warm yellow.

Cyber yellow

The color cyber yellow is displayed at right. The source of this color is the "

Textile Paper eXtended (TPX)" color list, color 14-0760 TPX—Cyber Yellow.

Safety yellow

Safety yellow is one of the standard high-visibility safety colors defined by

ANSI The American National Standards Institute (ANSI ) is a private nonprofit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States. The organiz ...

standard Z535, which specifies standards for safety and accident prevention information. It is often used on

hazard symbol Hazard symbols are universally recognized Symbol, symbols designed to alert individuals to the presence of Hazard, hazardous or dangerous materials, locations, or conditions. These include risks associated with Electromagnetic field, electromag ...

warning sign A warning sign is a type of sign which indicates a potential hazard, obstacle, or condition requiring special attention. Some are traffic signs that indicate hazards on roads that may not be readily apparent to a driver. While warning traffic ...

guard rail Guard rails, guardrails, railings or protective guarding, in general, are a boundary feature and may be a means to prevent or deter access to dangerous or off-limits areas while allowing light and visibility in a greater way than a fence. Commo ...

s, dangerous equipment, older American civil defense sirens (typically from the 1950s and 1960s), and some

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 an ...

and

personal protective equipment Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, elect ...

. The definition is mirrored in

British Standard British Standards (BS) are the standards produced by the BSI Group which is incorporated under a royal charter and which is formally designated as the national standards body (NSB) for the UK. The BSI Group produces British Standards under th ...

BS 381C and Australian Standard AS2700 (where it is known as golden yellow). In 1937, it was determined that safety yellow was the best color to be noticed by the human brain; as a result, the paint color of all

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

school buses was changed from orange to safety yellow (see also school bus yellow).

Greenish Yellow

Displayed at right is the color greenish yellow. It is the main color on the Indian 20-rupee note.

Calamansi

The color ''calamansi'' with hexadecimal color code is a light shade of yellow-green.

Chartreuse yellow

The first recorded use of ''chartreuse'' for the color that is now called ''chartreuse yellow'' in American English was in 1892.Aloys John Maerz; Morris Rea Paul (1930) ''A Dictionary of Color'', p. 192, New York: McGraw-Hill In the book ''Color Standards and Color Nomenclature'' (1912), "Chartreuse Yellow" is listed and illustrated.

Orpiment

''Orpiment'', also known as ″yellow

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...

blende″ is a deep-colored, orange-yellow arsenic sulfide mineral with formula As2S3. It is found in volcanic fumaroles, low-temperature hydrothermal veins, and hot springs and may be formed through sublimation. Orpiment takes its name from the Latin auripigmentum (aurum, "gold" + pigmentum, "pigment"), due to its deep-yellow color. Orpiment once was widely used in artworks, medicine, and other applications.

Pear

Pear is a desaturated chartreuse yellow color that resembles the color of the exterior surface of Anjou or Bartlett

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late summer into mid-autumn. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosaceae, bearing the Pome, po ...

Green earth

Displayed at right is the color ''green earth''. It is also known as ''terre verte'' and ''Verona green''. It is an inorganic

pigment A pigment is a powder used to add or alter color or change visual appearance. Pigments are completely or nearly solubility, insoluble and reactivity (chemistry), chemically unreactive in water or another medium; in contrast, dyes are colored sub ...

derived from the minerals celadonite and

glauconite Glauconite is an iron potassium phyllosilicate ( mica group) mineral of characteristic green color which is very friable and has very low weathering resistance. It crystallizes with a monoclinic geometry. Its name is derived from the Greek ...

.Green earth
Pigments through the Ages. ''webexhibits.com''. Retrieved 29 August 2016.

Moccasin

A brownish yellow, common of the leather shoe with the same name.

Mango

A yellow-orange color that resembles mangoes. It is named after the fruit. It is currently unknown when ''mango'' was first used as a color name in English.

References

{{Color topics