5 colours and Chinese culture

Colours and Culture

Words about colours in Chinese are closely related with the culture of the Han nationality and the feelings that the people have. So most of the words about colours in Chinese are, in fact, culturally connotative.

According to the Chinese dictionary “说文解字,” more than twenty words about colours are the concern of “丝” (si, silk). For example, “红” (hong, red), “绿” (lv, green), “紫” (zi, purple), “绛” (jiang, dark red), “绯” (fei, bright red), “绀” (gan, dark purple), “绢” (juan, white), etc. This example shows that words about colours and the development of silk and dyeing industry in China are closely related. Colour words are, first of all, the ways of naming different coloured objects. However, they are more culturally implicated as they are being used. In history, people worship and value different colours in different dynasties. For example, in Xia Dynasty (夏朝, xiachao, 2070 B. C. –1600 B. C.) people favored “blue” more than any other colors, while in Shang Dynasty (商朝, shangchao, 1600 B. C.—1046 B.C.) “white” is more favored; in Zhou Dynasty (周朝, zhouchao, 1046 B. C.—256 B. C. ), “red” is more prevailing and loved by people, but when it comes to Qin Dynasty (秦朝, qinchao, 221 B. C.—206 B. C.), “black” is more often chosen and favored by people. History records also tell that “red” has been the most popularly used and advocated color in history, esp. in Han Dynasty (汉朝, hanchao, 206 B. C.—25 A. D.), Sui Dynasty (隋朝, suichao, 581 A. D. –618 A. D.), Tang Dynasty (唐朝, tangchao, 618 A. D.—907 A. D.), Song Dynasty (宋朝, songchao, 960 A. D.—1279 A. D.), Yuan Dynasty (元朝, yuancao, 1206 A. D.—1368 A. D.), Ming Dynasty (明朝, mingchao, 1368 A. D.—1644 A. D.) and Qing Dynasty (清 朝, qingchao, 1616 A. D.—1911 A. D.). So, words about colours are the true pictures of the social activities and the social ideology of the times.

Yellow 黄色

Yellow is one of the colours that the Han people mostly advocate. In Chinese, yellow has been vividly described in more detailed language. For example, “金黄” (jin huang, golden yellow), “土黄” (tu huang, yellowish brown), “橙黄” (cheng huang, orange-yellow), “米黄” (mi huang, cream-coloured), “焦黄” (jiao huang, sallow), etc.

Yellow has been the colour of Chinese nation since ancient times, as “yellow” culturally implies “sacredness, imperial power, honour, solemnity, territory,” etc.

About 2,000 years ago, “五行” (wu xing, the Five Elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth) was interpreted in five colours by the Han people. The five colours also stand for “五方” (wu fang, the five directions)—east, west, south, north and the centre, and “yellow” is the colour representing “earth” in the Five Elements and “the centre” in the Five Directions. So in history, “yellow” stands for “imperial power and state” and “the land on which all things grow.” History also tells that “黄帝” (huangdi), the godfather of the Han nation, often wears a yellow dress and yellow cap, so yellow becomes the colour for the imperial. Starting from the Sui and the Tang Dynasty, the ordinary people are not allowed to dress in yellow, as is the colour confined to the emperors, the palace he lives, and the imperial carriages they sit on. In Han Dynasty, the place where the emperor works is called “黄门” (huang men, the Yellow Gate).

Ancient Chinese believe that yellow is the natural colour that will never change. The Yellow River, also called “黄龙” (huang long, the Yellow Dragon), is the cradle of the Chinese nation. The Yellow River Valley is the birthplace of the Han culture. For thousands of years, people of the Han nation live and farm by the Yellow River Valley, eat “黄米” (huang mi, the glutinous millet, rice grown on the Yellow Earth), drink the water from the Yellow River, and then have the Yellow Skin. So the colour “yellow” has always been in the minds of the Han people.

Gold is similarly yellow, so yellow also implies “wealth, rank and brilliance.” In history, the rich families wear all kinds of gold personal ornaments and have gold household utensils. Because of the value of gold, people today call “黄金时间” (huangjin shi jian) to refer to “the most precious time,” “黄金季节” (huangjin jijie) “the best season of a year,” and “黄金周” (huangjin zhou, the golden week) the one-week long holiday in May Day and the National Day in October in China today; people also say “黄金时代” (huangjin shidai) to mean “the most precious lifetime—the time of youth.”

During the times of the Eastern Han (东汉, donghan, 25 A. D.—220 A. D.) Dynasty, “道士” (dao shi, the Taoist Priest) wore yellow gowns and put on yellows caps because Taoism had strong beliefs in the doctrines of “黄帝” and “老子.” When the famous farm uprising occurred at the end of the Han Dynasty, it was called “黄巾起义” (huangjin qi yi, Yellow Towel Uprising) because the army men were asked to tie a yellow towel on their head for the uprising.

“黄纸” (huang zhi, the Yellow Paper used in Taoism) has often been used by priests to “画符” (hua fu, draw magic figures or incantations on, to drive away evils and ghosts) or for offering sacrifices. So there are the sayings of “黄历” or “皇历” (huang li, almanac) because the almanac has always been printed on yellow paper.

When people say “黄色” (huangse) today, it usually has a strongly derogatory sense related with “sex or porn.” In the 18th century, the United States printed its pornographic literature in yellow paper, so they are called “黄色书刊” (huangse shukan, pornographic books, and periodicals) in Chinese. When they came into China, “黄色” (the colour of yellow) carried a strong derogatory sense because they are related with “anti-government, sex and porn.” So are the sayings today, “黄色电影” (huangse dian ying, sex movies), “黄色录像” (huangse lu xiang, sex videos), “黄色歌曲” (huangse gequ, decadent songs), and “黄色酒吧” (huangse jiuba, bar with sex dealings), etc. In recent years, a very popular expression is “扫黄打非” (saohuang dafei), meaning “the campaign to sweep off prostitution and illegal pornographic literature or video products.” Other similar sayings are “贩黄” (fan huang), “倒黄” (dao huang), “造黄” (zao huang), meaning engaged in “prostitution” or engaged in “producing pornographic literature or videos.” The whole business is thus called “黄毒” (huang du, porn epidemics).

Red 红色

Red is also one of the colours that the Han people favoured most. During ancient times, “红” (hong, red) was also called “赤” (chi), “朱” (zhu), “丹” (dan), “绯绛” (fei jiang), etc. “红” has been described into further details in language, such as “大红” (da hong, bright red), “火红” (huo hong, fiery red), “枣红” (zao hong, purplish red), “朱红” (zhu hong, vermilion), “玫瑰红” (meigui hong, rose-red), etc.

The Han people like red, because they often associate the sun and the colour of fire with red. Since the sun and fire bring people brightness, warmth and happiness, “red” then implies “happiness, auspiciousness, joyousness, and animation,” etc. Because of this, “red” is culturally connotative in “prosperity, success, smoothness, luckiness, and achievements,” etc.

In important festival celebrations as in the Spring Festival, the New Year’s Day, etc., people will often put on both sides of the door “红对联” (hong duilian, antithetical couplet on red paper), or the character “福” (fu, good fortune) on the door, implying “洪福齐天” (hongfu qitian, limitless blessing). Some people will also put on the window glass “red papercuts” and hang “red lantern” at the door; in the evening they will light “red candles” and set off “red firecrackers.”

People call marriage or wedding “红喜事” (hong xishi) because in ancient times, the bride was dressed in red and her head (avoid being seen) covered with a piece of red cloth called “红盖头” (hong gaitou). The bridegroom usually wore a red belt and a big red flower at the chest. Even today the wedding chamber has many red decorations, like the character “囍” (xi, a happy event) on red paper, the red candles, etc. For the celebration of marriage, people send the gift-money wrapped in a red paper bag called “红包.” The invitation cards for guests are all designed in red, as the “red” marriage implies “joy, happiness,” etc.

When a woman is pregnant, she is called “有喜” (you xi, a happy event). When a baby is born, people think it “a happy event” too. The woman after childbirth used to eat eggs dyed in red and tie a red belt at the waist, wishing the child good luck.

In the opening ceremonies for business and enterprises, or in “奠基仪式” (dianji yishi, the foundation stone laying ceremony) or in “落成仪式” (luocheng yishi, completion ceremony of a project), people will have red silk for festoons and then cut the ribbons, which implies “the congratulation for success, smoothness, achievements,” etc. So there are many expressions with “红” that carry the similar meaning. For example, “红利” (hong li, bonus), “红运” (hong yun, good luck), “分红” (fen hong, share profits), “红榜” (hong bang, honor roll), “红包” (hong bao, money wrapped in red paper bag), “开门红” (kai men hong, make a good beginning), “满堂红” (mantang hong, all-around victory), “红日髙照” (hongri gaozhao, a good fortune), etc.

“红” also implies that “someone is highly recognized in society and is thus welcomed by people and the leadership.” For example, “很红” (heng hong, successful and highly recognized), “走红” (zou hong, be in luck), “红极一时” (hong ji yi shi, be well-known for a time), etc. But sometimes they are ironically used. For example, “大红人” (da hong ren, the person who are highly favored), “红得发紫” (hong de fa zi, extremely popular), etc. Naturally, when a person succeeds in his/her business, he/she invites envies at the same time. So “眼红” (yan hong, green-eyed), “红眼病” (hong yan bing, be envious) are the sayings meaning “jealousy.”

During ancient times, females used to have rouge for make-up. So “红颜” (hong yan, a pretty face) is the saying for beautiful girls.

In Buddhism, the human world is called “红尘” (hong chen), so come with the expressions like “看破 (kan po) 红尘 (see through the vanity of the world),” “迷恋 (mi lian) 红尘 (be infatuated with the worldly life),” “堕入 (duo ru) 红尘 (sink into the worldly life),” etc.

In operas, people often associate “loyalty, bravery, persistence and sincerity” with the red type of facial make-up.

Since “blood” and “fire” in battles are red, “红” often implies the revolutionary struggle in Chinese history. For example, “红旗” (hongqi, red flag), “红军” (hong jun, the Red Army), “红区” (hong qu, revolutionary area), “红都” (hong du, revolutionary city), “红心” (hong xin, revolutionary heart), “红五星” (hong vuu xing, the red five-star), “红领章” (hong ling zhang, the red insignia), “红领巾” (hong ling jin, the red scarf for Young Pioneers), “红小鬼” (hong xiaogui, the Young Soldiers), etc. So “红” is often closely related to politics in China. During the Cultural Revolution, for example, “红卫兵” (hong wei bing, the red guards), “红宝书” (hong bao shu, selected quotations from Chairman Mao), etc. are the special names for the political movement. At that time, an ideal person was called “又红又专” (youhong youzhuan, both politically conscious and professionally competent).

Green 绿色

Green is another color favored by the Han people. In their daily life, green is described in more details, such as “碧绿” (bi lv, dark green), “草绿” (cao lv, grass green), “翠绿” (cui lv, jade green), “深绿” (shen lv, dark green), “墨绿” (mo lv, blackish green), “苹果绿” (pingguo lv, apple green), etc.

Green is also called “青” (qing). For example, “青草” (qing cao, grass), “青松” (qing song, green pines), “青山” (qing shan, green hills), “青菜” (qing cai, green cabbages), “青果” (qing guo, green fruits), etc.

Green is the color of plants and trees, so people often associate the Spring, grassland, forests, lakes, jadeite, and gem, etc. with green. Because of this image, green often implies “youth, peace, hope, safety, vitality,” etc.

In traffic, green lights mean the safety pass, and dark green is the color for postal service, which is an internationally recognized practice. Since green means “safety pass” in traffic control, “开绿灯” (kai lvdeng) in Chinese means more than literally, as it often implies “those in power esp. the leaders give pass or conveniences to certain people by breaking the set rules or regulations.”

In ancient China, green implied “低微” (di wei, humble), “下贱” (xia jian, mean, degrading) and the like. In the Tang Dynasty, officials under Grade 7 (七品官, qi pin guan) had to wear a green dress called “青衫” (qing shan). “白居易” (Bai Juyi), the famous poet in Tang Dynasty, was a Grade-9 official, so he had to be dressed in green. In his poems, some officials, even old and bent, were still dressed in green-a bad luck in officialdom. During the times of the Song and the Yuan Dynasties, green dress and green scarf was a must for people of humble origin; In Yuan and Ming Dynasties, whores and music men had to tie a piece of green cloth on their heads. History records tell that in places of Suzhou and Kunshan (Jiangsu Province), the man whose wife had adultery affair was first called “green-scarf man.” So the popular saying today is “戴绿帽子” (dai lvmaozi, a green cap on the head). Another saying is related to a kind of tortoise with a green head, so the husband was also called a “cuckold” (当王八, dang wangba).

In Qing Dynasty, soldiers of the Han nationality had to hold green banners because of their humble social status, a sharp contrast with “the Eight Banners Soldiers” (八旗子弟兵, baqi zidi bing) who used to hold flags of yellow, white, blue and red, etc.

In operas, the green facial make-up usually implies “ferocity” like the green-faced ghosts in hell.

Black 黑色

The color “black” used to carry a positive sense, implying “honor, resolution, justice and mystery,” etc. In Xia and Qin Dynasties, black color was chosen for the formal dress, ceremonial dress and funeral dress.

In operas, the black facial make-up always implies “憨直” (han zhi, honest and straightforward), “刚直不阿” (gangzhi bu’e, upright and above flattery) and “铁面无私” (tiemian wu si, impartial and incorruptible), etc. “包拯” (bao zheng), an upright official and “李逵” (li kui), a hero from Song Dynasty, all have a black facial make-up when played on the stage.

Based on the interpretations of “五方,” the north is black, the color of night. So “black” implies “depth, solemnity, and mystery.”

Before the Qin Dynasty, one punishment for criminals was branding on their forehead or head drawings or characters and then painting them black. In this way, the shame on criminal’s faces can never be wiped off. So today when people say “抹黑” (mo hei), they mean “bring shame on.”

It is said “阴曹地府” (yincao difu, the netherworld), also called “hell” is completely dark all the time, sharply contrasting with “brightness.” So “black” carries a derogatory sense implying “death, evil, sinisterness and terror,” etc. During the Cultural Revolution, “black” was related to “anti-government and anti-revolution.” All those had been cracked down or criticized were called “黑,” a strong political flavor. For example, the sayings like “黑帮” (hei bang, reactionary gang), “黑会” (hei hui, a clandestine meeting), etc. “黑” also implies “wickedness” as in “黑手” (hei shou), a “black hand”—a vicious person manipulating somebody or something from behind the scenes, and “黑心” (hei xin, evil mind), etc.

As “黑” refers to “dealings behind the curtain,” it also implies “illegal, deceitful, etc.” More popular sayings today are “黑社会” (hei shehui, the underworld), “黑户” (hei hu, unregistered household), “黑人” (hei ren, unregistered resident), “黑货” (hei huo, smuggled goods), “黑市” (hei shi, black market), “黑名单” (hei mingdan, blacklist), etc.

Colloquially, “黑” means “心狠手辣” (xinhen shoula, cruel and ruthless). Deceit like charging a high price for inferior-quality goods is also called “黑.”

White 白色

“White” is the unbleached color and is vividly described in language as “雪白” (xue bai, snow-white), “葱白” (cong bai, very light blue), “银白” (yin bai, silvery-white), “灰白” (hui bai, grayish-white), “花白” (hua bai, grey ), “鱼肚白” (yu du bai, the whitish color of a fish’s belly), etc.

People often think of white clouds and white snow with the color “white” and the association of “nobility, pureness, brightness and cleanness, elegance, honesty, simplicity, etc.” So the expressions “清白无辜” (qingbai wugu, innocent), “洁白如玉” (jiebai ruyu, as pure and white as jade), “白璧无瑕” (baibi wuxia, flawless white jade) are popularly used. Today we call nurses in hospital “白衣战士” (baiyi zhanshi, warriors in white). During ancient times, a superstitious belief was that the sudden appearance of white birds and beasts was considered “auspicious.” Such birds and beasts were white deer, white crane, white wolf, white swallow, and white goose, etc.

In history, especially from the Han to the Tang and the Song Dynasties, people in white are all the ordinary people called “庶民” (shumin). So “白丁” (bai ding) refers to “people without academic titles or official ranks”; “白屋” (bai wu) is “the hut where poor people live.”

“白” also means “ferocious” which derives from the belief of “五行” (the Five Elements), “五方” (the five locations), and “五色” (the five colors). Ancients believed that the Western Group (Nos. 15—21) of the twenty-eight constellations (二十八宿) is white and called the White Tiger (白虎星). Since people are afraid of tigers and even “turn pale at the mention of the tiger” (谈虎色变, tanhu sebian) the cruel and ferocious person is called “白虎星” (baihu xing).

Ancients also believe that, based on the rules of weather changes and crop growth, Spring is in the east, Summer in the south, Autumn in the west and Winter in the north. They also believe that autumn is the season that all things on earth are withering and dying. So during ancient times, criminals were always shot in Autumn and thus came the saying “一命归西” (yiming guixi).

White is the color that the Han people resent in their life. When a relative die, the family members have to dress in white, and the white clothes that the offspring wear is called “孝服” (xiao fu, mourning apparel). The mourning hall is usually decorated in white, and when the coffin is to be carried to the cemetery (called “出滨,” chu bin), white, narrow flags are held, and white paper resembling money are scattered around. The whole funeral business is called “白事” (bai shi).

Contrary to “red,” all that is reactionary has also been called “白.” In Chinese history, the area ruled by Kuomintang (KMT) is called “白区” (bai qu); its troops are called “白军” (bai jun); the bandits that cause disasters to people are called “白匪” (bai fei). The massacre of revolutionaries by the reactionary government is called “白色恐怖” (bai se kong bu, the white terror). Contrary to “又红又专,” popular in the 60s and 70s, the trend that “only clings to the profession but not cares the politics” has been titled “白专道路” (baizhuan daolu).

White also implies “failure, fruitless and foolish.” On the battlefield, for example, the side that loses the war will surrender with a white flag raising; the foolish people are nicknamed “白痴” (bai chi, idiot); And in operas, the white facial make-up often implies “crafty, sinister” and the like.