How To Say Pink In Japanese

Primary colors in Japanese seem piece of cake and straightforward, but yous'd be surprised by how much culture and history get behind them. Granted, a lot of Japanese vocabulary is borrowed from English, which makes it easy for us to memorize them — only in Japanese civilization, colors take an important part if representing feelings, rituals and ceremonies.

In Japanese, the words for specific colors are used differently depending on their parts of voice communication. Having 2 sets – one set is the Japanese – the other being a katakana loan give-and-take version of their At that place are two ways: i set is the Japanese one, and the other is a katakana loan discussion version of their English counterparts. Almost colors in Japanese cease with 色 except for a few exceptions and words borrowed from English language.

For case, the color "blueish" tin exist both 青い (aoi) and ブルー (buruu).

Another example is the color orange. Fifty-fifty Japanese people will frequently opt for the loanword, オレンジ, instead of using the traditional Japanese word: 橙色 (daidaiiro).

This can be very disruptive for beginners in Japanese as to what context is appropriate to use which version. In this article, we will explicate to you how to describe objects with colors in Japanese.

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Jump to:

• Nouns for Bones Colors in Japanese
• Japanese Colors as Adjective
• A Cursory Guide (or History) on Japanese Color
• Confusion Around Colors in Japanese
• Meanings of Colors in Japanese Culture
• How to Say Other Colors in Japanese

Japanese color

Nouns for Basic Colors in Japanese

English	Japanese	Furigana	Romaji	Katakana	Romaji
Red	赤	あか	Aka	レッド	Reddo
Orange	橙色	だいだいいろ	Daidaiiro	オレンジ	Orenji
Xanthous	黄色	きいろ	Kiiro	イエロー	Ieroo
Greenish	緑	みどり	Midori	グリーン	Guriin
Blue	青	あお	Ao	ブルー	Buruu
Majestic	紫	むらさき	Murasaki	パープル	Paapuru
Pinkish	桃色	ももいろ	Momoiro	ピンク	Pinku
Brown	茶色	ちゃいろ	Chairo	ブラウン	Buraun
Grey	灰色	はいいろ	Haiiro	グレイ	Gurei
Black	黒	くろ	Kuro	ブラック	Purakku
White	白	しろ	Shiro	ホワイト	Howaito

These words higher up are nouns that refer to different colors.  Equally a consequence, the particle "の(no)" is used when describing the colour of something.  If you are not familiar with particles in Japanese, we recommend y'all to take a look at our basic Japanese grammar guide.

The basic judgement design for describing colors is color + の + subject area.

For instance:

みどりの窓口(まどぐち)
Midori no madoguchi
Green window (commonly referring to the ticket office at a train station in Japan)

紫(むらさき)の靴下(くつした)
Murasaki no kutsushita
Purple socks.

Why do we apply の instead of な? For the respond, head to our commodity on the dilemma of な-adjectives and の-adjectives.

Japanese Colors as Adjectives

Color can too be used every bit adjectives. Surprisingly, there are only 4 colors that will get an describing word when "い" is added directly to the dorsum.

English	Japanese	Furigana	Romaji
Red	赤い	あかい	Akai
Blue	青い	あおい	Aoi
Blackness	黒い	くろい	Kuroi
White	白い	しろい	Shiroi

To use Japanese colors as adjectives, you tin can use them directly in front of a subject. For example:

あおい海(うみ)
Aoi umi
Blue sea

海(うみ)はあおいです。
Umi wa aoi desu
The sea is bluish.

Cheque out: Beginner's Guide to Japanese Adjectives: な and い Adjectives

A Brief Guide on Japanese Colors

And then why just four, and why are these colors special? It is considering only four colors existed equally the basic forms of color in the ancient Japanese language — or, at least, best-selling: 白 shiro (white), 黒kuro(black), 赤aka (red) and 青ao (blue).

The same can be seen in other basic color wheels. Kuro (くろ) and shiro (しろ) are used to describe things that are dark and light — cool and warm. The word あか covers a spectrum of dark red, orange and yellow, with lighter yellow colors grouped to しろ. Ki (黄) paints in shades of yellow, golden and lighter dark-brown. Murasaki (むらさき) was in one case a name of a plant just eventually became a colour name for purple, besides.

Rather than actual colors, these words are used to grouping particular hues and shades. For instance, different shades of blue in the by are now imperial, greyness and green.

Confusions Around Colors in Japanese

We're non trying to make things complicated, but if you lot dig deeper into the Japanese language, you'll find that colors in Japanese aren't equally "innocent" as they seem. Take a await at some of the few language conundrums.

"黄色い" and "茶色い"

There are 2 more colors that can get Japanese adjectives: 黄色 (kiiro) and 茶色 (chairo). You might call up: they are formatted exactly the same style as other (native Japanese) colors, so why didn't we not put them together with the 4 main colors above? This is because although meaning xanthous and chocolate-brown color, "黄" and "茶" cannot be on themselves when used as colors.

In fact, the Japanese word for 茶 (cha) means tea.They accept to be put together with the word "色 (iro colors) to become nouns for yellow and chocolate-brown. As a outcome, when they get adjectives, they are "黄色い" and "茶色い" instead "黄い" or "茶い"

Blue and Dark-green: 青い

In the past, Japanese people considered blue and green as ane colour called 青い. Because at that place was no seperation between the 2 until recently, even in modern times, the word "aoi" is still used to draw objects that are green, like dark-green apples (青りんご) or green traffic lights (青信号).

The Japanese language simply got its unique discussion for green, みどり (緑) during the Heian period, which was between 794 and 1185. Still, the term was not widely adopted until after World War 2, and its late adoption was partly why we still see あおい used to draw things that are green.

To learn more virtually the differences and fun historical facts, check out our exploration on the difference betwixt aoi and midori!

Meanings of Colors in Japanese Civilisation

A lot of countries (and cultures) identify importance on colors. While each tradition may not have the same ideals, specific colors generally correspond positive or negative symbols. Depending on the pregnant it represents, people might steer clear of wearing that color at a sure event — or, on the opposite, feel inclined to habiliment them.

Symbolism in Japanese colors is heavily rooted in China and its traditional philosophies, which include Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. In the past, these philosophies afflicted the clan of color with each social class of Japanese society.

In other words, colors correspond the values of life, particularly white, cherry, black and blue — the 4 principal colors in Japanese culture. This is why you'll run into that nigh Japanese clothing, compages and events incorporate them.

Meaning of White Color in Japanese Civilization

White (白い)zztakes the majority of the Japanese flag — and for an important reason. As the colour of the gods, information technology represents purity, both spiritual and physical, and reverence for divinity. In Buddhism, white was worn at funerals as it also means decease, and funerals were often marked with white and black stripes.

However, it was the focus of Shinto traditions (check out Japanese religion vocabulary here). You lot'll discover white sand, pebbles and decorations at shrines to laurels the gods' wisdom and knowledge. Emperors in Japan would be dressed in white for Shinto rituals, and brides would be covered in white dress and head covering for their wedding.

Meaning of Red Color in Japanese Culture

The focal point of the Japanese national flag, red (赤い) symbolizes authority, strength and prosperity. This is why it is especially symbolic when paired with white.

In fact, red plays a dominant office in Japanese architecture. You lot'll discover shrines and temples are painted in carmine, as it is likewise believed the colour tin ward away evil spirits while strengthening the link between humans and gods in Shinto shrines. At festivals, people would cover the tables and flooring with red cloth and carpets.

Significant of Black Color in Japanese Culture

Earlier Western influence, blackness (黒い) wasn't always the colour for mourning, simply information technology did have a somewhat negative association. While majestic represented the highest rank in the Japanese social class (royalty), black marked the lowest of them. The dark shade was tied to evil, bad luck, fear and misfortune.

Meaning of Bluish Color in Japanese Culture

Blue dye, made from the indigo plant, was the most accessible (and affordable) colour Japanese people could employ to make clothing and textiles. Equally such, blue ( 青い)is the color of mutual people, worn on kimonos, formal attire and common habiliment.

How to Say Other Colors In Japanese

If you lot feel that the basic colors are too general, hither are some Japanese words for more specific colors.

English	Japanese	Furigana	Romaji	Westernized	Romaji
Silver	銀	ぎん	Gin	シルバー	Shirubaa
Gilt	金	きん	Kin	ゴールド	Goorudo
Rainbow clour	虹色	にじいろ	Nijiiro
Low-cal Blue	水色	みずいろ	Mizuiro
Navy Blue	紺色	こんいろ	Koniro	ネービー	Neiibi
Majestic	紫	むらさき	Murasaki	パープル	Paapuru
Yellow Greenish	黄緑	きみどり	Kimidori
Biscuit				ベージュ	Beeju

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Source: https://cotoacademy.com/colors-japanese-use-japanese-color-words/

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