The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Traditional Color Names

Excerpt image from the Munsell Book of Colors 1929 showing traditional color names

In this section of the 1st edition of the Munsell Book of Color from 1929, 24 traditional color names are identified along with charts outlining their hue, value and chroma.

A study of over 2,000 names colors which have been collected from sample cards and various other sources, leads to the conclusion that color names may be divided into two groups. Certain color names, such as “pink,” “brown,” “orange,” etc., have a traditional association with fairly definite areas or ranges of colors. On the other hand, many other color names are of more recent origin and have not been used with the necessary definiteness for a sufficient length of time to warrant classifying them as traditional color names.

The student of color in his own work should, if possible, avoid the use of traditional color names, because they apply to areas of color rather than to specific colors. It is only by recognizing and using the three dimensions of color that he can accurately comprehend and describe the difference between any two colors, and especially between any two “pinks,” “browns,” etc. However, in describing color to those who have not had the opportunity of studying the simple method of color notation described in this book, it is sometimes helpful to know the correlation between this exact color notation and traditional color names.

For this reason, twenty-four of the most common names are summarized on the following pages. Each name, of course, represents a group of colors, the limits of which have been more or less clearly defined by usage. The approximate extent of each group is given directly under the Group Name. Thus the term “Pink” (see group No. 1) is applied to a range of colors extending from about Red-Purple to Red Yellow-Red in HUE, all of which colors are light in VALUE and moderate in CHROMA. Below this simple word description of the group is a pair of graphs. The shaded portion of the graph on the left indicates the limits of the HUE and CHROMA. The shaded portion of the graph on the right indicates the limits of VALUE and CHROMA.

The survey, upon which this work is based, brought out the interesting fact that certain portions of the areas covered by many of the twenty-four color groups might be occupied by colors bearing closely related color names. For instance, “Garnet,” “Bourdeaux,” “Claret Red,” and “Wine Red” were found to lie within the MAROON Group. Such color names are listed under their appropriate group headings on page 34. In this list, for the sake of simplicity, the average HUE which is most typical of each group is indicated by its symbol. On page 36 there is an alphabetical list of all the color name which were studied, with a cross reference to the group in which they are located.

No. 1 PINK Group

HUE, Red-Purple to Red Yellow-Red… VALUE, Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Light Pink and Pale Pink

No. 2 ROSE Group

HUE, Red-Purple Red to Red… VALUE, Middle… CHROMA, Moderate… Briar Rose, Old Rose and Wild Rose

No. 3 MAROON Group

HUE, Red-Purple to Red… VALUE, Dark… CHROMA, Moderate… Bordeaux, Claret Red, Garnet, Wine Red

No. 4 SCARLET Group

HUE, Red… VALUE, Middle… CHROMA, Very Strong

No 5. ORANGE Group

HUE, Red Yellow-Red to Yellow Red… VALUE, Middle… CHROMA, Strong

No. 6 TAN Group

HUE, Yellow-Red to Yellow-Red Yellow… VALUE, Middle to Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Buff and Sand

No. 7 BROWN Group

HUE, Red Yellow-Red to Yellow-Red Yellow… VALUE, Dark to Middle… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Amber, Auburn, Chestnut, Chocolate, Cocoa, Golden Brown, Hazel, Russet, Seal Brown and Tobacco

No. 8 IVORY Group

HUE, Yellow-Red Yellow to Yellow… VALUE, Light… CHROMA, Weak… Buff, Old Ivory and Straw

No. 9 LEMON YELLOW Group

HUE, Yellow… VALUE, Light… CHROMA, Strong… Golden Yellow

No. 10 OLIVE Group

HUE, Yellow to Yellow Green-Yellow… VALUE, Dark to Middle… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Olive Drab

No. 11 NILE GREEN Group

HUE, Green-Yellow to Green-Yellow Green… VALUE, Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Apple Green

No. 12 EMERALD GREEN Group

HUE, Green-Yellow Green to Green… VALUE, Dark to Middle… CHROMA, Strong… Jade

No. 13 TURQUOISE BLUE Group

HUE, Blue-Green Blue… VALUE, Middle to Light… CHROMA, Moderate… Turquoise

No. 14 SKY BLUE Group

HUE, Blue-Green Blue… VALUE, Middle to Light… CHROMA, Moderate… Baby Blue and Light Blue

No. 15 ROYAL BLUE Group

HUE, Blue-Green Blue to Blue… VALUE, Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… National Blue

No. 16 NAVY BLUE Group

HUE, Purple-Blue to Purple-Blue Purple… VALUE, Dark… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Gendarme, Midnight Blue, Navy and Sailor Blue

No. 17 VIOLET Group

HUE, Purple-Blue Purple to Purple… VALUE, Dark… CHROMA, Moderate to Strong

No. 18 LAVENDER Group

HUE, Purple… VALUE, Middle to Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Lilac and Mauve

No. 19 PLUM Group

HUE, Purple to Red-Purple… VALUE, Dark… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate… Prune

No. 20 ORCHID Group

HUE, Purple Red-Purple… VALUE, Middle to Light… CHROMA, Weak to Moderate

No. 21 MAGENTA Group

HUE, Red-Purple… VALUE, Dark… CHROMA, Moderate to Strong

No. 22 BLACK Group

HUE… VALUE, Very Dark… CHROMA, None to Very Weak… Coal Black

No. 23 GRAY Group

HUE… VALUE, Light to Dark… CHROMA, None to Very Weak… Battleship Gray, Gunmetal, Iron Gray, Lead, Pearl Gray, Silver, Slate, Smoke Gray, Steel Gray and Taupe

No. 24 WHITE Group

HUE… VALUE, Very Light… CHROMA, None to Very Weak

*NOTE… Pure black, gray and white posses neither HUE nor CHROMA, being characterized only by VALUE. In the traditional use of these name, however, they are applied to practically every color whose CHROMA is not greater than one. This fact is indicated by the shaded areas on the above charts.