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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
Chart from the Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring pink hue and chroma

Chart from the Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring pink value and chroma color

No. 2 ROSE Group

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

Chart from the Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring rose hue and chroma color

Chart from the Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring Rose value and chroma color chart

No. 3 MAROON Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color maroon

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring value and chroma color chart for the color maroon

No. 4 SCARLET Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color scarlet

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring value and chroma color chart for the color scarlet

No 5. ORANGE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color orange

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a value and chroma color chart for the color orange

No. 6 TAN Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color tan

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a value and chroma color chart for the color tan

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color brown

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a value and chroma color chart for the color brown

No. 8 IVORY Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a hue and chroma color chart for the color ivory

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring a value and chroma color chart for the color ivory

No. 9 LEMON YELLOW Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 featuring hue and chroma color charts for the color lemon yellow

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color lemon yellow

No. 10 OLIVE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color olive

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color olive

No. 11 NILE GREEN Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color nile green

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color nile green

No. 12 EMERALD GREEN Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color emerald green

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color emerald green

No. 13 TURQUOISE BLUE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color turquoise

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color turquoise

No. 14 SKY BLUE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color sky blue

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color sky blue

No. 15 ROYAL BLUE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color royal blue The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color royal 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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color navy blue

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color navy blue

No. 17 VIOLET Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color violet

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color violet

No. 18 LAVENDER Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 hue and chroma charts for the color lavender

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 value and chroma charts for the color lavendar

No. 19 PLUM Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color plum

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color plum

No. 20 ORCHID Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color orchid

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color orchid

No. 21 MAGENTA Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color magenta

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color magenta

No. 22 BLACK Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color black

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color black

No. 23 GRAY Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color gray

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color gray

No. 24 WHITE Group

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

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring hue and chroma charts for the color white

The Munsell Book of Color 1929 excerpt featuring value and chroma charts for the color white

*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.

Excerpt from the Munsell Book of Color 1929 showing the list of traditional color names

Check out the other sections of the Munsell Book of Color:

The Munsell Book of Color: Foreward by F.G. Cooper

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Preface by A.E.O. Munsell

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Hue, Value, and Chroma

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: The Color Sphere

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: The Charts

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Use of the Charts

The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Care of the Chart


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2 responses to “The Munsell Book of Color 1929: Traditional Color Names”

  1. Dave Keenan says:

    I note that the ORANGE group images are wrong. They are a repeat of the ROSE group images.

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