The semantics of colour

Description

"Human societies name and classify colours in various ways. Knowing this, is it possible to retrieve colour systems from the past? This book presents the basic principles of modern colour semantics, including the recognition of basic vocabulary, subsets, specialised terms and the significance of non-colour features. Each point is illustrated by case studies drawn from modern and historical languages from around the world. These include discussions of Icelandic horses, Peruvian guinea-pigs, medieval roses, the colour yellow in Stuart England, and Polynesian children's colour terms. Major techniques used in colour research are presented and discussed, such as the evolutionary sequence, Natural Semantic Metalanguage and Vantage Theory. The book also addresses whether we can understand the colour systems of the past, including prehistory, by combining various semantic techniques currently used in both modern and historical colour research with archaeological and environmental information"-- "Our world is full of natural colour. Against background swathes of blue sky, yellow sand, green grass and white snow, we prize the startling hues of flowers, fruit, feathers and gemstones. Yet this is not enough for us. Most human societies strive to produce their own colours, namely, dyes and paints of the greatest possible variety. A Palaeolithic cave artist depicting familiar animals, and a modern British home-owner agonizing over the perfect colour-scheme for the living-room, are both exhibiting the same delight in colour, and the same need to adapt it to their own social, cultural and individual requirements. To say that colour plays multiple roles in human society is a gross understatement. It is everywhere in our lives, sometimes boringly dull and at other times brilliantly eye-catching. It is often taken for granted, yet it also conveys vital messages, as in traffic lights or electrical wiring. It can even signify and engender loyalties and hatreds that influence human history, as in heraldry, uniforms and flags. Since it pervades every aspect of human life, it might be considered essential for our languages to express colour concepts clearly, accurately and in a way that is easily communicable. Yet, when the colour vocabularies of various languages are considered and compared, the researcher finds that there are many different ways in which humans categorize and 'label' colours, resulting in an amazing array of misunderstandings. Monoglot individuals invariably believe that their own colour system is clear and obvious, and they are often mystified when confronted with an alternative system"--

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