When we talk of colors, we can’t help but be multilingual. Our world tour of exotic color names continues on through Italy, England, Greece, and Iran. Let’s take a pictorial tour of these colorful cultures, in search of an exotic blue metamorphic rock that yields a bright pigment when crushed.
  by Brian J. Geiger.
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Magenta is named in honor of the town in northern Italy where the bloodlike purplish red dye was discovered.
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 by ho visto nina volare.
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Siena is named in honor of the city in Tuscany where a school of art flourished in the 13th and 14th centuries. Burnt siena is a deep reddish-brown pigment.
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 by cbmd.
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Scarlet is a Middle English word originally meaning any brightly colored fabric. Today it exclusively refers to brilliant red.
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 by Anyhoo.
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Ochre derives from the Greek word for “yellow.” Today, this earthy pigment refers to a pale brownish-yellow. Burnt ochre is a dark yellow-brown.
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 by anticline.
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Ultramarine is of medieval Latin origin, meaning “beyond the sea.” The word refers to the exotic origin of lapis lazuli, the source of a deep blue pigment.
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 by Hamed Saber.
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Azure derives from the Persian word for lapis lazuli, “lazward.” Azure is a bright blue.
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About the Guest Author, Craig Conley
Website: http://www.OneLetterWords.com
Craig is an independent scholar and author of dozens of strange and unusual books, including a unicorn field guide and a dictionary of magic words. He also loves color: Prof. Oddfellow
