Preface Ever since the language of man began to develop, words or expressions have been used first to indicate and then to describe colors. Some of these have per- sisted throughout the centuries and are those which refer to the simple colors or ranges such as red or yellow. As the language developed, more and more color names were invented to describe the colors used by art and industry and in late years in the rapidly expanding field of sales promotion. Some of these refer to the pigment. or dye used, as Ochre Red or Cochineal, or a geographical location of its source such as Naples Yellow or Byzantium. Later when it became clear that most colors are bought by or for women, many color names indicative of the beauties and wiles of the fair sex were introduced, as French Nude, Heart's Desire, Intimate Mood, or Vamp. Fanciful color names came into vogue such as Dream Fluff, Happy Day, Pearly Gates, and Wafted Feather. Do not suppose that these names are without economic importance; for a dark reddish gray hat for Milady might be a best seller if advertised as Mauve Wine whereas it probably would not if the color were called Paris Mud. Some color names, such as Blue Turquoise or Golden Poppy, are at the same time self-explanatory and also suited to the promotion of the sales of fabrics. Other color names are not what they seem, for how would one know that African Green is in reality a blue or that blue Fox will turn out to be a reddish gray? Liter- ature is indeed richer because of such color names as Cold Morn, Folly, Kitten's Ear, Languid Lavender, Risigal, Teen Age Pink, and Zedoary Wash, and their precise meanings deserve to be systematically listed. The purpose of this dictionary is to assist the scientist, businessman, and lay- man to understand the different color vocabularies used in the many fields of art, science, and industry. Some of these vocabularies are very similar, in fact they bor- row from one another, while others are nearly or completely unintelligible to workers in another field. The dictionary will serve not only as a record of the meanings of the 7,500 individual color names listed but it will also enable anyone to translate from one color vocabulary to another. As an example, what is the meaning of Griseo- Viridis? This dictionary shows that Griseo-Viridis (biology) -Serpentine (fashion) = Mint Green (mass market), or in ordinary language, a light green. The terms by which this dictionary defines color names are those of a refinement of the method of designating colors outlined by the Inter-Society Color Council and developed at the National Bureau of Standards. The Inter-Society Color Council (ISCC) consists of delegates from 20 societies of national scope interested in color, and of individual members. The present member bodies of the ISCC are:
- American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists
- American Ceramic Society
- American Institute of Architects
- American Institute of Decorators
- American Oil Chemists' Society
- American Psychological Association
- American Society for Testing Materials
- Federation of Paint and Varnish Production Clubs
- Gravure Technical Association, Inc.
- Illuminating Engineering Society
- Industrial Designer's Institute
- National Association of Printing Ink Makers
- Optical Society of America
- Packaging Institute
- Society of Industrial Designers
- Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers
- Tanners' Council of America
- Technical Association for the Graphic Arts
- Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry
- Textile Color Card Association of the United States, Inc.
