red

Red may be any of a number of similar colours at the lowest frequencies of light discernible by the human eye. Red is one of three primary colours of light, along with green and blue. Red light has a wavelength range of roughly 625-760 nm. Lower frequencies are called infrared, or below red and cannot be seen by human eyes, although some infrared frequencies can be felt as heat.

Red is an additive primary colour of light, complementary to cyan. It was once considered to be a subtractive primary colour, and is still sometimes erroneously described as such in non-scientific literature; however, the colours cyan, magenta and yellow are now known to be closer to the true subtractive primary colours detected by the eye, and are used in modern colour printing.

One common use of red as an additive primary colour is in the RGB colour model. Because "red" is not by itself standardised, colour mixtures based on red are not exact specifications of colour either. In order to produce exact colours the colour red needs to be defined in terms of an absolute colour space such as sRGB. As used in computer monitors and television screens, red is very variable, but some systems may apply colour correction (so that a standardised "red" is produced that is not in fact full intensity of only the red colourant). A few examples of things that are red are stop signs, strawberries, and some types of apples.

The Colour Red--A Pure Chroma Hue @ 0/360 Degrees on the Colour Wheel

Colour Wheel Colours

Time-varied representation of the HSV colour wheel.

Colours on the HSV colour space colour wheel:

• Red--0/360 Degrees
• Orange--30 Degrees
• Yellow--60 Degrees
• Chartreuse--90 Degrees
• Green--120 Degrees
• Spring Green--150 Degrees
• Cyan--180 Degrees
• Azure--210 Degrees
• Blue--240 Degrees
• Violet--270 Degrees
• Magenta--300 Degrees
• Rose--330 Degrees

Red in culture

Due to its relation with communism, Red is seen as a symbol of the liberal agenda. As it is also used at Disney for symbolizing homosexuals (closely related to liberals) iit should be seen as bad. Also, as 1/3 of the flag of France is red, red can be associated with France (closely related to both liberals and homosexuals). Therefore, red should be considered most unpleasant and should be avoided at all cost.

Symbolism

Stop sign used in English-speaking countries, as well as in the European Union

A red sunset in the Southern Hemisphere often signifies that the next day will be hot

• Red catches people's attention, and is often used to indicate danger or emergency.
  • Red symbolizes heat and fire. Taps for hot water are often labeled red. Red is commonly the colour of fire alarm boxes, fire extinguishers, and the firefighter profession itself.
  • Red denotes "stop" in, for instance, stop signs, traffic signals, brake lights, or the flashing lights of a school bus.
  • Red is the colour of blood, and a Red Cross, Red Crescent or Red Crystal emblem signifies medical personnel, facilities, or equipment, or the Geneva Conventions.
  • Red indicates extreme danger on Western colour-coded scales, such as wildfire hazard signs or the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory System. It also denotes the maximum level of danger and preparedness as in the phrases condition red and red alert.
  • In auto racing, a red flag signals all cars to immediately stop.
  • The redline is the maximum speed an engine and its components can safely run.
  • Emergency exits on passenger aircraft are indicated by red signs and lighting.
  • "Redlining" is delineating a forbidden area (as on a map), for instance where a company denies or increases the cost of services, and is illegal in various circumstances in the U.S.
  • With ships on collision courses, the ship on starboard tack sees the Green for Go light on the ship on port tack, while the ship on port tack sees the Red for Stop light on the ship on starboard tack.
• Rosso corsa is the traditional colour of Italian race cars.
• Being the colour of blood, red was associated in Roman mythology with the god of war, Mars, and the reddish planet Mars became named after him. The phrase "red-blooded" describes someone who is audacious, robust, or virile; it is sometimes used to contrast with a cold or effete "blue blood" although the terms are unrelated in origin.
• Red is the colour of the passion (emotion), romance and sex, (because of its association with blood, which is responsible for arousal) thus the red of a Valentine heart and of a "red-light district". Paradoxically, it also denotes anger, as in the expression seeing red, or embarrassment, as in being red-faced (many of these effects themselves caused by the blood rushing to the brain from adrenaline).
• In the FIFA World Cup, red is the colour of victory in South Korea.
• Red is considered holy in some parts of sub-sahara Africa. In these regions women are forbidden to wear red clothes.
• Before the French revolution red was the colour of the flag signifying the imposition of martial law.

Chinese wedding gown

• In ancient China, red was the symbol of South and Fire, one of the main five colours.
• In Chinese symbolism, red is the colour of good luck and is used for decoration and wedding attire. Money in Chinese societies is traditionally given in red packets.
• Red is one of the Christmas colours, with green, white, or both.
• Red, along with yellow and orange, is thought to provoke hunger, hence its use in logos by food vendors.
• In some East Asian countries, the names of the deceased are written in red ink in a Book of the Dead. To write a living person's name with red ink is taboo, tantamount to placing a curse on the person
• In Christianity, red represents the colour of fire and so symbolizes the presence of God. It is the liturgical colour for Pentecost. It is also considered the colour of the Catholic Church, since red can also symbolize the blood of martyrs. It is sometimes used for Holy Thursday and during Eastertide. In Catholic tradition it is used for Palm Sunday in anticipation of the death of Jesus.
• Red ink is also used to denote debt - as well as losses on a balance sheet (hence the phrase, "in the red" usually indicates economic losses).
• In North American stock markets, red is used to denote a drop in stock prices. In East Asian stock markets, red is used to denote a rise in stock prices.
• In Association football (soccer), the referee shows a red card to a player who is being sent-off.
• Red can sometimes symbolize evil in any kind of work that involves a villain because Satan is often depicted as wearing a red costume.
• In English heraldry, red (called gules) denoted ardent affection or love, while crimson (blood-colour) stood for boldness, enthusiasm, or impetuosity. (The American Girls Handy Book, p. 369-370)
• A red item is an omen in the 2006 film The Omen (2006 film)
• Red is the colour claimed by the street gangs Bloods and Norteños.
• Red is an album by progressive rock band King Crimson.
• The 1977 album by Sammy Hagar called Sammy Hagar and featuring his hit song Red shows Sammy Hagar dressed in red surrounded by people dressed in red, red cars, and red buildings.
• In the handkerchief code of the gay leather subculture, wearing a red bandana indicates one is into fisting.
• Red is the colour of the lowest-value balls in snooker. There are 15 at the beginning of a game, each worth 1 point.
• Red Indians is a British term for Native Americans.

Military and politics

• Beginning with the Revolution of 1848, "Socialist" red was used as a colour of European Revolutionaries, often in the form of the red flag. It was also used by Garibaldi's camicie rosse ("redshirts") in the Italian Risorgimento, and taken up by Leftist and generally revolutionary groups, while the white of legitimist Bourbon partisans became associated with pre-World War I conservatives. This relates to the term "Blood of the workers", representing the suffering of the proletariat.
  • For instance the Civil War in Russia and the Civil War in Finland were fought between the "Red Army" and various "White Armies".
  • The identification of Communism with "Socialist" red (with the red flag being the primary colour of the flag of the Soviet Union) and the red star being a Communist emblem led to such Cold War phrases as "the Red Menace" and "Red China" (distinguished from Nationalist China, "Free China," or Taiwan). See also The East is Red. Mao Zedong was sometimes referred to as a "red sun". The colour was also associated with political vehicles such as the Red Guard in China and the Red Guards during the Russian Revolution of 1917 as well as with left wing paramilitary terrorist groups such as the Red Army Faction in Germany and the Japanese Red Army.
  • Red remains associated with parties on the left of the political spectrum, with several notable exceptions (see "Political Parties" below)

• In maps of political parties, red is traditionally used for the following parties:
  • Australia: Labor
  • Brazil: Workers' Party
  • Canada: Liberal Party of Canada
  • Finland: Social Democratic Party of Finland
  • Germany: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (Social Democratic party of Germany) and Partei des Demokratischen Sozialismus (Party of Democratic Socialism)
  • Malta: Malta Labour Party
  • New Zealand: New Zealand Labour Party
  • The Netherlands: Partij van de Arbeid (Social Democratic party), Socialistische Partij (Socialist Party)
  • Portugal: Portuguese Communist Party (and the Unitarian Democratic Coalition, of which the PCP is part of)
  • Sweden: Swedish Social Democratic Party and the Left Party (Sweden)
  • United Kingdom: Labour Party
  • United States: Republican Party, since the 2000 presidential election, when contrasted with blue representing Democratic Party.

• Red is the national colour of Wales
• Red is the colour of the coat of arms of Ħamrun, Malta.
• Red and black are colours associated with anarchism, and, specifically, anarcho-syndicalism.

• In the United States Army, red is the colour of the artillery and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Brick red is the colour of the United States Army Transportation Corps, while crimson is the colour of the Ordnance Corps, and Maroon is that of the Medical Corps.
• In the Finnish Army, red is the colour of artillery. Black symbols on a red field signify field artillery, white symbols signify anti-aircraft artillery.
• Red is the colour commonly associated with the British Army (e.g., Redcoats) and is also used to describe someone of British nationality.
• Red is the colour often used for the Roman, British and Soviet Empires.
• In the history of Japan red is the colour of military flags used by the Heike (or Taira) clan and of the Genji (or Minamoto) clan, two clans that struggled for power at the close of the Heian era, in the late 12th century.
• In the United States wearing red clothing is promoted by some groups to symbolize support for or opposition against the Iraq War, or to spread awareness about heart disease. See: Red Friday
• Red is also used to symbolize AIDS awareness or Drug awareness, in the form of a red ribbon

Science, technology and computing

• Red is the word for a fish of the genus Myripristis in Tobian.
• Red is the colour used for critical or important systems (such as emergency lighting) that operate in low-light or night-time conditions, as rod cells in the human eye do not respond to it and therefore does not interfere in the eye's ability to focus in dim environments.
• A red filter used in black and white photography increases contrast in most scenes. For example, combined with a polarizer, it can turn the sky black. Films simulating the effects of infrared film (such as Ilford's SFX 200) do so by being much more sensitive to red than to other colours.
• Oxygenated blood is red due to the presence of oxygenated hemoglobin.
• Red light is the first to be absorbed by sea water, so that many fish and marine invertebrates that appear bright red are black in their native habitat.
• In Finland, bright red is the "colour of technology". It is seen in TKY regalia; also, the student union of chemical engineering has bright red as its distinctive colour. Its use is traditional, tracing its history back into the 19th century. It probably originated from the red insignia identifying artillery.
• One screen is called Red Screen of Death

Red remains one of Americas favorite colours.

Variations

Sandstone interior of Antelope Canyon, displaying various reddish hues

In fiction

• In the original Star Trek series, red uniforms are for engineering and security personnel. (On away missions, ensigns in a red uniform would often get killed.) From Star Trek: The Next Generation onwards, red uniforms are for command personnel.
• In the Power Rangers and Super Sentai series, the Red Ranger is usually the leader of the team, and always the most powerful member. Most Red Rangers in Power Rangers and all Red Warriors in Super Sentai have been male, but there has been an exception in Power Rangers: SPD.
• In the Star Wars universe, red is traditionally (although not always in the Expanded Universe) the colour of light sabers used by the Sith, evil users of the Force. This is because a red lightsaber crystal is synthetically made, and therefore separated from the natural world. A red crystal is supposed to be stronger. The Jedi traditionally avoid using or making red lightsabers. In Knights of the Old Republic video games, red represents the dark side of the Force.
• In the Magic: The Gathering trading card game, Red is the colour associated with dealing damage, with direct-damage cards and creatures with large power in relation to toughness. See Seeing Red, an article by head Magic designer Mark Rosewater for more.
• Red is the last film in the Three Colours trilogy by Krzysztof KieÅ›lowski.
• In the Disney/Pixar film, The Incredibles, red is worn by the entire Incredible Family. In the Disney on Ice play, Disney Presents Pixar's The Incredibles in a Magic Kingdom Adventure, Helen briefly has objections about how red her super-suit looks.
• In the 1983 television mini-series V and V: The Final Battle (1984), as well as the short-lived weekly series that followed, all of the Visitors wear red jumpsuits.
• In the Harry Potter series of novels by author J.K. Rowling, the character Hagrid's given name is Rubeus, which is the Latin word for red.

In other languages

Hungarian has two words for red, medium piros and dark vörös, which are distinct colours the way red and pink are distinct colours in English.

In Turkish there are numerous words for red: Al generally refers to the colour of blood and related things (blushing, Turkish flag); Kızıl is bright red, and generally refers to fire or rebellion (sunset, communist). Kırmızı is a more general word for red, without strong emotional meaning.

In some decorating and fashion contexts, shades of red are describes by reference to the colours of fruits and vegetable that commonly match that shade. These include cherries, beets, turnips, strawberries (often used in referring to "strawberry blonde" hair), and raspberries (as referenced in the Prince song, "Raspberry Beret". While the most popular colour for apples is a dark shade of red, the fruit is usually invoked in fashion or decorating to reference a pale yellowish green.

In Welsh a "blue" movie (i.e. pornographic) is called a ffilm goch (a red movie).

Red pigments

• Alizarin
• Carmine
• Indian red
• Red lead
• Red ochre
• Vermilion
• Mercury oxide