Azure ( , ) is the color between

cyan Cyan () is the color between green and blue on the visible spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a predominant wavelength between 490 and 520 nm, between the wavelengths of green and blue. In the subtractive color system, or CMYK color ...

and

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...

on the

spectrum A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors i ...

of visible

light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...

. It is often described as the color of the

sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

on a clear day. On the RGB color wheel, "azure" (

hexadecimal In mathematics and computing, the hexadecimal (also base-16 or simply hex) numeral system is a positional numeral system that represents numbers using a radix (base) of 16. Unlike the decimal system representing numbers using 10 symbols, hexa ...

#0080FF) is defined as the color at 210 degrees, i.e., the hue halfway between

and

. In the

RGB color model The RGB color model is an additive color model in which the red, green and blue primary colors of light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials of the three additiv ...

, used to create all the colors on a television or computer screen, azure is created by adding a 50% of green light to a 100% of blue light. In the X11 color system, which became a model for early web colors, azure is depicted as a pale cyan or white cyan.

Etymology and history

The color azure ultimately takes its name from the intense blue mineral

lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mines, ...

. ' is the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word for "stone" and ' is the

genitive In grammar, the genitive case (abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can al ...

form of the

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functioned ...

', which is taken from the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

''lāzaward'', itself from the

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

''lāžaward'', which is the name of the stone in Persian and also of a place where lapis lazuli was mined. The name of the stone came to be associated with its color. The

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

', the Italian ', the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

' and ', the Portuguese and Spanish ', Hungarian ', and the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

''atzur'', all come from the name and color of lapis lazuli. The word was adopted into English from the French, and the first recorded use of it as a color name in English was in 1374 in

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He wa ...

's work '' Troilus and Criseyde'', where he refers to "a broche, gold and ''asure''" (a brooch, gold and azure). Some languages, such as Italian, generally consider azure to be a basic colour, separate and distinct from blue. Some sources even go to the point of defining blue as a darker shade of azure. Azure also describes the color of the mineral

azurite Azurite is a soft, deep-blue copper mineral produced by weathering of copper ore deposits. During the early 19th century, it was also known as chessylite, after the Type locality (geology), type locality at Chessy, Rhône, Chessy-les-Mines near ...

, both in its natural form and as a pigment in various paint formulations. In order to preserve its deep color, azurite was ground coarsely. Fine-ground azurite produces a lighter, washed-out color. Traditionally, the pigment was considered unstable in oil paints, and was sometimes isolated from other colors and not mixed. The use of the term spread through the practice of

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...

, where "

azure Azure may refer to: Colour * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 ...

" represents a blue color in the system of

tinctures A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

. In

engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a Burin (engraving), burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or Glass engraving, glass ...

s, it is represented as a region of parallel horizontal lines, or by the abbreviation ''az.'' or ''b.'' In practice, azure has been represented by any number of shades of blue. In later heraldic practice a lighter blue, called

bleu celeste Bleu celeste (, "sky blue") is a rarely occurring and non-standard tincture in heraldry (not being one of the seven main colours or metals or the three ''staynard colours''). This tincture is sometimes also called ciel or simply celeste. It ...

("sky blue"), is sometimes specified.

Distinction among indigo, azure, and cyan

According to the logic of the RGB color wheel,

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...

colors are those colors with hue codes between 255 and 225 (degrees), azure colors are those colors with hue codes between 195 and 225, and cyan colors are those colors with hue codes between 165 and 195. Another way of describing it could be that cyan is a mixture of blue and green light, azure is a mixture of blue and cyan light, and indigo is a mixture of blue and violet light. All of the colors shown below in the section ''shades of azure'' are referenced as having a hue between 195 and 225 degrees, with the exception of the very pale X11 web color azure – RGB (240, 255, 255) – which, with a hue of 180 degrees, is a tone of

, but follows the artistic meaning of azure as sky blue.

In nature

;Insects * Azure bluet (''Enallagma aspersum''), damselfly found in North America * Azure damselfly (''Coenagrion puella''), damselfly found in Europe *

Azure hawker The azure hawker (''Aeshna caerulea'') is one of the smaller species of hawker dragonflies, (family Aeshnidae). The flight period is from late May to August It is about 62 mm long. Both sexes have azure blue spots on each abdominal segmen ...

(''Aeshna caerulea''), dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae ;Birds *

Azure gallinule The azure gallinule (''Porphyrio flavirostris'') is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Per ...

(''Porphyrio flavirostris''), bird in the rail family, Rallidae * Azure-hooded Jay (Cyanolyca cucullata) in tree, Costa Rica

Azure jay (''Cyanocorax caeruleus'') bird in the crow family, Corvidae * Azure kingfisher (''Alcedo azurea''), bird in the river kingfisher family, Alcedinidae * Azure Tit - Cyanistes cyanus

Azure tit The azure tit (''Cyanistes cyanus'') is a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. It is a widespread and common resident breeder throughout Russia and Central Asia and northwest China, Manchuria and Pakistan. It is found in temperate and sub ...

(''Cyanistes cyanus''), bird in the tit family, Paridae * Azure-crowned hummingbird (''Amazilia cyanocephala''), a hummingbird in the family Trochilidae *

Azure-hooded jay The azure-hooded jay (''Cyanolyca cucullata'') is a species of bird in the family Corvidae. It is found in Middle America. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. This species is known to have four subspecies. It ...

(''Cyanolyca cucullata''), bird in the crow family, Corvidae *

Azure-naped jay The azure-naped jay (''Cyanocorax heilprini'') is a species of bird in the family Corvidae. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical dry ...

(''Cyanocorax heilprini''), bird in the crow family, Corvidae *

Azure-rumped tanager The azure-rumped tanager or Cabanis's tanager (''Poecilostreptus cabanisi'') is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is a local resident in humid broadleaf forests and adjacent plantations of the Pacific slope of western Guatemala and s ...

(''Tangara cabanisi''), bird in the family Thraupidae * Azure-shouldered tanager (''Thraupis cyanoptera''), bird in the family Thraupidae * Azure-winged magpie (''Cyanopica cyana''), bird in the crow family, Corvidae ;Plants * Azure bluet (''Houstonia caerulea''), flower found in the eastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

In culture

*''

Côte d'Azur The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

'' ("Azure Coast") is a name commonly used for the

French Riviera The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

, part of France's southeastern coast on the Mediterranean. * In

Chinese mythology Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology includes many varied myths from regional and cultural traditions. Much of t ...

, the Azure Dragon is one of the Four Symbols of the

Chinese constellation Traditional Chinese astronomy has a system of dividing the celestial sphere into asterisms or constellations, known as "officials" (Chinese ''xīng guān''). The Chinese asterisms are generally smaller than the constellations of Hellenistic t ...

s. It is sometimes called the ''Azure Dragon of the East'' (). Known as ''Seiryū'' in Japan and ''Cheongryong'' in Korea, it represents the east and the spring season. *

Savoy azure Savoy blue or savoy azure ( it, links=no, blu Savoia or ) is a shade of saturated blue between peacock blue and periwinkle, lighter than peacock blue. It owes its name to the fact of being the color of the House of Savoy, a ruling dynasty in th ...

(''azzurro Savoia'') is a traditional national color for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, taken from the traditional colors of the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...

, the ruling house of the

Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...

that established the first modern united Italian state. The association between azure and Italian nationalism led in the

Italy national football team The Italy national football team ( it, Nazionale di calcio dell'Italia) has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing bo ...

donning azure jerseys, giving them the nickname, the ''Azzurri'' ("the Azures"). It is also color of the Italian state police ('' Polizia di Stato''). * Ken Nordine’s 1966 album “Colors” features the song ‘Azures’.

Astronomy

The true color of the exoplanet HD 189733b determined by astronomers is azure blue.

References