210 named colors · 159 from Wada's dictionary · 51 editorial

Color Dictionary.

Every named color in the archive — the 159 colors Sanzo Wada used across the 348 plates of his 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations (Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint), plus 51 traditional Japanese colour names from our 30 editorial palettes. Each entry links to every palette that uses it.

Named references

Looking for a specific book?

Wada's dictionary, the Albers classic, a Munsell field guide, Pantone's design history, and the 1821 dictionary that came a century before Wada's — six references, chosen deliberately.

See the color reference library →

#111314

Black 23 palettes

#ffefae

Pale Lemon Yellow 19 palettes

#bb7125

Raw Sienna 19 palettes

#f5ecc2

Sulpher Yellow 18 palettes

#ebd3a2

Ivory Buff 16 palettes

#b5decc

Turquoise Green 16 palettes

#f8ed43

Lemon Yellow 15 palettes

#fdbf68

Cream Yellow 14 palettes

#f37f94

Eosine Pink 14 palettes

#F8F4E9

Kinari 生成 14 palettes

#f99d1b

Yellow Orange 14 palettes

#007190

Antwarp Blue 13 palettes

#97acc8

Salvia Blue 13 palettes

#34454c

Slate Color 13 palettes

#006eb8

Blue 12 palettes

#a62c37

Carmine Red 12 palettes

#96d1aa

Cobalt Green 12 palettes

#f8b6ba

Corinthian Pink 12 palettes

#b6bfc1

Neutral Gray 12 palettes

#4f4086

Violet 12 palettes

#a36aa5

Aconite Violet 11 palettes

#00978d

Benzol Green 11 palettes

#793327

Hay's Russet 11 palettes

#00b49b

Sea Green 11 palettes

#40456a

Violet Blue 11 palettes

#ffdd00

Apricot Yellow 10 palettes

#78cdd0

Calamine BLue 10 palettes

#1c4286

Deep Lyons Blue 10 palettes

#253122

Deep Slate Olive 10 palettes

#f3a257

Golden Yellow 10 palettes

#f48067

Grenadine Pink 10 palettes

#b59392

Light Brown Drab 10 palettes

#a5c8d1

Light Glaucous Blue 10 palettes

#d8a37b

Ochraceous Salmon 10 palettes

#2B2B2B

Sumi 墨 10 palettes

#ae5224

Burnt Sienna 9 palettes

#fdc57e

Cinnamon Buff 9 palettes

#437742

Cossack Green 9 palettes

#099197

Green Blue 9 palettes

#a7d4e4

Pale King's Blue 9 palettes

#eeb480

Pinkish Cinnamon 9 palettes

#fdd4bd

Seashell Pink 9 palettes

#cc1236

Carmine 8 palettes

#0093a5

Cerulian Blue 8 palettes

#b2b73e

Citron Yellow 8 palettes

#1e0e3f

Dull Violet Black 8 palettes

#004f46

Dusky Green 8 palettes

#c2ae93

Ecru 8 palettes

#da525d

Eugenia Red | B 8 palettes

#F4EEE0

Gofun 胡粉 8 palettes

#c0a9b3

Grayish Lavender - B 8 palettes

#005b8d

Helvetia Blue 8 palettes

#fcb315

Orange Yellow 8 palettes

#802626

Pale Burnt Lake 8 palettes

#f15a30

Peach Red 8 palettes

#59256a

Red Violet 8 palettes

Yellow Ocher 8 palettes

#c27544

Cinnamon Rufous 7 palettes

#501345

Cotinga Purple 7 palettes

#12354e

Dark Tyrian Blue 7 palettes

#051230

Deep Indigo 7 palettes

#c55347

Etruscan Red 7 palettes

#b5b1d8

Grayish Lavender - A 7 palettes

#9a72aa

Light Mauve 7 palettes

#762c19

Madder Brown 7 palettes

Olive Ocher 7 palettes

#5a82b3

Olympic Blue 7 palettes

#f37420

Orange 7 palettes

#f27291

Spinel Red 7 palettes

#7a4456

Taupe Brown 7 palettes

#064f6e

Vandar Poel's Blue 7 palettes

#eea78c

Vinaceous Cinnamon 7 palettes

#e0b3b6

Cameo Pink 6 palettes

#112f2c

Deep Slate Green 6 palettes

#1a7444

Diamine Green 6 palettes

#4e1d4c

Dusky Madder Violet 6 palettes

#b4cdc2

Glaucous Green 6 palettes

#555832

Lincoln Green 6 palettes

#fbe6a0

Naples Yellow 6 palettes

#ab2439

Pompeian Red 6 palettes

#b73f74

Rosolanc Purple 6 palettes

#4b3317

Vandyke Brown 6 palettes

#62c6bf

Venice Green 6 palettes

#6d4145

Vistoris Lake 6 palettes

#6450a1

Blue Violet 5 palettes

English Red 5 palettes

Light Green Yellow 5 palettes

#c1c494

Olive Buff 5 palettes

#71502f

Pale Raw Umber 5 palettes

#8fa071

Rainette Green 5 palettes

#dd4027

Red Orange 5 palettes

#c19f2c

Sulphine Yellow 5 palettes

#82241f

Vandyke Red 5 palettes

#afd472

Yellow Green 5 palettes

#f68c50

Apricot Orange 4 palettes

#7c4226

Brown 4 palettes

#719470

Chromium Green 4 palettes

#f58e84

Coral Red 4 palettes

#8b835b

Dark Citrine 4 palettes

#547076

Dark Medici Blue 4 palettes

#009465

Dull Viridian Green 4 palettes

#c5a56e

Isabella Color 4 palettes

#eb5324

Jasper Red 4 palettes

#ca92a8

Laelia Pink 4 palettes

#b984af

Lilac 4 palettes

#87c540

Night Green 4 palettes

#d46d7a

Old Rose 4 palettes

#6b7140

Olive Green 4 palettes

#a6a159

Olive Yellow 4 palettes

#cab356

Pyrite Yellow 4 palettes

#e31f26

Spectrum Red 4 palettes

#8c4c62

Veronia Purple 4 palettes

#42533e

Blackish Olive 3 palettes

#96874d

Buffy Citrine 3 palettes

#66629c

Dark Soft Violet 3 palettes

#70727c

Deep Violet / Plumbeous 3 palettes

#bf5892

Eupatorium Purple 3 palettes

Hermosa Pink 3 palettes

#1B2A4E

Kon 紺 3 palettes

#00908a

Light Porcelain Green 3 palettes

#4C5D3F

Matsuba 松葉 3 palettes

#819238

Oil Green 3 palettes

#c16b27

Orange Rufous 3 palettes

Sudan Brown 3 palettes

#c56127

Vinaceous Tawny 3 palettes

#1C3D5A

Ai 藍 2 palettes

#6d7e77

Andover Green 2 palettes

#709390

Artemesia Green 2 palettes

Dark Greenish Glaucous 2 palettes

#704357

Dark Slate Purple 2 palettes

#635a3a

Deep Grayish Olive 2 palettes

#80719e

Dull Blue Violet 2 palettes

#c53c69

Indian Lake 2 palettes

#4B2E20

Kogecha 焦茶 2 palettes

#806e4b

Light Brownish Olive 2 palettes

#848061

Light Grayish Olive 2 palettes

#a2b0ad

Mineral Gray 2 palettes

#ab544d

Ochre Red 2 palettes

#986f2d

Orange Citrine 2 palettes

#7d133a

Pansy Purple 2 palettes

#00939b

Peacock Blue 2 palettes

#648f7b

Pistachio Green 2 palettes

#b71f57

Pomegranite Purple 2 palettes

Edo-murasaki 江戸紫 1 palette

Eugenia Red | A 1 palette

#f6917e

Fresh Color 1 palette

Hydrangea Red 1 palette

#D66B37

Kaki 柿 1 palette

#8A6A47

Kakishibu 柿渋 1 palette

#DCCB7A

Kariyasu 刈安 1 palette

Krongbergs Green 1 palette

Light Pinkish Cinnamon 1 palette

#c59f6b

Maple 1 palette

#653514

Mars Brown Tobacco 1 palette

#A7B86B

Matcha 抹茶 1 palette

#B4D6E5

Mizu-iro 水色 1 palette

Nadeshiko 撫子 1 palette

#F3EBDA

Neri-iro 練色 1 palette

#8A8A8A

Nezumi 鼠 1 palette

#DCCB6E

Ominaeshi 女郎花 1 palette

#84565b

Purple Drab 1 palette

#878A74

Rikyū-nezumi 利休鼠 1 palette

Suna-iro 砂色 1 palette

Violet Carmine 1 palette

#642d5e

Violet Red 1 palette

#A3C293

Wakatake 若竹 1 palette

#ffffff

White 1 palette

#F5B71C

Yamabuki 山吹 1 palette

Library

Books on colour

Where these colours come from — histories and field guides to the individual hues. Recommended on Amazon.

Book links are Amazon Associates affiliate links. Your price is unchanged; a small commission supports the archive. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Sean Adams

The Designer's Dictionary of Color

Abrams, 2017.

A practical, example-filled guide to thirty key colors and the way they behave together. Working-designer companion to Wada's historical archive.

See price on Amazon
Leatrice Eiseman & Keith Recker

Pantone: The Twentieth Century in Color

Chronicle Books, 2011.

A decade-by-decade visual history of color in design, advertising, and culture from 1900 to 2000. The modern complement to Wada's pre-war record.

See price on Amazon
Jim Krause

Color Index XL

Watson-Guptill, 2017.

1,100+ ready-to-apply palettes with CMYK + RGB formulas. The shelf-reference designers reach for on deadline.

See price on Amazon

Book links are Amazon Associates affiliate links. Your price is unchanged; a small commission supports the archive. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Color Dictionary.

Looking for a specific book?

The Designer's Dictionary of Color

Pantone: The Twentieth Century in Color

Color Index XL

Looking for a combination we don’t have yet?