Iris
A blue-violet to violet colour named after the iris flower
Iris is a colour name most often used for blue-violet or violet shades, though it can also mean pale blue, mauve, pink, or even yellow in some settings. The name comes from the iris flower, which shows a wide range of colours. The term was first used for a colour in English in 1916.
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- Iris usually means a blue-violet or violet colour
- The name comes from the iris flower
- First used as a colour name in English in 1916
- Can also mean pale blue, mauve, pink, or yellow in some cases
What colour is Iris?
Iris is most often used for colours between blue-violet and violet, but the term is not fixed and can mean different things in different contexts. Sometimes it is used for lighter or paler shades, such as pale blue, mauve, or pink, and in rare cases even yellow, reflecting the many colours found in iris flowers. The colour sits between blue and purple on the spectrum.
Where does Iris come from?
The name 'iris' comes from the iris flower, which is known for its wide variety of colours. The colour term was first recorded in English in 1916. Because the flower itself appears in many hues, the colour name has always had a broad and sometimes ambiguous meaning.
Purple around the world
What the purple and violet family means from country to country.
In Holy Week, members of religious brotherhoods walk in procession in robes and pointed hoods, many of them purple, the colour of penance. A purple band also marked the flag of the Second Republic.
Sacred and holyPolitics and protestSource: Holy Week in SpainSuffragettes campaigning for women's votes wore purple, white and green: purple for dignity, white for purity and green for hope.
Politics and protestCourageSource: SuffragetteA child born to a reigning Byzantine emperor was called porphyrogennetos, born in the purple. The birth took place in a palace room lined with purple stone.
Royalty and powerAweSource: Born in the purpleIn the elections of 2005, voters dipped a finger in purple ink to prevent double voting. The stained finger, held up for cameras, became a sign of the vote.
Politics and protestPrideSource: Election inkPurple dye from the murasaki plant was costly and hard to make. In the court rank system set up under Prince Shotoku, the highest officials wore purple caps.
Royalty and powerAweSource: Twelve Level Cap and Rank SystemThe Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon made Tyrian purple from sea snails. The dye was so costly that it became the colour of kings and Roman emperors.
Royalty and powerAweSource: Tyrian purpleShades and relatives of Iris
Iris can refer to a range of shades, from blue-violet to violet, and sometimes to pale blue, mauve, pink, or yellow. This makes it easy to confuse with other colours in the blue, purple, or even yellow families, depending on the context.
Colours that go with Iris
Harmonies are worked out from the value #5A4FCF. Contrast ratios follow the WCAG 2 formula.
Questions people ask about Iris
What colour is iris?
Iris most often refers to a blue-violet or violet shade, but can also mean pale blue, mauve, pink, or yellow in some contexts.
Where does the name 'iris' come from?
The colour is named after the iris flower, which appears in a wide range of colours.
When was iris first used as a colour name in English?
The first recorded use of 'iris' as a colour name in English was in 1916.
Is iris always the same colour?
No, the term is ambiguous and can refer to several shades, mainly blue-violet or violet, but sometimes lighter or even yellow tones.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Iris (color)", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Rang rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. The swatch is an approximation: named colours are not fixed standards, and every screen shows them a little differently. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.
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