Persian plum
A deep reddish-brown shade based on the colour of cooked prunes
Persian plum is a dark, reddish-brown colour that matches the look of cooked dried plums, known as prunes. The name 'prune' has been used for this shade in English since 1789, drawing from the French word for plum.
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- Represents the colour of cooked dried plums (prunes)
- Also known as prune in English
- First recorded as a colour name in 1789
- Named after the French word for plum
What colour is Persian plum?
Persian plum is a dark, rich shade that sits between red and brown. It takes its appearance from the colour of cooked prunes, which are dried plums. This gives it a deep, muted tone, distinct from brighter purples or reds. The shade is sometimes called prune, especially when referring to the typical colour of dried or cooked plums.
Where does Persian plum come from?
The name Persian plum comes from the traditional term 'prune', which is the French word for plum. In English, 'prune' refers to dried plums, and this colour is meant to match the look of prunes after they are cooked. The first use of 'prune' as a colour name in English dates back to 1789.
Brown around the world
What the brown family means from country to country.
Brown is the colour of Nazism in German political speech, after the brown shirts of the party's stormtroopers. To call a view "brown" is to call it far right.
Politics and protestDanger and warningShameSource: SturmabteilungMasi is bark cloth beaten from paper mulberry and printed in brown and black. It is worn at weddings and funerals and given in ceremonial exchanges.
Sacred and holyWeddings and marriageSource: Tapa clothKuntunkuni is a dark brown mourning cloth of the Asante, dyed with tree bark. Adinkra cloth, stamped with symbols, was first made on such dark grounds for funerals.
Mourning and deathSadnessSource: Adinkra symbolsThe batik of the Javanese courts at Yogyakarta and Surakarta is dyed in soga brown with indigo and cream. Some court patterns were once reserved for the royal family.
Royalty and powerPrideSource: BatikBogolanfini, or mud cloth, is cotton painted with fermented river mud in browns, black and white. Hunters wear it for protection, and women after childbirth.
Protection and healingSacred and holySource: BògòlanfiniShades and relatives of Persian plum
Persian plum is closely related to other plum-inspired shades, but it is darker and browner than the typical plum colour. It is sometimes confused with other deep reds or purples, but its link to the colour of cooked prunes sets it apart.
Colours that go with Persian plum
Harmonies are worked out from the value #701C1C. Contrast ratios follow the WCAG 2 formula.
Questions people ask about Persian plum
What colour is Persian plum?
Persian plum is a deep, reddish-brown shade that matches the colour of cooked prunes, or dried plums.
Where does the name Persian plum come from?
The name comes from the traditional term 'prune', which is the French word for plum. In English, 'prune' refers to dried plums.
When was Persian plum first used as a colour name?
The first recorded use of 'prune' as a colour name in English was in 1789.
Is Persian plum the same as plum?
Persian plum is a specific shade based on the colour of cooked prunes, making it darker and browner than the typical plum colour.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Plum (color)" (the section "Persian plum (prune)"), written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. 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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