Saffron
In its own language: زعفران
A golden-yellow colour from the dried stigmas of the saffron crocus flower
No single value: Saffron is a material, and its colour varies. The background shows its family, yellow.
Saffron is a golden-yellow colour produced by the dried crimson stigmas of Crocus sativus flowers. The pigment crocin gives saffron its rich hue, used for centuries to colour food and textiles, especially in Persian cuisine and traditional rituals. Its high cost comes from the labour needed to harvest thousands of flowers for a small amount of threads.
- Saffron comes from the dried stigmas of Crocus sativus flowers
- It takes about 150,000 flowers to produce one kilogram of saffron
- The pigment crocin gives saffron its golden-yellow colour
- Saffron has been used as a dye and spice for over 3,500 years
- Iran, especially Khorasan, is a historic centre of saffron production
What colour is Saffron?
Saffron is a golden-yellow colour that comes from the dried crimson stigmas of the saffron crocus flower. The pigment crocin is responsible for its strong yellow-orange shade, which is especially vivid in water-based foods. Saffron stands apart from other yellow dyes for its intensity and the fact that it is produced from a flower, not a mineral or synthetic source.
Where does Saffron come from?
The word 'saffron' entered English from French around 1200, tracing back through Old French 'safran', Medieval Latin 'safranum', and Persian 'zafarān'. The flower itself, Crocus sativus, likely originated in Iran, especially the Khorasan region, and was spread by humans across Eurasia and North Africa. Its use as a colourant and spice dates back over 3,500 years, with early records in a 7th-century BC Assyrian text.
How is Saffron made?
Saffron is made by hand-harvesting the crimson stigmas from the purple flowers of Crocus sativus. Each flower produces only a small amount, so thousands are needed for even a gram of the dried threads. The pigment crocin in the stigmas dissolves easily in water, giving a strong yellow colour to food and textiles. The quality of saffron is graded by the ratio of red stigmas to yellow styles.
Where Saffron is used
Saffron is used to colour and flavour food, especially in Persian dishes like chelow, tahdig, and desserts. It has also been used to dye textiles and in traditional medicine and rituals. Its colour is prized for its richness and clarity, especially in rice dishes and sweets. Saffron is also used in perfumery and as a body colourant in some cultures.
Yellow around the world
What the yellow family means from country to country.
People wear yellow for Vasant Panchami, the spring festival of the goddess Saraswati. Before many weddings, turmeric paste is rubbed on the bride and groom in the haldi ceremony.
Sacred and holyFestival and celebrationWeddings and marriageJoySource: Vasant PanchamiA crime novel or thriller is called a giallo, a yellow. The name comes from the yellow covers of a series of mysteries that Mondadori began publishing in 1929.
Danger and warningFearSource: GialloThe yellow disc of the Aboriginal flag is the sun, giver of life. The flag was designed by the Luritja artist Harold Thomas and first flown in Adelaide in 1971.
Sacred and holySource: Australian Aboriginal flagAt the gaye holud, held a day or two before a wedding, relatives rub turmeric paste on the bride and groom. Guests dress in yellow and orange.
Weddings and marriageFestival and celebrationJoySource: Gaye holudOn Pohela Falgun, the first day of spring, young women wear yellow and orange saris, a shade called basanti, with flowers in their hair.
Festival and celebrationNature and renewalJoySource: Pohela FalgunThe Flemish flag is a black lion on yellow, and the Walloon flag a red cockerel on yellow. The language communities are often shown by these colours.
Politics and protestPrideSource: Flag of FlandersShades and relatives of Saffron
Saffron is sometimes confused with other yellow or orange dyes, but its colour is more intense and water-soluble due to crocin. Related crocus species, like Crocus cartwrightianus, are called 'wild saffron' but do not produce the same quality or intensity of colour. The term 'saffron' may also refer to the flower itself or to the threads used as a spice.
Questions people ask about Saffron
What colour is saffron?
Saffron is a golden-yellow to yellow-orange colour, produced by the pigment crocin in the dried stigmas of the saffron crocus flower.
Where does the name 'saffron' come from?
The name comes from Persian 'zafarān', passing through Medieval Latin and Old French before entering English around 1200.
How is saffron made?
Saffron is made by hand-picking the crimson stigmas from Crocus sativus flowers, drying them, and using them as a colourant and spice.
Why is saffron so expensive?
It is expensive because harvesting is very labour-intensive: about 150,000 flowers are needed for one kilogram of dried saffron threads.
What is saffron used for?
Saffron is used to colour and flavour food, especially in Persian cuisine, and has also been used to dye textiles and in traditional rituals.
Good reading and sources
- Encyclopaedia BritannicaArticle
- BBC News | South AsiaBBC, Article
- Meet the saffron producer:The Guardian, Article
- Saffron spice returns to Essex after 200 yearsBBC, Article
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Saffron", 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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