Colours in Philippines and Japan

The flag has a blue band over a red one. In wartime it is flown upside down with the red on top, a rule few other national flags share. Red stands for patriotism and valour.

Each January, devotees in maroon and yellow crowd the streets of Manila for the procession of the Black Nazarene, a dark wooden statue of Christ carrying the cross.

The torii gates of Shinto shrines are often painted vermilion, a bright orange-red. The colour is held to keep evil away, and the long tunnels of gates at Fushimi Inari are the best known.

Yellow became the colour of opposition to Ferdinand Marcos after Benigno Aquino Jr was killed in 1983. Yellow ribbons and confetti filled Manila in the People Power revolt of 1986.

The blue band of the flag stands for peace, truth and justice. The exact shade has changed over the years and was fixed as royal blue by law in 1998.

Indigo dyeing, called aizome, clothed ordinary people in deep blue through the Edo period. The men's national football team plays in blue and is nicknamed Samurai Blue.

Purple 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.

In the 2022 presidential election, supporters of Leni Robredo dressed in pink and painted murals in it. The colour was picked up by volunteers, not chosen by the campaign.

Pale pink is the colour of cherry blossom. In spring people picnic under the trees for hanami, flower viewing, and the short bloom is a common image for how brief life is.

The white triangle on the flag stands for equality and fraternity. Its three stars are for Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

A bride at a Shinto wedding may wear the shiromuku, a kimono that is white from head to foot. White is also the colour of the paper streamers that mark sacred places.

Red and white together, called kohaku, mark happy occasions. Curtains at ceremonies are striped red and white, and the New Year's Eve song contest sets a Red team against a White team.

Families wear black to a wake and funeral, and some pin a small black ribbon to their clothes afterwards. Mourning dress traditionally ends at the first anniversary of the death.

Mourners wear plain black, called mofuku, to funerals, and men add a black tie. Condolence money goes in an envelope tied with black and white cord.