馃嚞馃嚬 The colours of Guatemala
3 meanings recorded, 6 colours tied to the country and 1 colour city.
What colours mean in Guatemala
Customs vary by region, faith and family; these are the meanings most often recorded.
Yellow
In Maya thought each direction has a colour: red for east, white for north, black for west and yellow for south. They match the four colours of maize.
Sacred and holySource: Maya civilizationGreen
The ancient Maya prized green above all colours. Jade and the long green tail feathers of the quetzal were kept for kings. The quetzal is the national bird and gives the currency its name.
Sacred and holyRoyalty and powerAweSource: Resplendent quetzalBlue
The flag has two sky-blue bands with white between. The blue stands for the Pacific and the Caribbean on either side of the land, and for the sky.
Politics and protestSource: Flag of Guatemala
Colours tied to Guatemala
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Indigo
A deep blue named for the dye once exported from IndiaNamed shade 路 馃嚠馃嚦 India +5
Green
Jade
A decorative stone prized for its green shades and cultural meaning across continentsColour named from nature 路 馃嚚馃嚦 China +5
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Light blue
A pale blue shade found between blue and cyan, seen in flags and daily life worldwideNamed shade 路 馃嚝馃嚪 France +5
Yellow
Tagetes patula dye
A golden yellow dye and spice made from French marigold flowersColour named from nature 路 馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico +3
Blue
Indigofera suffruticosa
A shrub from the Americas used to make indigo dye and Maya blue pigmentColour named from nature 路 馃嚭馃嚫 United States +5
Red
Haematoxylum brasiletto
A Central American tree whose heartwood gives red and pink dyesColour named from nature 路 馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico +5
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Indigo: Photo by Evan Izer ( Palladian ), CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Light blue: Yosef Ben Melamed, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Jade: Simon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tagetes patula dye: Muhammad Mahdi Karim, GFDL 1.2, source
- Haematoxylum brasiletto: Roger Culos, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Antigua Guatemala Gt: Chad Davis, CC BY-SA 2.0, source