Next: 8 Mar 2027
International Women's Day
Purple, with green and white: the colours of the suffragettes. In Italy, sprigs of yellow mimosa.
The colours of International Women's Day
International Women's Day grew out of labour and suffrage movements in the early twentieth century. Its colours come from the Women's Social and Political Union, the British suffragettes, who chose purple, white and green in 1908. They explained purple as dignity, white as purity and green as hope. Purple has since become the main colour of the day, worn on scarves and ribbons and used to light buildings. In Latin America marchers wear purple alongside the green scarf of the reproductive rights movement that began in Argentina. In Italy the day is the Festa della Donna, and women are given yellow mimosa, which flowers in early March. In Russia and much of eastern Europe the gift is tulips.
#6B2D8BSuffrage purpleDignity, in the suffragette colours of 1908.#2E8B57Suffrage greenHope.#FFFFFFSuffrage whitePurity, in the suffragettes’ words.#F7D417Mimosa yellowThe flower given in Italy.Values are fair approximations, not official shades.
Read about the colours
Written by the Rang desk with AI assistance. Background: "International Women's Day" on Wikipedia. Customs differ from family to family and place to place. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.