The English language is filled with idioms and expression related to color. When you are angry, you see red. When you are depressed, you are feeling blue. Shakespeare referred to jealousy as the “green-eyed monster” while “tickled pink” means you are delighted by something. But how about the color orange? What is the significance of this color? You’ll find a lot of orange at EC, from the school’s logo to the walls in the classrooms and couches in the student lounge. Let’s take a closer look at this fascinating color…
According Color Wheel Pro (http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html), orange is a combination of the energy associated with red and the happiness of yellow. In addition, orange represents “enthusiasm, fascination, happiness, creativity, determination, attraction, success, encouragement, and stimulation.” Therefore it seems more than appropriate for EC, where happiness and creativity are integral parts of our vision and daily routine, to be splashed with orange. Our teachers are enthusiastic and encouraging, while our students are determined and successful. It has also been found that orange promotes the flow of oxygen to the brain, thereby producing an “invigorating effect” and stimulating mental activity. It’s no wonder that so much great work is produced at EC!
Did you know?
• The word “orange” was first used to refer to the color in 1512. Until then, yellow-red had been used to describe something that was “orange”.
• Orange is the color of the Dutch Royal Family. The lineage of the current dynasty dates back to Willem van Oranje (William of Orange). Although the color orange has royal origins in the Netherlands, today it symbolizes a broader pride in the country and in being Dutch (http://goamsterdam.about.com/od/planatrip/a/color_orange.htm)
• Albany, the State capital of New York, was originally a Dutch settlement called Fort Orange.
• There are about 45 milligrams of vitamin C in the average orange, which is about 75% of your recommended daily requirement.
• There are no commonly used words in the English language that rhyme with “orange”. The closest word is “lozenge”, referred to as a “half-rhyme”.
• 1972 the movie “A Clockwork Orange” was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Director (Stanley Kubrick), Best Picture, Best Film Editing and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
So it turns out that, while there may not be many English expressions with the word orange in them, it is a pretty interesting color and one that has some very positive associations.