Pink color has several names in Japanese:
- ピンク (pinku) – the most common expression
- 桃色 (momoiro) – rare (peachy shade of peach fruits)
- 桜色 (sakurairo) – rare (pink shade of sakura blossoms)
- 淡紅色 (tankōshoku) – rare (shade similar to a light red)
There are at least 7 different Japanese terms to define pink shades!
Peaches and Pink
Even if most of the peach fruits produced in central Japan are white, they turn into a pink color when ripen. For this reason, “momoiro” indicates pink.
Momoiro’s kanji
Peach is Momo (もも or 桃). This kanji 桃 tells that the peach tree is an auspicious tree.
Why? 桃 is a combination of:
- 木 – Tree
- 兆 – Trillion, omen, sign, augury, divine, auspice
Pink and culture: a masculine color
In recent centuries, Japanese culture has been perceived pink as a masculine and mournful color linked to “young warriors who fall in battle while in the full bloom of life” (Barbara Nemitz).
Today is commonly worn (but not exclusively) by women.
READ – Samurai Blue (侍青): Indigo, the color of Love
Pink dye
Because of the high cost of plants used to produce pink dyes, it was often diluted with other substances (like plum vinegar). In the past, lighter shades of pink and peach were way more common than fuchsia and other strong shades.
READ – Murasaki (紫): the forbidden color
Pink related expressions
- 濃桃 (nōtō) – deep pink
- 褪紅 (taikō) – light pink
- 撫子色 (nadeshiko iro) – The nadeshiko flower is a pink-colored flower with strong symbolism in Japan. It describes the ideal traditional Japanese woman.
