Categories: Optical spectrum > Shades of cyan > Shades of blue > Shades of green

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This article is about the color. For other uses, see Cyan (disambiguation).

"Blue-green" redirects here. For the real estate company, see Bluegreen Corporation. For the alliance between political parties, see blue-green alliance.

Cyan (#00FFFF)

In this 1889 dictionary, cyan-blue is defined as the blue-green color corresponding to wavelengths from 487 to 505 nm, corresponding to what is today called cyan.

Cyan (pronounced /ˈsaɪæn/;^[1] from Greek: κύανoς (transliterated: kýanos), meaning "blue") may be used as the name of any of a number of colors in the blue/green range of the spectrum. In reference to the visible spectrum cyan is used to refer to the color obtained by mixing equal amounts of green and blue light or the removal of red from white light. As such, cyan is the complement of red in RGB and CMYK color models: cyan pigments absorb red light.

Cyan is also called aqua or blue-green, and was previously known as "cyan blue".^[2]

Some shades of color close to cyan in the cyan color range are baby blue, teal, turquoise, electric blue and aquamarine.

Electric cyan vs. process cyan

Electric cyan (web color aqua)

Cyan (additive secondary)
— Color coordinates —
Hex triplet		#`00FFFF`
RGB^B	(r, g, b)	(0, 255, 255)
HSV	(h, s, v)	(180°, 100%, 100%)
Source		X11
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)

The vivid cyan that is seen on an electronic display device (shown at right) is also referred to as electric cyan to distinguish it from the less vivid turquoise blue-like process cyan used in CMYK color printing (shown below). (Note: while the color is defined by definite RGB values, the display of the color will vary depending on the absolute color space used and the nature of the physical display device, e.g. computer monitor, and if this page is printed it is likely that the color shown will be far from representative.)

The web color aqua is an alias for electric cyan, that is, it is exactly the same color shown here as electric cyan.

To reproduce electric cyan in inks, it is necessary to add some white ink to the printer's cyan below, so when it is reproduced in printing, it is not a primary subtractive color. It is called aqua (a name in use since 1598) because it is a color commonly associated with water, such as the appearance of the water at a tropical beach.^[3]

Process cyan (pigment cyan) (printer's cyan)

Cyan (subtractive primary)
— Color coordinates —
Hex triplet		#`00B7EB`
RGB^B	(r, g, b)	(0, 183, 235)
HSV	(h, s, v)	(193°, 100%, 92^[4]%)
Source		CMYK^[5]
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)

Cyan is also one of the common inks used in four-color printing, along with magenta, yellow, and black; this set of colors is referred to as CMYK.

While both the additive secondary and the subtractive primary are called cyan, they can be substantially different from one another. Cyan printing ink can be more saturated or less saturated than the RGB secondary cyan, depending on what RGB color space and ink are considered.

Process cyan is not an RGB color, and there is no fixed conversion from CMYK primaries to RGB. Different formulations are used for printer's ink, so there can be variations in the printed color that is pure cyan ink. A typical formulation of process cyan is shown in the color box at right.

Variations of cyan

Light cyan

Light Cyan
— Color coordinates —
Hex triplet		#`E0FFFF`
RGB^B	(r, g, b)	(224, 255, 255)
HSV	(h, s, v)	(180°, 97%, 97%)
Source		X11
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)

At right is displayed the web color light cyan.

Light sea green

Light Sea Green
— Color coordinates —
Hex triplet		#`20B2AA`
RGB^B	(r, g, b)	(32, 178, 170)
HSV	(h, s, v)	(175°, 40%, 75%)
Source		X11
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)

Displayed at right is the web color light sea green.

Dark cyan

Dark Cyan
— Color coordinates —
Hex triplet		#`008B8B`
RGB^B	(r, g, b)	(0, 139, 139)
HSV	(h, s, v)	(180°, 24%, 100%)
Source		X11
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)

Displayed at the right is the web color dark cyan.

In nature

Pure water is nearly colorless. However, it does absorb slightly more red light than blue, giving large volumes of water a bluish tint; increased scattering of blue light due to fine particles in the water shifts the blue color toward green, for a typically cyan net color.^[6]
Cyanobacteria (sometimes called blue-green algae) are an important link in the food chain.
Cyanide derives its name from Prussian blue, a blue pigment containing the cyanide ion.

In human culture

Architecture

Cyan colored tiles are often used to pave swimming pools to make the water within them seem more inviting to swim in, by making the cyan color of their water seem more intensely colored.

Astronomy

The planet Uranus is cyan because of the abundance of methane in its atmosphere.

Computer games/video games

There is a computer game company called Cyan Worlds (a.k.a., Cyan, Inc.).
There is a Final Fantasy VI character named Cyan Garamonde.
Inky, one of the four ghosts in Pac-Man, is a shade of cyan.
In Pokémon Gold and Silver, a city on a outcast island is named Cianwood City.
In The video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, Cyan is the rarest color crystal- never appearing in a lightsaber that you are given and will never appear in a predetermined spot - the only way to get it is by a random crystal popping up.

Energy

Natural gas (methane), used by many for home cooking on gas stoves, has a cyan colored flame when burned.

Film

A silverless dye track used for soundtracks on 35mm film stock. Red light readers are required to read cyan soundtracks.[1].

Interior design and industrial design

The color cyan (called aqua by interior designers) was commonly used in the interior design of the 1950s in combination with either magenta or pink and black to give a modern feel to interiors (these colors were also popular for automobiles in the 1950s).

Medicine

Cyanosis is an abnormal blueness of the skin, usually a sign of poor oxygen intake. i.e the patient is "cyanotic".

Music

There is a band called Cyan, a British progressive rock band from the 1980s and 1990s.

Panelology

Cyan is the name of a character in the Norwegian comic strip Nemi.

Photography

Cyanotype, or blueprint, a monochrome photographic printing process that predates the use of the word cyan as a color, yields a deep cyan-blue colored print based on the Prussian blue pigment.^[7]

References

^ Cyan definition on dictionary.com
^ J. Arthur H. Hatt (1908). The Colorist: Designed to Correct the Commonly Held Theory that Red, Yellow, and Blue are the Primary Colors and to Supply the Much Needed Easy Method of Determining Color Harmony. D. Van Nostrand Company. http://books.google.com/books?id=qFa_qP780RQC&pg=PA22&dq=%22cyan+blue%22+%22three+color+printing%22&lr=&as_brr=1&ei=pxItSKTOGaectAPy3OnvAg.
^ Maerz and Paul The Dictionary of Color 1930 (see under Aqua in Index, Page 189)
^ Using HSL color space#Conversion from RGB to HSL or HSV, v=247/255
^ Tintbooks - Get Accurate CMYK Color Results For Your Printing Projects CMYK color tintbook:
^ Craig F. Bohren (2001). Clouds in a Glass of Beer: Simple Experiments in Atmospheric Physics. Courier Dover Publications. ISBN 0486417387. http://books.google.com/books?id=CZuNCZqtZZUC&pg=PA156&dq=absorption+scattering+water+blue+red&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=a684ScHhGI3WlQTM-_W7Bg.
^ Mike Ware (1999). Cyanotype: the history, science and art of photographic printing in Prussian blue. NMSI Trading Ltd. ISBN 1900747073. http://books.google.com/books?id=C-7I69gFIbMC&pg=PA21&ots=alsMw9t0Kr&dq=cyanotype+prussian-blue+color&sig=s12O6C39teka_vg41EDxbflKMI4#PPA40,M1.

Shades of blue
Air Force blue	Alice blue	Azure	Baby blue	Bleu de France	Blue	Bondi blue	Brandeis blue	Cambridge Blue	Carolina blue

Ceil	Cerulean	Cobalt blue	Columbia blue	Cornflower blue	Cyan	Dark blue	Deep sky blue	Denim	Dodger blue

Duke blue	Egyptian blue	Electric blue	Eton blue	Federal Blue	Glaucous	Han blue	Iceberg	Indigo	International Klein Blue

Iris	Light blue	Majorelle Blue	Maya blue	Midnight blue	Navy blue	Non-photo blue	Palatinate blue	Periwinkle	Persian blue

Powder blue	Prussian blue	Royal blue	Sapphire	Sky blue	Steel blue	Teal	Tiffany Blue	Ultramarine	Yale Blue

The samples shown above are representative only.

Shades of green
Army green	Asparagus	Bright green	British racing green	Camouflage green	Celadon	Chartreuse	Dartmouth green	Electric green	Emerald

Fern green	Forest green	Gray-asparagus	Green	Green-yellow	Harlequin	Honeydew	Hunter green	Islamic green	India green

Jade	Jungle green	Kelly green	Lime	Lime green	Midnight green	Mint cream	Moss green	MSU Green	Myrtle

Office green	Olive	Olive drab	Pear	Persian green	Pigment green	Pine green	Rifle green	Sacramento State green	Sap green

Sea green	Shamrock green	Spring bud	Spring green	Tea green	Teal	UP Forest green	Viridian	Yellow-green	Variations of green

The samples shown above are representative only.

Shades of cyan
Alice blue	Aqua	Aquamarine	Baby blue	Bondi blue	Cerulean	Cyan	Electric blue	Midnight green	Pine green

Robin egg blue	Teal	Turquoise	Viridian

The samples shown above are representative only.

Web colors
black	gray	silver	white	maroon	red	purple	fuchsia	green	lime	olive	yellow	navy	blue	teal	aqua

Major colors — List

Major primary colors	Additive colors: Blue Navy \| Lime Green \| Red Maroon — Subtractive colors: Cyan Teal \| Magenta or Fuchsia Purple \| Yellow Olive

Major secondary colors	Orange Brown \| Pink Violet — Neutral color: Black \| Grey or Gray Silver \| White

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Wiktionary

Up to date as of January 15, 2010

(Redirected to cyan article)

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Wikipedia has an article on:

Cyan

Wikipedia

English

Noun

cyan

a colour between blue and green in the visible spectrum; the complementary colour of red; the colour obtained by subtracting red from white light.

cyan colour:

Translations

a colour between blue and green

Bosnian: tirkizna bs(bs) f.
Chinese: 青色 (qīng sè)
Dutch: cyaan n., appelblauwzeegroen n.
Esperanto: ciankoloro
Finnish: sinivihreä fi(fi), syaani fi(fi)
French: cyan fr(fr)
German: Aquamarin n., Zyan n.
Greek: κυανός el(el) (kyanós) m. sg.

Interlingua: cyano, cyano blau
Japanese: シアン (shian)
Polish: turkus m.
Portuguese: turquesa pt(pt), ciano pt(pt) m.
Russian: голубой цвет (golubój tsvet) m.
Spanish: ciánico
Swedish: cyan, cyanfärg, turkos, turkosfärg

Adjective

cyan

of the colour cyan

Translations

of the colour cyan

Dutch: cyaankleurig
Esperanto: ciankolora
Finnish: sinivihreä, syaanin värinen
Japanese: シアン色の (shian’iro no)

Polish: turkusowy m., turkusowa f., turkusowe n.
Russian: голубой ru(ru) (golubój)
Spanish: ciánico
Swedish: cyan, cyanfärgad, turkos, turkosfärgad

Related terms

cyan-
cyano-

French

Noun

cyan m (plural cyans)

cyan (colour)

Swedish

Adjective

cyan

cyan (colour)

Synonyms

cyanfärgad

Noun

cyan

cyan (colour)
(colloquial) Almost any chemical compound containing a cyanide group; especially if this compound is in gaseous state.

Synonyms

(colour): cyanfärg

Derived terms

cyanblå

Simple English

This box shows the color cyan.

Cyan is the color halfway between blue and green on the color wheel. It is one of the primary (main) colors of ink in an inkjet printer, along with yellow and magenta.

Cyan is a secondary color of light, along with magenta and yellow. The primary colors of light are: blue, red and green. Cyan is made by mixing green and blue light.

Meaning of cyan

Cyan is associated with making someone feel better and protection, as well as being associated with good health from getting exercise by going swimming. This is because the water in a swimming pool is usually colored cyan from having chlorine bleach added to it. The tiles of a swimming pool are often colored cyan, which makes the cyan color of the water in a swimming pool even more intense.

Cyan is a restful, calming color that symbolizes relaxation, especially that shade of cyan called bright turquoise (shown below) which can be the color of the water in lagoons in tropical countries where people go swimming on their vacations.

That shade of cyan that is called medium aquamarine (shown below) is used for the uniforms of nurses and surgeons and also used to paint rooms in hospitals because it is regarded as a color that calms and relaxes the patients.

Tones of cyan color comparison chart

Alice Blue (web color) (Hex: #F0F8FF) (RGB: 240, 248, 255)
Bubbles (Xona.com Color List) (Hex: #E7FEFF) (RGB: 231, 254, 255)
Cyan (Hex: #E0FFFF) (RGB: 224, 255, 255)
Pale Turquoise (web color) (Hex: #AFEEEE) (RGB: 175, 238, 238)
Pale Robin Egg Blue (Hex: #96DED1) (RGB: 150, 222, 205)
Aquamarine (Crayola) (web color) (Hex: #7FFFD4) (RGB: 127, 255, 212)
Aquamarine Blue (Crayola Aquamarine) (Hex: #71D9E2) (RGB: 113, 217, 226)
Baby Blue (Hex: 89CFFD) (RGB: 137, 207, 240)
Electric Blue (Hex: 7DF9FF) (RGB: 125, 249, 255)
Aqua (Hex: #00FFFF) (RGB: 0, 255, 255)
Turquoise Blue (Hex: #00FFEF) (RGB: 0, 255, 239)
Bright Turquoise (Hex: #08E8DE) (RGB: 8, 232, 222)
Turquoise (web color) (Hex: #30D5C8) (RGB: 48, 213, 200)
Maya Blue (Hex: #73C2FB) (RGB: 115, 194, 215)
Capri (web color "Deep Sky Blue") (Hex: #00BFFF) (RGB: 0, 191, 255)
Process Cyan (Pigment Cyan) (Printer's Cyan)(Deep Aqua) (Hex: #00B7EB) (RGB: 0, 183, 235)
Bright Cerulean (Crayola Cerulean) (Hex: #02A4D3) (RGB: 2, 164, 211)
Deep Turquoise (web color "Dark Turquoise") (Hex: #00CED1) (RGB: 0, 206, 209)
Robin Egg Blue (Hex: #00CCCC) (RGB: 0, 204, 204)
Medium Turquoise (web color) (Hex: #48D1CC) (RGB: 72, 209, 204)
Medium Aquamarine (web color) (Hex: #66CDAA) (RGB: 102, 205, 170)
Light Sea Green (web color) (Hex: #20B2AA) (RGB: 32, 178, 170)
Light Teal Blue (Crayola Teal Blue) (Hex: #18A7B5) (RGB: 24, 167, 181)
Cadet Blue (web color) (Hex: #5F9EA0) (RGB: 95, 158, 109)
Viridian (Hex: #40826D) (RGB: 64, 130, 109)
Pine Green (Crayola) (Hex: #01796F) (RGB: 1, 121, 111)
Dark Cyan (web color) (Hex: #008B8B) (RGB: 0, 139, 139)
Teal (web color) (Hex: #008080) (RGB: 0, 128, 128)
Teal Blue (Hex: #367588) (RGB: 54, 117, 136)
Bondi Blue (Crayola Blue-Green) (Hex: #0095B6) (RGB: 0, 149, 182)
Rich Electric Blue (Hex: #0892D0) (RGB: 8, 146, 208)
Cerulean (Hex: #007BA7) (RGB: 0, 123, 167)
Steel Blue (web color) (Hex: #4682B4) (RGB: 70, 130, 180)
Medium Electric Blue (Hex: #035096) (RGB: 3, 80, 150)
Dark Electric Blue (Hex: #536878) (RGB: 83, 104, 120)
Midnight Green (Eagle Green) (Hex: #004953) (RGB: 0, 73, 83)