It’s also a classic color for “blue jeans.” Most shops will stock pairs in this shade.
What Color Is Indigo? Fascinating Facts You’ll Love
If there’s a color that inspires debate, it is indigo.
What color is indigo? Is it blue or purple?
When you’re thinking about using the color, does it matter?
Yes! Because we know that the different color meanings are important to how people:
- Perceive a business or product based on brand colors.
- Feel in an interior environment of certain colors.
- Formulate a first impression of someone wearing the color.
So let’s better understand what color indigo is, and try to settle the debate.
What Color is Indigo?
Indigo is a secondary color on the color wheel.
It is made by mixing blue with red, just like other purplish shades.
But there are different shades called indigo, and this adds to the confusion!
Indigo is named for the plant used to create the original dye in the color. This plant comes from India and has been used as a dye since ancient times.
The botanical name of the pant commonly called true indigo is indigofera tinctoria.
When the British came to India, they started to grow the plant in larger numbers to export the dye for the clothing industry.
Indigo is also famous as one of the colors of the rainbow, and one of the seven colors of the visible spectrum.
It’s also one of the 7 chakra colors.
Is Indigo a Color?
There is controversy over whether indigo is even a color!
Indigo was recognized as a color distinct from blue and purple by Sir Isaac Newton in the mid 17th century.
At that time, he attempted to prove that white light contained a full spectrum of colors. He used a prism to show that white light could be divided into 7 distinct colors, then reunited into white again by use of another prism.
Yes, Sir Isaac Newton is the one we have to thank for naming the rainbow colors. If not for him, we would not have the handy acronym “ROY G BIV.” Which of course stands for Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet.
Today, some people question why we include blue, indigo, and violet? Aren’t they too close to be 3 separate colors of the rainbow?
They even say that the true rainbow colors should be red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. Only 6!
And that Newton named 7 colors because he was into numerology and the meaning of 7 as perfection.
However – we need to realize that his “blue” was closer to the cyan blue of printing inks. Today we think of this as aqua blue or turquoise.
His “indigo” was what many people consider blue today. The indigo dye of the time is really towards the blue side of the spectrum! Think of the color of blue jeans, which were originally dyed with real indigo dye.
So indigo is clearly a distinct color.
But you can see a lot depends on how you see it and name it!
Is Indigo Purple or Blue?
Because there are different shades of indigo, it can depend on which one you are looking at.
Even the experts don’t seem sure.
Some of them are more towards the purple shade. And the color does sit between the two on the color wheel.
Pantone describes it as ‘encompassing the qualities of blue with a violet red undertone’ – so that doesn’t really help!
Farrow & Ball, the paint manufacturers, say it is ‘mainly blue with underlying violet notes’.
But the color most often is said to be a blue.
What Color Is Closest to Indigo?
Another way to decide what color is indigo is to look at the color spectrum.
On the color wheel, indigo is found between blue and violet. Violet is the midway point between blue and purple.
So this means that indigo is closer to blue than to purple.
Is Indigo the Same as Purple?
Indigo is definitely not the same as purple.
Purple has a lot more red in it, and is clearly recognizable as its own color.
Indigo is much closer to blue, and sometimes isn’t easy to separate from other dark blue shades.
Is Indigo the Same as Navy?
Indigo and navy can both be classed as dark blues, but there are some clear differences.
Indigo has more purple in it while navy is darker.
Navy tends to be seen as a more traditional color while indigo is less so.
It can be tough to put indigo into a box, as there are so many different ones! This also means you’re sure to find the right indigo for your color scheme.
Complementary Colours
When placed next to each other, complementary colors tend to look balanced and are colors opposite to each other on the color wheel also, when placed next to each other they appear to become brighter.
They are also used together in Colour Therapy to give balance. We need the balance of the electric/cool colours and the magnetic/warm colours for our wellbeing and smooth functioning of our bodies.
Complementary colours are opposite each other on the colour wheel,
Violet and Yellow
Indigo and Orange
Green and Magenta
Yellow and Violet
Orange and Indigo
Magenta and Green
Magenta is the eighth color and is not part of the visible spectrum, but is a combination of red and violet, thus combining the energies of those two colors. That is to say, that magenta helps us to use our earthly experience and grounding together with intense spiritual awareness. It can help to release past conditioning and help us to move forward.
