Editing Yellow (section)

== Symbolism and associations ==
In the west, yellow is not a well-loved color. In a year 2000 survey, only 6% of respondents in Europe and America named it as their favorite color, compared with 45% for blue, 15% for green, 12% for red, and 10% for black. For 7% of respondents, it was their least favorite color.<ref name="Eva Heller 2000 pg. 33">Eva Heller (2000), ''Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques'', p. 33.</ref> Yellow is considered a color of ambivalence and contradiction. It is associated with optimism and amusement, but also with betrayal, duplicity, and jealousy.<ref name="Eva Heller 2000 pg. 33" /> However, in China and other parts of Asia, yellow is a color of virtue and nobility.

{{anchor|China}}<!--linked-->
=== In China ===
{{main|Color in Chinese culture}}
Yellow has strong historical and cultural associations in China, where ''huáng'' ({{lang|zh|{{linktext|黃}}}} or {{lang|zh|{{linktext|黄}}}}) is the color of happiness, glory, and wisdom. Although ''huáng'' originally and occasionally still covers a range inclusive of [[tan (color)|tan]]s and [[orange (color)|orange]]s,<ref>{{citation |last=Schafer |first=Edward H. |jstor=4527434 |contribution=The Early History of Lead Pigments and Cosmetics in China |title=T'oung Pao |series=2nd ser. |volume=44 |date=1956 |issue=4/5 |pages=413–438 |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden }}.</ref><ref>{{citation |last=Dupree |first=Scratch |contribution-url=https://chajournal.blog/2017/01/30/colors/ |contribution=Colors |date=30 January 2017 |title=Cha |url=https://chajournal.blog |publisher= |location=Hong Kong }}.</ref> speakers of modern [[Standard Mandarin]] tend to map their use of ''huáng'' to shades corresponding to English yellow.<ref>{{citation |last=Hsieh |first=Tracy Tsuei-ju |author2=Ichiro Kuriki |author3=Chen I-ping |author4=Yumiko Muto |author5=Rumi Tokunaga |author6=Satoshi Shiori |ref={{harvid|Hsieh & al.|2020}} |date=November 2020 |display-authors=1 |title=Journal of Vision |volume=20 |issue=12 |page=6 |doi=10.1167/jov.20.12.6 |contribution=Basic Color Categories in Mandarin Chinese Revealed by Cluster Analysis |pmid=33196769 |publisher=Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology |location=[[Rockville, Maryland|Rockville]] |pmc=7671860 }}.</ref>

In Chinese symbolism, yellow, red, and green are masculine colors, while black and white are considered feminine. After the development of the theory of [[Five elements (China)|five elements]], the Chinese reckoned various correspondences. On a five season model, late summer was characterized by yellowing leaves.<ref name="autogenerated82" />{{dubious|date=February 2024}} Yellow was taken as the color of the fifth direction of the compass, the central. China is called the Middle Kingdom; the palace of the Emperor was considered to be in the exact center of the world.<ref name="autogenerated82">Eva Heller (2000), ''Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques'', p. 82.</ref> The legendary first emperor of China was called the [[Yellow Emperor]] and the last, [[Puyi]] (1906–67), described in his memoirs how every object which surrounded him as a child was yellow. "It made me understand from my most tender age that I was of a unique essence, and it instilled in me the consciousness of my 'celestial nature' which made me different from every other human."<ref>{{cite book | script-title= zh:我的前半生 | trans-title= The First Half of My Life; From Emperor to Citizen: The Autobiography of Aisin-Gioro Puyi | last= Aisin-Gioro | first= Puyi | orig-year= First published 1964<!--, 1987, 2002 --> | publisher= Foreign Languages Press | isbn= 978-7-119-00772-4 | language= zh | title= From Emperor to Citizen: The Autobiography of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi | year= 1989 | url-access= registration | url= https://archive.org/details/fromemperortocit00puyi }}&nbsp;– original</ref><ref name="Eva Heller 2000 p. 82"/> The Chinese Emperor was literally considered the child of heaven, with both a political and religious role, both symbolized by yellow. After the [[Song dynasty]], laws banned the use of certain bright yellow shades by anyone but the emperor. Distinguished visitors were honored with a yellow, not a red, carpet.

In current [[Chinese culture|Chinese pop culture]], the term "yellow movie" ({{lang|zh|{{linktext|黃色電影}}}}) refers to films and other cultural items of a pornographic nature, analogous to the English "[[wikt:blue movie|blue movie]]".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1045153.stm|title=Chinese porn trader jailed for life|work=BBC News|access-date=23 March 2009|first=Duncan|last=Hewitt|date=28 November 2000|archive-date=23 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081223141955/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1045153.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> This was the basis of the 2007 "[[very erotic very violent]]" meme, with the word "erotic" [[calque|calquing]] Chinese "yellow".

<gallery mode="packed" heights="180px">
File:Yellow River - panoramio.jpg | The [[Yellow River]] at [[Sanmenxia]]
File:Portrait assis de l'empereur Jiajing.jpg|Portrait of the [[Jiajing Emperor]] from the [[Ming dynasty]].
File:乾隆皇帝老年肖像.jpg|The [[Qianlong Emperor]] in court dress (18th century).
File:Imperial Yellow Peking Glass Vase Closeup.jpg|[[Daoguang Emperor|Daoguang]] period [[Peking glass]] vase, a shade called "Imperial Yellow" after the [[Flag of the Qing dynasty|Qing banner]]
File:20090528 Beijing Forbidden City 8074.jpg|Yellow roofs in the [[Forbidden City]]
File:Shanghainanjingroadpic1.jpg|Neon lights in modern Shanghai with a predominance of red and yellow.
</gallery>

=== Light and reason ===
{{Anchor|Light and Reason}}<!--Old section name-->
Yellow, as the color of sunlight when sun is near the horizon, is commonly associated with warmth. Yellow combined with red symbolized heat and energy. A room painted yellow feels warmer than a room painted white, and a lamp with yellow light seems more natural than a lamp with white light.

As the color of light, yellow is also associated with knowledge and wisdom. In English and many other languages, "brilliant" and "bright" mean intelligent. In [[Islam]], the yellow color of gold symbolizes wisdom. In medieval European symbolism, red symbolized passion, blue symbolized the spiritual, and yellow symbolized reason. In many European universities, yellow gowns and caps are worn by members of the faculty of physical and natural sciences, as yellow is the color of reason and research.<ref>Eva Heller (2000), ''Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques'', pp. 72–73.</ref>

=== Gold and blond ===
[[File:Aureus, Auguste, Lyon, btv1b104440369.jpg|thumb|right|Gold coin, Aureus, Auguste, Lyon.]]
In ancient Greece and Rome, the gods were often depicted with yellow, or blonde hair, which was described in literature as 'golden'. The color yellow was associated with the sun gods [[Helios]] and [[Apollo]]. It was fashionable in ancient Greece for men and women to dye their hair yellow, or to spend time in the sun to bleach it.<ref name="Eva Heller 2000 p. 73">Eva Heller (2000), ''Psychologie de la couleur – effets et symboliques'', p. 73.</ref> In ancient Rome, prostitutes were required to bleach their hair, to be easily identified, but it also became a fashionable hair color for aristocratic women, influenced by the exotic blonde hair of many of the newly conquered slaves from Gaul, Britain, and Germany.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://italianthro.blogspot.fr/2011/11/hair-dye-and-wigs-in-ancient-rome.html|title=Hair dye and wigs in Ancient Rome|date=10 November 2011|access-date=22 March 2017|archive-date=23 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170323054358/http://italianthro.blogspot.fr/2011/11/hair-dye-and-wigs-in-ancient-rome.html|url-status=live}}</ref> However, in medieval Europe and later, the word yellow often had negative connotations; associated with betrayal, so yellow hair was more poetically called 'blond,' 'light', 'fair,' or most often "golden".<ref name="Eva Heller 2000 p. 73"/>

=== Visibility and caution ===
Yellow is the most visible color from a distance, so it is often used for objects that need to be seen, such as fire engines, road maintenance equipment, school buses and taxicabs. It is also often used for warning signs, since yellow traditionally signals caution, rather than danger. [[Shades of yellow#Safety yellow|Safety yellow]] is often used for safety and accident prevention information. A yellow light on a traffic signal means slow down, but not stop. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) uses Pantone 116 (a yellow hue) as their standard color implying "general warning", while the Federal Highway Administration similarly uses yellow to communicate warning or caution on highway signage.<ref name="Yellowtown">{{Cite journal|last=Lewis|first=Karen|year=2010|title=Yellowtown: Urban Signage, Class, and Race|journal=Design and Culture|volume=2|issue=2|pages=183–198|doi=10.2752/175470710X12696138525668|s2cid=143685043}}</ref> A yellow [[penalty card]] in a soccer match means warning, but not expulsion.
<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
File:Thomas SafTLiner C2 RF.jpg|In North America, school buses such as this one in [[Albemarle County, Virginia]] are required to be painted yellow.
File:Gelber Briefkasten der Deutschen Post.JPG|A mailbox in Germany. Yellow was the color of the early postal service in the Habsburg Empire.
File:Crashtender BC.jpg|A crash tender of the [[Royal Danish Air Force]].
File:Sea King HAR3 XZ585 at RIAT 2010 arp.jpg|An RAF Sea King rescue helicopter.
File:Massimo Busacca, Referee, Switzerland (10).jpg|Yellow [[penalty card]] used during an association football match
</gallery>

=== Optimism and pleasure ===
Yellow is the color most associated with [[optimism]] and [[pleasure]]; it is a color designed to attract attention, and is used for amusement. Yellow dresses in fashion are rare, but always associated with gaiety and celebration.
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200px">
File:L'impératrice Eugénie à la Marie-Antoinette, 1854, Franz Xaver Winterhalter.jpg|The [[Empress Eugenie]] dressed as [[Marie Antoinette]], painted by [[Franz Winterhalter]] (1854)
File:Kuznetsova by Repin.jpg|''Portrait of Madame Kuznetsova'', by [[Ilya Repin]]. (1901)
File:James Tissot - The Ball.jpg|''The Ball'' by [[James Tissot]] (1880)
File:Basil Soda Yellow Dress - Paris Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2012.jpg|Yellow Dress – Paris Haute Couture Spring-Summer
File:Flickr - dalbera - Danseuses de Kuchipudi (musée Guimet).jpg|[[Kuchipudi]] dancers
File:Kylie Minogue IMG 4379.JPG|Singer [[Kylie Minogue]] performs at a Nobel Prize Concert
</gallery>

=== Mayan and Italian ===
The ancient [[Maya civilization|Maya]] associated the color yellow with the direction South. The Maya glyph for "yellow" (k'an) also means "precious" or "ripe".<ref name="kettunen2005">{{cite book|last1=Kettunen|first1=Harri|last2=Helmke|first2=Christophe|title=Introduction to Maya Hieroglyphs (Workshop Handbook 10th European Maya Conference)|publisher=Wayeb & Leiden University|location=Leiden|date=5 December 2005|page=75|url=http://www.docstoc.com/docs/2688831/Introduction-to-Maya-Hieroglyphs|access-date=28 March 2009|archive-date=28 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228212055/http://www.docstoc.com/docs/2688831/Introduction-to-Maya-Hieroglyphs|url-status=live}}</ref>

"[[Giallo]]", in Italian, refers to crime stories, both fictional and real. This association began in about 1930, when the first series of crime novels published in Italy had yellow covers.

=== Music ===
* [[The Beatles]] 1966 album ''[[Revolver (The Beatles album)|Revolver]]'' features the No. 1 hit, "[[Yellow Submarine (song)|Yellow Submarine]]". Subsequently, [[United Artists]] released an animated film in 1968 called ''[[Yellow Submarine (1968 film)|Yellow Submarine]]'', based on the music of the Beatles.
* The March 1967 album by [[Donovan]] called ''[[Mellow Yellow (album)|Mellow Yellow]]'' reached number 2 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' charts in 1966 and number 8 in the UK in early 1967. The [[Mellow Yellow|song of the same name]] popularized a widely-held belief that it was possible to get high by smoking scrapings from the inside of [[banana peel]]s. This rumor was actually started in 1966 by [[Country Joe McDonald]].
* [[Coldplay]] achieved worldwide fame with their 2000 single "[[Yellow (Coldplay song)|Yellow]]".
* "[[Yellow River (song)|Yellow River]]" is a song recorded by the British band Christie in 1970.
* The ''[[Yellow River Piano Concerto]]'' is a [[piano concerto]] arranged by a collaboration between musicians including Yin Chengzong and Chu Wanghua. Its premiere was in 1969 during the [[Cultural Revolution]].

=== Politics ===
[[File:ManifGiletsJaunesVesoul 17nov2018 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|250px|"Yellow vests" protest in France, November 2018]]
* Yellow as a [[political colour|political color]] is most commonly associated with [[liberalism]], [[libertarianism]] and [[anarcho-capitalism]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/colordesignworkb0000ston/page/86|title=Color Design Workbook: A Real World Guide to Using Color in Graphic Design|last1=Adams|first1=Sean|last2=Morioka|first2=Noreen|last3=Stone|first3=Terry Lee|date=2006|publisher=Rockport Publishers|isbn=159253192X|location=Gloucester, Mass.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/colordesignworkb0000ston/page/86 86]|oclc=60393965}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Kumar|first1=Rohit Vishal|last2=Joshi|first2=Radhika|date=October–December 2006|title=Colour, Colour Everywhere: In Marketing Too|journal=SCMS Journal of Indian Management|volume=3|issue=4|pages=40–46|issn=0973-3167|ssrn=969272}}</ref> Contemporary political parties using yellow include the [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] and [[UKIP]] in the United Kingdom, the [[Scottish National Party|SNP]] in Scotland, [[ACT New Zealand|ACT]] in New Zealand, and [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian Party]] in the United States.
* In the United States, a [[yellow dog Democrat]] was a [[U.S. Southern states|Southern]] voter who consistently voted for [[United States Democratic Party|Democratic]] candidates in the late 19th and early 20th centuries because of lingering resentment against the [[United States Republican Party|Republicans]] dating back to the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] and [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction]] period. Today the term refers to a hard-core Democrat, supposedly referring to a person who would vote for a "yellow dog" before voting for a Republican.
* In China the [[Yellow Turbans]] were a [[Daoist]] sect that staged an extensive [[rebellion]] during the [[Han dynasty]].
* The 1986 [[People Power Revolution]] in the [[Philippines]] was also known as the Yellow Revolution due to the presence of yellow ribbons during the demonstrations. Liberal and pro-democracy political parties and organizations such as [[United Nationalist Democratic Organization|UNIDO]], [[PDP–Laban|PDP-Laban]], and the [[Liberal Party (Philippines)|Liberal Party]] have used the color yellow. More recently, it has become a pejorative term used by some pro-Ferdinand Marcos and pro-Rodrigo Duterte against the opposition.
* In France in November and December 2018, an opposition movement called the [[Yellow vests movement|Yellow Vests]] went into the streets to protest against the fiscal policies of President [[Emmanuel Macron]]. They wore yellow safety vests, which French motorists are required by law to have in their cars.<ref>Essay on Yellow by Michel Pastoureau, ''Liberation'', 5 December 2008</ref>

=== Selected national and international flags ===
Three of the five most populous countries in the world (China and Brazil) have yellow or gold in their flag, representing about half of the world's population. While many flags use yellow, their symbolism varies widely, from civic virtue to golden treasure, golden fields, the desert, royalty, the keys to Heaven and the leadership of the Communist Party. In classic European [[heraldry]], yellow, along with white, is one of the two [[tincture (heraldry)|metals]] (called gold and silver) and therefore flags following heraldic design rules must use either yellow or white to separate any of their other colors (see the [[rule of tincture]] and [[insignia]]).
<gallery mode="packed" heights="100">
File:Flag of Belgium.svg|[[Flag of Belgium]] (1831). The yellow comes from the yellow lion in the coat of arms of the [[Duchy of Brabant]], founded in 1183–84.
File:Flag of Bhutan.svg|[[Flag of Bhutan]] (1956). The Bhutan flag features [[Druk]], the thunder dragon of [[Bhutanese mythology]]. The yellow represents civic tradition, the red the Buddhist spiritual tradition.
File:Flag of Brazil.svg|[[Flag of Brazil]] (1889). The yellow color was inherited from the flag of the [[Empire of Brazil]] (1822–1889), where it represented the color of the [[House of Habsburg]].
File:Flag of Brunei.svg|[[Flag of Brunei]] (1956). In Southeast Asia yellow is the color of royalty. it is the color of the [[Sultan of Brunei]], and also appears on the flag of Thailand and of Malaysia.
File:Flag of Chad.svg|[[Flag of Chad]] (1959). The color yellow here represents the sun and the desert in the north of the country. This flag is identical to that of Romania, except that it uses a slightly darker indigo blue rather than cobalt blue.
File:Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg|[[Flag of the People's Republic of China]] (1949). The four small gold stars represent the workers, peasants, urban middle class, and rural middle class. The large star represents the [[Chinese Communist Party]].
File:Flag of Colombia.svg|[[Flag of Colombia]]. The asymmetric design of the flag is based on the old [[Flag of Gran Colombia]]. The yellow color represents the golden treasure taken from Colombia over the centuries.
File:Flag of Germany.svg|[[Flag of Germany]]. Black, red and yellow were the colors of the [[Holy Roman Emperor]], and, in 1919, of the German [[Weimar Republic]]. The modern German flag was adopted in 1949.
File:Flag of Jamaica.svg|[[Flag of Jamaica]] (1962). It is currently the only national flag that does not contain a shade of the colors red, white, or blue.
File:Flag of Lithuania.svg|[[Flag of Lithuania]] (1918 to 1940, restored in 1989, modified in 2004). Yellow represents the sun, light and goodness.
File:Flag of Malaysia.svg|[[Flag of Malaysia]] (original version, 1950, current version 1963.) The yellow crescent represents Islam, the yellow star the unity of the fourteen states of Malaysia. The red and white stripes (like the stripes on the U.S. flag) are adopted from the flag of the [[British East India Company]].
File:Flag of Mozambique.svg|[[Flag of Mozambique]] (1983). The colors are those of the Marxist Liberation Front of Mozambique, or [[FRELIMO]], which rules the country. Yellow represents the country's mineral wealth.
File:Flag of the Philippines.svg|[[Flag of the Philippines]] (1898). The yellow sun is in the middle of the triangle shape.
File:Flag of Romania.svg|[[Flag of Romania]] (1848, and again in 1989, after the fall of the Communist regime.) Blue, yellow and red were the colors of the [[Wallachian uprising of 1821]], and the 1848 revolution. Yellow represents justice.
File:Flag of Spain.svg|[[Flag of Spain]] (1978). The yellow in the Spanish flag comes from the traditional [[Crown of Castille]] and the [[Crown of Aragon]]. The general design was adopted in 1785 for the Spanish Navy, to be visible from a great distance at sea.
File:Flag of Sweden.svg|[[Flag of Sweden]] (adopted 1906, but colors in use since at least the mid-16th century). The legend says that in 1157, during the [[First Swedish Crusade]], the Swedish king [[Eric the Holy]] saw a golden cross appear in the blue sky.
File:Flag of Ukraine.svg|[[Flag of Ukraine]] (1992 (originally in 1918)).
File:Flag of the Vatican City.svg|[[Flag of Vatican City]] (1929). The yellow color represents the golden key of the Kingdom of heaven, described in the [[Book of Matthew]] of the [[New Testament]], and part of the Papal seal on the flag.
File:Flag of Vietnam.svg|[[Flag of Vietnam]] (1955). The big gold star represents five main classes (laborers, soldiers, peasants, intellectuals and bourgeois).
</gallery>

==== Defunct flags ====
<gallery mode="packed" heights="100px">
File:Heiliges Römisches Reich - Reichssturmfahne vor 1433.svg|The banner of the Holy Roman Empire (15th century). The black, yellow and red colors reappeared first in 1848 and then in the 20th century in the German flag.
File:Flag of the Gran Colombia (1819-1820).svg|(1819) The flag of [[Gran Colombia]], which won independence from Spain, then broke into three countries ([[Colombia]], [[Venezuela]] and [[Ecuador]]) in 1830.
File:Flag of the Qing Dynasty (1889-1912).svg|Imperial flag of the [[Qing dynasty]], China (1890–1912), the last dynasty of China, overthrown by the [[Xinhai Revolution]] of 1911.
File:Flag of South Vietnam.svg|Flag of [[South Vietnam]] (1955–75). This was the flag of the anti-communist southern part of Vietnam during the [[Vietnam War]]. It was replaced by the flag of North Vietnam after communist forces took [[Saigon]] on 30 April 1975.
File:Flag of East Germany.svg|The flag of [[East Germany]] (1959–90). It differs from the West German flag by the presence of a communist symbol in the center, and it fell out of use when Germany was reunified after the fall of the [[Berlin Wall]].
</gallery>

=== Religion ===
* In [[Buddhism]], the saffron colors of robes to be worn by monks were defined by the [[Buddha]] himself and his followers in the 5th century BCE. The robe and its color is a sign of renunciation of the outside world and commitment to the order. The candidate monk, with his master, first appears before the monks of the monastery in his own clothes, with his new robe under his arm, and asks to enter the order. He then takes his vows, puts on the robes, and with his begging bowl, goes out to the world. Thereafter, he spends his mornings begging and his afternoons in contemplation and study, either in a forest, garden, or in the monastery.<ref name="Henri Arvon 1951 pg. 61–64">Henri Arvon (1951). ''Le bouddhisme'', pp. 61–64.</ref> According to Buddhist scriptures and commentaries, the robe dye is allowed to be obtained from six kinds of substances: roots and tubers, plants, bark, leaves, flowers and fruits. The robes should also be boiled in water a long time to get the correctly sober color. Saffron and ochre, usually made with dye from the [[curcuma longa]] plant or the heartwood of the [[jackfruit]] tree, are the most common colors. The so-called forest monks usually wear ochre robes and city monks saffron, though this is not an official rule.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/robe_txt.htm |title=The Buddhanet- buddhist studies- the monastic robe |access-date=9 October 2013 |archive-date=17 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017013954/http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/robe_txt.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The color of robes also varies somewhat among the different "vehicles", or schools of Buddhism, and by country, depending on their doctrines and the dyes available. The monks of the strict [[Vajrayana]], or [[Tantric Buddhism]], practiced in [[Tibet]], wear the most colorful robes of saffron and red. The monks of [[Mahayana Buddhism]], practiced mainly in Japan, China and Korea, wear lighter yellow or saffron, often with white or black. Monks of [[Hinayana Buddhism]], practiced in Southeast Asia, usually wear ochre or saffron color. Monks of the forest tradition in Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia wear robes of a brownish ochre, dyed from the wood of the [[jackfruit]] tree.<ref name="Henri Arvon 1951 pg. 61–64" /><ref name="Anne Varichon 2000 pg. 62">Anne Varichon (2000), ''Couleurs- pigments et teintures dans les mains des peuples'', p. 62.</ref>
* In [[Hinduism]], the divinity [[Krishna]] is commonly portrayed [[Pītāmbara|dressed in yellow]]. Yellow and saffron are also the colors worn by [[sadhu]], or wandering holy men in India. The Hindu almighty and divine god Lord Ganesha or Ganpati is mostly dressed with a dhotar in yellow, which is popularly known as pivla pitambar and is considered to be the most auspicious one.
* In [[Sikhism]]: The Sikh Rehat Maryada clearly states that the [[Nishan Sahib]] hoisted outside every [[Gurdwara|Gurudwara]] should be xanthic (Basanti in [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]) or greyish blue (modern day [[Navy blue]]) (Surmaaee in [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]) color.<ref>Sikh Rehat Maryada: [https://old.sgpc.net/rehat_maryada/section_three_chap_four.htm Section Three, Chapter IV, Article V, r.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220318143340/https://old.sgpc.net/rehat_maryada/section_three_chap_four.htm |date=18 March 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sikhmuseum.com/nishan/ |title=Nishan Sahib (Sikh Museum) |access-date=29 April 2022 |archive-date=20 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420090813/http://www.sikhmuseum.com/nishan/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In [[Islam]], the yellow color of gold symbolizes wisdom.
* In the religions of the islands of [[Polynesia]], yellow is a sacred color, the color of the divine essence; the word "yellow" in the local languages is the same as the name of the [[curcuma longa]] plant, which is considered the food of the gods.<ref name="Anne Varichon 2000 pg. 62" />
* In [[Christianity]], especially the [[Roman Catholic Church]], yellow symbolizes gold, and in [[Christian mythology]] the golden key to the Kingdom of Heaven, which divine Christ gave to Saint Peter. The flag of the [[Vatican City]] and the colors of the pope are yellow and white, symbolizing the gold key and the silver key. White and yellow together can also symbolize Easter, rebirth and Resurrection. Yellow also has a negative meaning, symbolizing betrayal; [[Judas Iscariot]] is usually portrayed wearing a pale yellow toga. Yellow and golden [[Halo (religious iconography)|halos]] mark the saints in religious paintings.
*In [[Wicca]], yellow represents intellect, inspiration, imagination, and knowledge. It is used for communication, confidence, divination, and study.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Magical Properties of Colors|url=https://wiccaliving.com/magical-properties-colors/|access-date=24 December 2020|website=Wicca Living|language=en-US|archive-date=22 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122023531/https://wiccaliving.com/magical-properties-colors/|url-status=live}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
File:Rank celebration of Thai Buddhist monk 1.jpg|Buddhist monks at the promotion ceremony of a monk in Thailand
File:Buddhist monks of Tibet7.jpg|Buddhist monks in [[Tibet]]
File:Ueno monk.jpg|A Japanese Buddhist monk in downtown Tokyo
File:Sadou Kathmandu 04 04.jpg|A Hindu [[sadhu]], or ascetic wandering monk or holy man, in [[Kathmandu]], Nepal.
File:Gesupietrochiave.jpg|Christ giving the golden key of the kingdom heaven to [[Saint Peter]] (1481–82), by [[Pietro Perugino]]. The golden key is the symbol of the Pope.
File:Benedykt XVI (2010-10-17) 4.jpg|[[Pope Benedict XVI]]. The Pope traditionally wears gold and white outside St. Peter's Basilica.
File:Nishan Sahib in blue, at Baba Phoola Singh di Burj in Amritsar.jpg|[[Sikhs|Sikh]] [[Nishan Sahib]] in blue, at [[Akali Phula Singh|Akali Phoola Singh]] di Burj in [[Amritsar]]
</gallery>

=== New Age Spiritual Metaphysics ===
* In the [[metaphysics]] of the [[New Age]] author, [[Alice A. Bailey]], in her system called the [[Seven Rays]] which classifies humans into seven different metaphysical psychological types, the ''fourth ray'' of ''harmony through conflict'' is represented by the color ''yellow''. People who have this metaphysical psychological type are said to be ''on the Yellow Ray''."<ref>{{cite book | last = Bailey| first= Alice A. | author-link = Alice Bailey | title = The Seven Rays of Life | location= New York| year= 1995 |publisher = Lucis Publishing Company | isbn = 978-0-85330-142-4}}</ref>
* Yellow is used to symbolically represent the third, solar plexus [[chakra]] ([[Manipura]]).<ref>Stevens, Samantha. The Seven Rays: a Universal Guide to the Archangels. City: Insomniac Press, 2004. {{ISBN|1-894663-49-7}}, p. 24.</ref>
* [[Psychic]]s who claim to be able to observe the [[Aura (paranormal)|aura]] with their [[third eye]] report that someone with a yellow aura is typically someone who is in an [[wikt:occupation|occupation]] requiring intellectual acumen, such as a scientist.<ref>[[Swami Panchadasi]] (1912). ''The Human Aura: Astral Colors and Thought Forms'' Des Plaines, Illinois: Yogi Publications Society, p. 33.</ref>

=== Sports ===
[[File:Bradley Wiggins Tour 2012 EZF.jpg|thumb|[[Bradley Wiggins]] wears the yellow jersey in the 2012 [[Tour de France]].]]
* In Association football (soccer), the [[referee (association football)|referee]] shows a [[Yellow card (sports)|yellow card]] to indicate that a player has been officially warned because they have committed a foul or have wasted time.
* Originally in [[Rugby league]] and then later, also in [[Rugby Union]], the referee shows a [[Penalty card|yellow card]] to indicate that a player has been sent to the [[sin bin]].
* In [[road bicycle racing|cycle racing]], the [[yellow jersey]] – or ''maillot jaune'' – is awarded to the leader in some stage races. The tradition was begun in the [[Tour de France]] where the sponsoring ''L'Auto'' newspaper (later ''[[L'Équipe]]'') was printed on distinctive yellow [[newsprint]].
[[File:Eurocopter EC135P1 of Western Power Distribution (G-WPDD) leaves Bristol Airport, England 15Aug2016 arp.jpg|thumb|[[Eurocopter EC135]]P1 of [[Western Power Distribution]], used for electricity line inspection]]
* National teams of [[Brazil]], [[Sweden]] and [[Ukraine]] usually play in yellow shirts.

=== Transportation ===
* In some countries, [[taxicab]]s are commonly yellow. This practice began in Chicago, where taxi entrepreneur [[John D. Hertz]] painted his taxis yellow based on a [[University of Chicago]] study alleging that yellow is the color most easily seen at a distance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.taxiregister.com/history.php|title=History of the Main Taxi Groups|publisher=Taxi Register|access-date=4 April 2009|archive-date=27 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427193036/http://www.taxiregister.com/history.php|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* In Canada and the United States, [[school bus]]es are almost uniformly painted a yellow color (often referred to as "[[school bus yellow]]") for purposes of visibility and safety,<ref>{{cite journal|date=8 September 1995|title=Frank W. Cyr, 95, 'Father of the Yellow School Bus'|journal=Columbia University Record|volume=21|issue=1|url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/record/archives/vol21/vol21_iss1/record2101.36.html|access-date=4 April 2009|archive-date=2 December 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091202012830/http://www.columbia.edu/cu/record/archives/vol21/vol21_iss1/record2101.36.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and British bus operators such as [[FirstGroup]] are attempting to introduce the concept there.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7610933.stm|title=Review backs yellow school buses|date=12 September 2008|publisher=BBC|access-date=4 April 2009|archive-date=15 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915050730/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7610933.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>
* "[[Caterpillar Inc.|Caterpillar]] yellow" and "high-visibility yellow" are used for highway construction equipment.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Maximizing Mining Safety|journal=Caterpillar Global Mining|page=4|url=http://www.cat.com/cda/files/1042221/7/final.pdf}}</ref>
* In the [[Traffic#Rules of the road|rules of the road]], yellow (called "amber" in Britain) is a [[traffic light]] signal meaning "slow down", "caution", or "slow speed ahead". It is intermediate between green (go) and red (stop). In [[railway signaling]], yellow is often the color for warning, slow down, such as with distant [[Railway signal|signals]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Signal/learning_the_aspects.html|title=Learning the ["typical" US<nowiki>]</nowiki> Aspects|last=Bej|first=Mark|date=16 April 1994|access-date=4 April 2009|archive-date=8 July 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120708160508/http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Signal/learning_the_aspects.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Selective yellow]] is used in some automotive headlamps and fog lights to reduce the dazzling effects of rain, snow, and fog.

===Maritime signaling===
* In [[International maritime signal flags]] a yellow flag denotes the letter "Q".<ref name="USPS">{{cite web|url=http://www.usps.org/f_stuff/pratique.html|title=Pratique|last=Flag and Etiquette Committee|date=12 June 2006|website=Flag Etiquette|publisher=United States Power Squadrons|access-date=4 April 2009|archive-date=8 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090608190925/http://www.usps.org/f_stuff/pratique.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It also means a ship asserts that it does not need to be quarantined.<ref name="USPS" />