# Why aren’t more color names used as surnames? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 26, 2021, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978 "2021-11-26T15:02:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/1 "2021-11-26T15:02:52Z")
White, Black, Grey/Gray, Brown… these are fairly common surnames. But why don’t we read about the exploits of the Lavender family or the acting dynasty of the Ceruleans? Why is there no real Mr. Pink or Mr. Orange? Why aren’t more color names used as surnames? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/2 "2021-11-26T15:22:24Z")
The color names we have aren’t used as names just because they’re colors. They’re used as names because they were associated in some way with the people who got those names, often as hair colors. The original John Brown, after whom all of his descendants are named, might have had brown hair. But there haven’t been many people noted for their pink or lavender hair. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/3 "2021-11-26T15:25:14Z")
So where are all the Red families? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/4 "2021-11-26T15:26:59Z")
> **[Ian Lavender](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Lavender)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > > Arthur Ian Lavender (born 16 February 1946) is an English stage, film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Private Pike in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army, and is the last surviving major cast member of the series following the death of Frank Williams in 2022. > Lavender was born in Birmingham, England. He attended Bournville Boys Technical School (later Bournville Grammar-Technical School for Boys) where he appeared in many school ... I’d speculate that this isn’t because of the color, rather that his ancestors were in the lavender business or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/5 "2021-11-26T15:28:08Z")
It seems that these are all very old English, German, and/or Anglo-Saxon names and were typically derived from one’s physical appearance and/or occupation. White = fair complexion, “unblemished,” lived at the bend of a river (a “wiht”); Black = dark complexion, blacksmith; Grey/Gray = gray hair, was from Graye (a French village named for the Roman name “Gratus” meaning “welcome”); Brown = brown complexion or hair, one who always wore brown clothing e.g. clergy. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/6 "2021-11-26T15:29:27Z")
There’s also Green. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/7 "2021-11-26T15:30:09Z")
Well, there’s Horace Silver, the jazz pianist. And there are no lack of Golds, Greens and Rusts in the world. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/8 "2021-11-26T15:30:57Z")
> [@GreenWyvern](#): > > There’s also Green. I was about to post this - very common, perhaps association with the village green. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/10 "2021-11-26T15:33:46Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > So where are al the Red families? Russell, Reid, Rojas, Reed, Cochrane, Flanagan, Gough, Roy, Rossini, Leroux - all these family names are derived from “red”. It’s the source of my own surname, for that matter. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/11 "2021-11-26T15:40:13Z")
Anybody who has looked at old photos or movies knows there weren’t even colors until the mid-20th Century and people weren’t named after them until Quintin Tarantino started the practice in the 1990s. ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/12 "2021-11-26T16:41:31Z")
Red Green, Red Adair, Red Skelton. But I don’t know of any with “Red” as a last name. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/13 "2021-11-26T16:57:33Z")
“Gold” as a name probably isn’t after the color, but after the substance itself, and its associations with wealth. Someone named “Gold” might have been rich, or might have been a jeweler. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/14 "2021-11-26T16:57:46Z")
[Grammarphobia](https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2014/09/color-surnames.html) > In Old English, Trask says, the color was pronounced with a long “e” sound, which “gave rise to the surname variously spelled Reade, Read or Reed.” > > These surnames stayed the same, but the color term “underwent a shortening of the vowel” and was pronounced and spelled “red.” (The same sound change happened with “bread,” “dead,” and “head,” but the spellings didn’t change.) Also: > “As for ‘purple,’ this word was simply not in use in English as a color term when surnames were being invented,” Trask adds. “All of ‘purple,’ ‘’orange’ and ‘pink’ were late additions to our set of color terms.” … > > Finally, why don’t we see a lot of people called “Mr. Yellow”? For one thing, light hair is usually described as “blond” or “blonde,” a subject we’ve discussed on our [blog](https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2014/01/blonde-brunette.html). > > Although we don’t find a lot of people called “Mr. Blond” or “Ms. Blonde,” we do find quite a few called “Fairchild,” “Fairbairn,” and “Fairfax” (“fax” is an obsolete term for hair). ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/15 "2021-11-26T17:07:28Z")
Remeber the Red Sea? That is where they drowned. Except the ones mentioned by **Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle** , of course. For the OP: Being Mr. Brown is bad enough, but _Mr. Yellow_? (Loosely after _Reservoir Dogs_, if my memory serves me right - Happy Joining Anniversary, **Elmer\_J.Fudd** ). ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/16 "2021-11-26T21:58:06Z")
> [@Mallard](#): > > Red Green, Red Adair, Red Skelton. But I don’t know of any with “Red” as a last name. No, but there are plenty of Roths. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/17 "2021-11-26T22:56:17Z")
I’ve never heard of any Mr. Purple, but I know or have known a Mr. Violet and a Mr. Violette. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/18 "2021-11-26T23:04:45Z")
“Rood” is “red.” ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/19 "2021-11-26T23:08:40Z")
> **[Patrick Maroon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Maroon)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > Patrick Maroon (born April 23, 1988) is an American professional ice hockey left winger for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed the "Big Rig", Maroon has previously played for the Anaheim Ducks, Edmonton Oilers, New Jersey Devils, and St. Louis Blues. Maroon is a three time Stanley Cup champion, winning in three consecutive seasons (with the Blues in 2019 and the Lightning in 2020, and 2021). > Growing up in St.... ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/20 "2021-11-26T23:10:35Z")
And there are thousands of Tans, though it’s unrelated to the color. > **[Tan (surname)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tan_(surname))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Tan is a common Chinese surname 譚. It is considered the 56th most common surname. > Two origins have been suggested for the Tan surname: > A study by geneticist Yuan Yida has found that people with either of the two Tan surnames are especially concentrated in Hunan Province which would tend to support these accounts. This does not mean that they are the most common surnames in that province. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2021, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978/21 "2021-11-26T23:20:46Z")
Lots of [Pinks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_(surname)) There was a company called [Thomas Pink](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Pink) that made shirts, apparently called after an 18th-century tailor of that name. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-more-color-names-used-as-surnames/954978.md?page=2)