This article examines the variation in color naming and susceptibility to visual illusions cross-culturally. Results suggest a geographic patterning of color naming and illusion susceptibility which parallels the distribution of eye pigmentation.

Different languages contain different numbers of basic colors. One interpretation is that more complex societies will have more basic color terms. Another interpretation is that peoples with less pigmented eyes will have more basic color terms. This paper suggests that both interpretations are necessary in order to predict the number of basic color terms.

This article examines the variation in color naming and susceptibility to visual illusions cross-culturally. Results suggest a geographic patterning of color naming and illusion susceptibility which parallels the distribution of eye pigmentation.

This paper examines the Berlin-Kay color salience theory and offers four correlates of color salience: earliness of introduction, brevity of expression, frequency of use, and frequency of mention in ethnographic literature. All four correlations support the Berlin-Kay theory. The authors suggest that salience may be “an important general principle of cultural evolution” (1107).

The research presented in this book challenges the notion that languages develop color terms independently of other languages. Authors find a universal inventory of eleven basic color categories from which the basic color terms are drawn. Authors also find an apparent fixed sequence of evolutionary stages through which a language must pass as its color vocabulary increases. A postive correlation between cultural complexity and complexity of color vocabulary is observed.

This paper examines the Berlin-Kay color salience theory and offers four correlates of color salience: earliness of introduction, brevity of expression, frequency of use, and frequency of mention in ethnographic literature. All four correlations support the Berlin-Kay theory. The authors suggest that salience may be “an important general principle of cultural evolution” (1107).

Different languages contain different numbers of basic colors. One interpretation is that more complex societies will have more basic color terms. Another interpretation is that peoples with less pigmented eyes will have more basic color terms. This paper suggests that both interpretations are necessary in order to predict the number of basic color terms.

This paper examines the Berlin-Kay color salience theory and offers four correlates of color salience: earliness of introduction, brevity of expression, frequency of use, and frequency of mention in ethnographic literature. All four correlations support the Berlin-Kay theory. The authors suggest that salience may be “an important general principle of cultural evolution” (1107).

This study investigates whether associations between color and temperature are universal or reflective of relative aspects shared by cultural variation. The authors hypothesize that while some color–temperature links may be shared across cultures, others may vary by cultural and developmental factors. Using an online survey with children and adults worldwide comparing 20 colors, they find universal associations in hues (e.g., red/yellow = warm, blue = cool), but cultural specificity in tones (lightness/saturation). Developmental effects were also explored and were shown to have different cultural trajectories. The conclusion was that color–temperature associations are both universal and shaped by culture and development, which highlights how much cultural influence have in the development of the perceptions to color and temperature.

Using a sample derived from the available folk tale literature, researchers test whether the salience of color terms in folk tales follow the evolutionary sequence put forth by Berlin and Kay (1969). Results support the hypothesis.