The color — or rather adsense of color– black is often linked with negative associations, such as death, fear or sadness, according to the Journal of international Color Association.
Many ancient cultures believed that black was “the color of mystery and of the mysterious ways and wisdom of God,” historian Ellen Conroy wrote in her book “The Symbolism of Colors” (1921). This was because night, the absence of light, transcended human perception in the same way that the wisdom of God was thought to be beyond comprehension.
Of all mysteries, death may have been the biggest. Ancient people were completely “in the dark” about what would happen to them after death, and so it was (and is) represented by the color black in many cultures. There was the added coincidence of death sharing similarities with sleep, which happens in the darkness of night and when closed eyelids block out all light. Throughout history the color black has also been attached to fearful and mysterious things, such as black magic, black holes, the black plague and so on.
Of course the black isn’t always synonymous with death and despair, especially in the world of fashion. A study published in the journal Color Research and Application (opens in new tab) found that black was the overall favorite color to wear amongst female study participants.
Reference: https://www.livescience.com/33523-color-symbolism-meanings.html#section-black
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