Mark's Pages

"The use of the word 'Pink' for colour first occurred in the 17th century to describe the light red flowers of pinks, flowering plants in the genus Dianthus, possibly named from the 'pinked' edges of their petals appearing to have been cut with pinking shears."

• Pink can mean the scarlet coat worn in fox hunting (a.k.a. "riding to hounds"). One legend about the origin of this meaning refers to a tailor named Pink (or Pinke, or Pinque).
• In Catholicism, pink symbolizes joy and happiness. It is used for the Third Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of joy for the impending birth of Jesus. However, in Protestantism, the pink candle is sometimes lit on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of Love.
• Pink, along with red, is traditionally used on maps for territory ruled by the British Empire or for members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
• Pink, being a 'watered-down' red, is sometimes used in a derogatory way to describe a watered-down socialist (Pinko).
• The color pink is now associated with womanhood and little girls, just like light blue is associated with little boys and manhood. However, in 1918 "Infant's Department" (an industry publication) said the reverse was the "generally accepted rule", describing pink as "more decided and stronger" while blue was "more delicate and dainty". Pink continued to be used for both boys' and girls' clothing through the early 1960s, though it is becoming more and more associated with femininity. For example, Carrie from Sex and the City often wears pink dresses. Pink is also the signature color for Elle from the Legally Blonde movie series. Male pink shirts and ties were a symbol of the fashion of the 1980s.
• Some feminists have decried the color pink, along with dresses and skirts, as something related to the pre-feminism "old-style female", which they view as a symbol of the oppression and limitations of that era. Although this trend persists, the current wave of feminism advocates choice, and many women have sought to reclaim aspects of the old-style female, including pink (and indeed dresses and skirts), as something to be proud of. For example, the Swedish radical feminist party Feminist Initiative uses pink as its colour.
• Pink is also associated with gays, lesbians, and bisexuals, often in the form of a pink triangle. This symbolic usage stems from the symbols used by the Nazis to label their prisoners in the concentration camps. Where Jews were forced to wear the familiar yellow stars of David, and Roma people were forced to wear a green triangle; men imprisoned on accusations of homosexuality or same sex sexual activity were forced to wear a pink triangle. Nowadays, it is often worn with pride.
• While the Anglosphere typically refers to adult films as "blue movies", in Japan these films are often called "pink movies". They are associated with females and generally carry a connotation of feminine, innocent, childlike, qualities. Cherry blossoms tend to show pink, so this relation may be hinted at in anime. Pink also carries a connotation of sexuality in Japan. This may be because of pink's association with women, or from the pink hue of flesh, the pink hue of a blush, or any number of such reasons.
• In Spanish, a novela rosa ("pink novel") is a sentimental novel aiming to women, in which a heroine lives a passionate love.
• In Power Rangers and Super Sentai, the Pink Ranger has always been a female. In Mirai Sentai Timeranger, later Americanized into Power Rangers Time Force, the Pink Ranger is the leader of the team (a position usually held by Red Rangers).