What creates the meaning of blue? Do we find it in the pale, icy sparkle of aquamarine? Is blue the deep, brooding symbol of deep, unexplored waters? Can we interpret the cheerful hue of turquoise or the more rare brilliance of sapphire? Does blue take meaning from the uniforms of the men and women dedicated to preserving our safety? Whether calm, serene, or daunting, we are surrounded by blue in all its shades.

Meaning Of Blue: Explained

What in the blue blazes??? I’ve been feeling kind of blue. He’s a true blue friend. Blue represents the healing nature of water and the power of stormy seas. It’s what separates bodies of land from one another, and it’s a marker of loyalty and fidelity. Like many colors, our response to the color blue is complex and sometimes even contradictory. Let’s dig in and get to know a little more about the most common favorite color – blue.

Physical Effects of Blue

There’s a reason we think of blue as relaxing; it actually tends to lower our heart rates, blood pressure, and even our body temperature. Blue can have an effect on the pituitary gland, affecting our sleep patterns, and it can slow our breathing as well. Studies of memory have demonstrated that memory is enhanced by blue light, and blue light can even kill some bacteria!

Blue represents introspective journeys and symbolizes wisdom and depth of understanding. Click to Tweet

Symbolism And Meaning Of Blue

While blue conjures images of sky and sea, it’s also the color of bravery and dedication. Blue represents introspective journeys and symbolizes wisdom and depth of understanding. But blue is also a symbol of depression and the depths of the human psyche. Blue stands for serenity, rather than passion, and it’s the color of all that’s constant and unchanging.

Positive Associations

The aqua and turquoise found in Caribbean waters typically engender positive feelings, and the blue of police officers’ uniforms call to mind protection, bravery, and loyalty. Blue is associated with peaceful rest, profound insight, and spiritual realization. Professional uses of blue carry connotations of stability, wisdom, and serenity.

Blue is associated with peaceful rest, profound insight, and spiritual realization. Click to Tweet

Negative Associations

The deep indigo of stormy seas can carry more threatening or frightening associations, and can make us feel unsettled or afraid of secrets deeply held. Overuse of blue can feel cold and impersonal, and even unfriendly. Blue’s association with depression and sadness are also pervasive, and deep blue is a harbinger of night and darkness.

Blue And Indigo Chakra Colors

Blue: The color of the Throat chakra, also known as Visuddha. This chakra is located in the throat. It is linked to the throat, neck, hands, and arms. The Throat Chakra is connected with speech and hearing, and encourages spiritual communication.Opening the Throat chakra improves clairaudience. Gemstones that will aid the Throat chakra include turquoise, aquamarine, lapis, sodalite, quartz, angelite, aqua aura.

Indigo: The color of the Brow or Third-Eye chakra, also known as Ajna. This chakra is located between the eyebrows. This chakra is our link to the universal unconsciousness. Opening this chakra can aid in clear sight, intuition, integrity, and lessens feelings of despair. Gemstones amethyst, moonstone and augilite.

Blue Birthstone Colors

Color Morsels

One in six Americans has blue eyes, and that number has declined over time. At the beginning of the 20th Century, nearly half of the population was blue-eyed. Why are there fewer blue-eyed folks? The gene for blue eyes is recessive. Blue-eyed people are more sun-sensitive–showing higher rates of melanoma–and are also more likely to be alcoholics than people of other eye colors. In paintings, the Virgin Mary has long been portrayed wearing the color blue, partly because blue symbolizes fidelity and tranquility, but also because ultramarine blue was historically very expensive, so it made sense to clothe the Virgin Mother in costly colors. The odds of a lobster being blue are slim indeed—one in two million according to National Geographic magazine—but thanks to a rare genetic mutation, the normally grayish-green American lobster does occasionally come in a beautiful blue too. Mosquitoes are highly visual and their primary method of searching for human targets is through vision. Research shows that mosquitoes most easily see dark colors, especially blue. Blue Moon ice cream is the name of a bright blue-colored flavor of ice cream, available almost exclusively in the mid-west United States. If you were around in the 1980's chances are you owned, played or watched the tiny blue gnomes knowns as The Smurfs. The world’s first “Smurf Village” was painted the color blue as part of the publicity campaign for the Sony film “The Smurfs in 3D,” which opened in July 2011. Sony promised to paint the village back to traditional white following the promotional blitz; however, the 221 citizens who call Juzcar home voted overwhelming (141, said yes!) to keep the town blue. Blue is the most common favorite color. Blue is the least commonly occurring color in food. Other than blueberries, blue corn, and some blue-purple potatoes, blue is a color seldom found in natural food. In fact, blue is an appetite suppressant! Think about it – as delicious as blue cheese may be, you know those veins of color come from mold. Blue laws were enacted to prohibit certain "morally objectionable" behaviors on Sundays. These laws have been used to ban sales of alcohol, gambling, and various retail and commercial activity.

Read About the Color Blue

Blue Words, Phrases And Idioms

Examples of how the meaning of blue colors our language: Out of the blue: unexpected True blue: to be loyal or faithful Once in a blue moon: an event that occurs infrequently [See The Meaning of Once in a Blue Moon] Blue ribbon: first place; to describe something as being of the highest quality Blue blood: an aristocrat [The Colorful Connection Between Blue Blood and Silver Spoon] Blue law: laws about morality issues Blue comedy: jokes about socially taboo subjects Blueprint: a detailed design of an object or idea Blue plate special: a special priced meal at a restaurant Bluestocking: a woman with strong scholarly interests Feeling blue: to feel sad or unhappy

Quotes About Color Blue

There are connoisseurs of blue just as there are connoisseurs of wine. - Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette #color #quotes Click to Tweet Blue is the closest color to truth. - Steven Tyler #color #quotes Click to Tweet

More Intriguing Facts About Blue

Blue As A Signature Color

A signature color is different than a favorite color although for some people they many be one and the same. It is all in how you express yourself with a color and how consistently you wear it or surround yourself with the color that makes it your signature shade. Barbara Bush - from her Scaasi inaugural ball gown in a shade of sapphire blue that became known as "Barbara Bush Blue" to the many blues - cobalt, navy, royal and baby blue -- she has worn since, the former first lady is a true-blue fan of this hue.

Blue Man Group - Homer Simpson once called the Blue Man Group a rip-off of “The Smurfs.” On “Arrested Development,” hapless actor Tobias Funke, played by David Cross, dreamed of becoming a Blue Man and painted himself their signature shade.

Giorgio Armani - Fashion's patriarch uniform is a navy blue silk T-shirt, cashmere sweater, navy blue drawstring pants and white sneakers, all by Armani, naturally.

Klaus Biesenbach - the MoMA PS1 director and art world Zelig chooses snug-fitting blue suits and shirts by Zara for his on-the-go Germanic minimalistic style.

Valeria “ValBlu” McCulloch - this shoe designer living in New York City doesn't just wear blue but a very specific shade called Yves Klein Blue. She told New Yorker magazine, "Wearing blue for me is being in a dream all day."

The State of South Carolina - officially adopted Indigo Blue as their state color in 2008.

Companies & Brands Identified by Blue

Cities With Color Names: Blue These are U.S. cities with 'blue' in their name: Blue Ash, Ohio

Blue Ball, Pennsylvania

Blue Earth, Minnesota

Blue Grass, Iowa

Blue Hill, Nebraska Blue Island, Illinois

Blue Jay, California

Blue Lake, California

Blue Springs, Missouri

Bluefield, West Virginia Songs With Blue in the Title Blue - Joni Mitchell

Blue - LeAnn Rimes

True Blue - Madonna

Blonde Over Blue - Billy Joel

Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley

Blue Eyes - Elton John

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain - Willie Nelson

Blue Suede Shoes - Carl Perkins, covered by Elvis Presley

Blue Sunday - The Doors

Devil With A Blue Dress On - Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels

Don’t It Make Your Brown Eyes Blue - Crystal Gayle

My Baby Blue - John Hiatt

Blue Sunday - The Doors

Blue Jean - David Bowie

Mr. Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra

Suite Madame Blue - Styx

Misty Blue - Dorothy Moore

Blue Jay Way - The Beatles

Blue Bayou - Roy Orbison

Forever In Blue Jeans - Neil Diamond

Blue Velvet - Bobby Vinton

I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues - Elton John

For You Blue - The Beatles Color And Our Sense Of Smell: Blue It’s not just emotion that makes scent powerful. It’s closely tied to your memories, as well. Smell also plays a major role in our ability to taste. When combined with color those connections become even stronger. The blue colored Magic Scents Crayons labeled "Blueberry" from Binney & Smith Inc. was originally scented to smell like juicy blueberries. However, after numerous reports that children were "eating" the food-scented crayons the company changed to less tasty options. The scent for the color blue became “New Car.”

“Fashion house Boudicca developed a blasphemous application method for their fragrance, Wode. The perfume creates a blue stain when you spray it on. It eventually evaporates, but the point is made – the physical dimension of fragrance is no longer terra incognita.” — House and Garden Magazine Color Taste Connection: Blue There are five basic groups of taste, which send signals to our brain to interpret flavor. However, we also send signals with our eyes before we take a bite and give our taste buds a chance to process the flavor. The color can pre-determine how we perceive the taste and flavor of what we eat. The color blue is the least common color in the foods we eat.

In a study people were given a steak to eat in a dark room. When the lights were turned on, they saw that the steak was blue and about half of them literally got sick. Blue foods are not often found in nature thus tend to give off warnings that something is unappetizing or unfit to eat.

Despite our inherent aversion to blue food most people like blue when it is used in novelty foods such as blue M&Ms, popsicles, cotton candy or soft drinks. In fact, young British consumers now happily associate the color with raspberry flavored drinks.

Blueberries are the favorite of blue foods and they have been touted in recent years for their health benefits.

Blue Moon ice cream is the name of a bright blue-colored flavor of ice cream, available almost exclusively in the mid-west United States.

Even after exploring The Past, Present, and Future of Blue Cocktails we stand firm in our opinion that the color blue and alcohol don't mix well.

The Color Blue in the Garden

Blue is one of the cooler colors in landscape design and it brings a soothing element to the garden.

Blue plants visually recede, helping to make a small space appear larger.

Combine blues with silver foliage plants to intensify the color. Blue adds depth and can be livened up with white, yellow, or orange. Don't place blue in a dark-green setting, it will disappear. Different shades of blue can be a challenge to combine--bright blues may make deep purple-blues look washed out. - New York Botanical Garden

Discover More About The Meaning Of Colors