Without mincing words, it has become the tradition of all countries around the world to have one or more colors as their national colors, and Thailand is not an exception to this tradition. So, if you are in or traveling to the Land of Smile, you might have seen lots of Thais adorning purple garments. Hence, you might be wondering if purple is the national color of Thailand.
According to commenters on Quora and other reliable sources, pink is not and has never been the national color of Thailand. Currently, the national colors of Thailand are red, white, and blue. As a result of this, you can see one or more of these three colors on the Thai flag, emblem, and other things that relate to Thailand.
Nevertheless, red, white, and blue are somewhat considered the primary national colors of Thailand. As explained on Wikipedia, royal yellow, royal purple, and blue sapphire are seen as the secondary colors of the country. Therefore, you should be surprised to see some Thai festivals, events, and other things with purple as their dominant color.
What is the significance of purple in Thailand?
Although purple is not the national color of Thailand, the color has an important role in different aspects of the country. In general, colors play an essential role in the culture of Thailand. Therefore, it is not strange that purple is considered to be a significant color in the country.
The significance of purple to the people of Thailand include:
- It is the royal color of Princess Sirindhorn
Princess Maha Sirindhorn is the daughter of His Majesty King Rama IX and Her Majesty Queen Sirikit. Born in 1955, the beloved princess has been offering her services to Thailand since her early years. She has been involved in services that affect medicine and public health, environmental conversation, as well as the promotion of higher education and Thai culture.
Due to her importance to the country, many Thais pay attention to anything done by Her Royal Highness Princess Sirindhorn. So, since purple is her royal color, many people wear the color in her honor. As a consequence of this, purple is an important color to lots of individuals in Thailand. Purple attires are often worn during various ceremonies and festivities in the country.
- It symbolizes nobility and luxury
In Thailand and many other places around the world, purple is seen as the symbol of luxury and nobility. The color also represents ambition and power. Therefore, when it comes to displaying the message of extravagance and wealth, purple attires are often adorned by lots of individuals in the country. In the past, purple was associated with royalty in many countries. This is because of the rarity attached to finding the color. It is also believed to be the first color to be
Besides, this particular color is sometimes associated with dignity, creativity, wisdom, and independence. Considering the numerous positive things that purple symbolizes, it does not come as a surprise that numerous people like the color in Thailand. You can read more about the meanings of purple here.
- It represents Saturday
Another significance of purple is tied to Saturday. Generally, in Thailand, each day has a particular day of the week that is attached to it. These colors include red (Sunday), yellow (Monday), pink (Tuesday), green (Wednesday), orange (Thursday), blue (Friday), and purple (Saturday).
The people born each day will regard the color of the day as their birth color. For instance, individuals born on Saturday will consider purple as their birth color. Her Royal Highness Princess Maya Sirindhorn was born on Saturday, and this is one of the reasons she considers purple as her royal color.
It is noteworthy that Saturday is also linked to a deity of justice known as Shani.
- It brings luck
From the point above, lots of Thais wear purple clothes on Saturday as they believe that the color will bring them good luck. So, if you see many people wearing this color on Saturday, you should understand that it is their way to plead for luck.
However, many Thais, especially the younger generation, don’t observe this tradition again. Instead of wearing full purple cloths, they may just use a purple handkerchief, tie, etc. to link themselves to the color. Even numerous people in Thailand don’t believe in the whole idea at all.
On the other hand, green is believed to bring bad luck when worn on Saturday.
- A mixture of Thai national colors can form purple
Depending on the proportion of the colors mixed, the national colors of Thailand can be mixed to form purple. In other words, when you mix red, blue, and white, you may get purple. Notably, if you mix some other proportion of the Thai national colors, indigo is another color you may get.
- It is combined with black for mourning a loved one
Despite the nobility attached to purple in Thailand, its meaning can be changed by what you combine with it. When mourning a loved one in Thailand, many Thais usually wear purple and black clothing items. According to Trip Advisor, Thailand is not the only country that does this as the same practice is in Brazil. As noted by Shutterstock.com, widows in Thailand can also wear only purple as a sign of mourning.
Therefore, if you are attending the funeral of a person, you are likely going to see several individuals wearing clothing items that combine both purple and black.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, you should understand that purple is not the national color of Thailand. The national colors are rather red, blue, and white. Nevertheless, purple is an important color in Thailand as this awesome color represents nobility and power. Also, it is believed to be the color of Saturday; hence, people wear it for luck during the weekend. As shown above, there are numerous other reasons for considering purple as a crucial color in Thai culture. Given this, purple is often used for a wide range of purposes in Thailand.
