Khaki
- HEX
- #BDB76B
- RGB
- 189 183 107
- HSL
- 56° 38% 58%
- CMYK
- 0 3 43 26
Khaki or Tan?
Greener than tan, with an olive tinge.
Language
Khaki means dusty, or soil-colored. The word is Hindustani, from Persian khak, soil, and came into English through the British Indian Army.
History
The Corps of Guides, raised in British India in 1846, was the first unit to wear it, and khaki became their official uniform in 1848. British troops fought in khaki in Abyssinia in 1868, and after the Boer War of 1899 to 1902 the army standardized it, ending the age of the scarlet coat in battle.
Kin
- Scarlet: Khaki ended the British army's red coats in the field
- Olive: The two great military colors: khaki drill and olive drab
- Navy: Another color civilians borrowed from a British uniform
In paintings
- Composition VII, Wassily Kandinsky
- A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, Georges Seurat
- The Starry Night, Vincent van Gogh
- Sunflowers, Vincent van Gogh
Sources
- Wikipedia, 'Khaki' (Corps of Guides 1846; uniform 1848; Abyssinia 1868)
Hex values are screen approximations. Every page lists its sources.