Isabelline (colour)

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Isabelline
 
CIELChuv (L, C, h)
(95, 4, 55°)
SourceMaerz and Paul[1]
ISCC–NBS descriptorYellowish white
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
Light palomino Quarter Horse, which may be described as isabelline

Isabelline (

colour. It is primarily found in animal coat colouring, particularly plumage colour in birds and, in Europe, in horses. It also has historically been applied to fashion. The first known record of the word was in 1600 as "isabella colour"; this use later became interchangeable in literature with "isabelline" after the latter was introduced into print in 1859. The origin of the word is unclear; the uncertainty prompted by this has generated several attempts to provide an etymology
and led to one prominent legend.

Usage and origins

The first recorded use of isabella as the name of a colour in English was in the year 1600,

A few theories have been proposed for the origin of the colour's name. According to a popular legend, the name comes from

Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain; during the Siege of Ostend, which started in July 1601, Isabella is claimed to have vowed not to change her shift until the siege was over, expecting a quick victory for her husband Archduke Albert of Austria. Since the siege lasted over three years, finally ending in September 1604, it is claimed that the discolouration of her shift in that interval led to the naming of the colour.[1][6] However, this theory was discounted by the Oxford English Dictionary as the word was in use before the siege had begun.[2] A variation refers to a similar story involving the Spanish queen Isabella I of Castile and the eight-month siege of Granada by Ferdinand II of Aragon starting in April 1491. This siege ended in January 1492 and again was said to have resulted in an overworn shift belonging to Isabella,[7] this legend is also not true.[8]

Other theories focus on animals close to the colour as the source of the word. In 1904 several writers to the journal

corruption of the word zibellino (a sable pelt accessory), noting the similarity in colour and the popularity of the accessory around the period the word first came into use.[9] Etymologist Michael Quinion reported that certain sources suggested an alleged Arabic word for lion, izah, might be the origin, indicating an intended original meaning close to "lion-coloured", but has since concluded that "there seems to be no such word in Arabic and we must disregard the suggestion".[7]

In animals

Isabelline shrike

The term is found in reference to plumage colouring in the bird species names isabelline bush-hen, isabelline wheatear, and isabelline shrike, as well as in other descriptions of birds. The genetic pigmentation disorder isabellinism seen in birds is derived from the colour word and is a form of leucism caused by a uniform reduction in the production and expression of melanin resulting in areas of plumage on the back of the bird, normally black, being strongly faded, or isabelline, in appearance.[10] Isabellinism has been reported in several species of penguin.[11][12] However, only about one in every 50,000 penguins possess this trait.

Isabelline and isabella are terms applied in Europe to very pale

homozygous
.

A

Ursus arctos isabellinus) was named for the colour and is also sometimes known as the isabelline bear.[4][14]

The description has also been used in the UK for fawn coloured Doberman dogs.

Literary usage

Rudyard Kipling used this colour in "Kim": "a Hindu urchin in a dirty turban and Isabella-coloured clothes".

See also

  • List of colours
  • Animal colouration
  • Equine coat colour genetics

References

  1. ^ a b Maerz, Aloys John; Paul, Morris Rea (1930). A Dictionary of Color. McGraw-Hill Book Company. pp. 49 Plate 13 Color Sample K7, 197.
  2. ^ a b "isabella". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  3. ^ Nichols, John, ed. (1823). The Progresses and Public Processions of Queen Elizabeth. Vol. III. London: John Nichols and Son. p. 505.
  4. ^ a b "isabelline". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  5. .
  6. ^ D'Israeli, Isaac (1823). "Anecdotes of Fashion". Curiosities of Literature. Vol. II (7th ed.). London: John Murray. pp. 94–95.
  7. ^
    World Wide Words
    . Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  8. ^ Alarcon (2 December 2023). "The smell of a lie". El Confidencial. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  9. doi:10.1093/nq/s10-II.39.253-b (inactive 31 January 2024).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (link
    )
  10. ^ Everitt, David (2005). "Eccentricities in plumage may be more common than we think". Wingspan. 15: 24–25.
  11. Notornis
    . 50 (1): 43–51.
  12. OCLC 936144129
    .
  13. Didot
    . p. 59.
  14. .