Murasaki (紫)
Meaning: Purple
Romaji: Murasaki
Hiragana:むらさき
Katakana:ムラサキ
Kanji: 紫
In Japanese, purple is Murasaki, and purple color means Murasaki Iro.
From 701 to the latter half of the 10th century, in Japan during the Ritsuryo period, purple was regarded as a color that represented high rank and was only permitted to be used mainly by members of the imperial family and those associated with them. And there are many poems about purple in “Manyoshu(万葉集).”
In the Heian period, the respect for purple accelerated further. Instead of being just a noble color, it came to be liked as a “congratulatory color.”
Seishonagon, famous for The Pillow Book, also said:
“すべてなにもなにも、紫なるものは、めでたくこそあれ。花も糸も紙も (Anything purple is wonderful. Whether it’s flowers, thread, or paper, purple is wonderful).”
