Teal is a greenish-blue color. Its name comes from that of a bird—the Eurasian teal (Anas crecca)—which presents a similarly colored stripe on its head. The word is often used colloquially to refer to shades of cyan in general.
It can be created by mixing cyan into a green base, or deepened as needed with black or gray.[2] It is also one of the first group of 16HTML/CSS web colors. In the RGB model used to create colors on computer screens and televisions, teal is created by reducing the brightness of cyan to about one half.
In North America, teal was a fad color during the 1990s, with, among others, many sports teams adopting the color for their uniforms.[3][4]
The first recorded use of teal as a color name in English was in 1917.[5] The term teal (referring to a species of duck) is derived from the Middle English tele, a word akin to the Dutch taling and the Middle Low German telink.[6]
Teal blue is a medium tone of teal with more blue. The first recorded use of teal blue as a color name in English was in 1927.[5]:p.101, plate39, color sampleL6
The source of this color is the Plochere Color System, a color system formulated in 1948 that is widely used by interior designers. Teal was subsequently a heavily used color in the 1950s and 1960s.[8]
Teal blue is also the name of a Crayola crayon color (color #113) from 1990 to 2003.
Teal green is a darker shade of teal with more green. It is a variable color averaging a dark bluish-green that is green, darker, and stronger than invisible green or pine tree.[9]
Teal green is most closely related to the Crayola crayon color Deep Space Sparkle.
TEAL is the acronym for Tasman Empire Airways Limited, the forerunner of Air New Zealand, who used teal as their airline's signature color; it appeared not just on plane livery but promotional material and airline bags. When New Zealanders refer to ‘teal green,’ they are more likely referring to the airline color than the bird's color.
Rapid transit
Teal is the official color of Kochi Metro, the rapid transit system serving the city of Kochi in India.
Armies that used feldgrau, cadet gray and similar shades of grayish green for field uniforms in the late 19th and early 20th century commonly used more saturated color for officers, often tending on teal. The armed forces of the Netherlands used teal field uniforms up to the 2nd World War.[13] Some of the modern parade uniforms of the Russian Armed Forces are also teal, though named "wave-green" in the service.[14]
In the National Hockey League, the San Jose Sharks use a variation called Deep Pacific Teal as their primary color. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim used a variation of teal known as Jade as a primary color until 2006 when the team was rebranded to the Anaheim Ducks. The color is still used today on the team's alternate uniform.
The Penrith Panthers of the NRL used in the early 2000s teal as a secondary color.
In Our Flag Means Death, when asked their favourite color, the character Jim Jimenez replies “teal”.
Characters in the South Korean television series Squid Game wear teal tracksuits as their game uniform.[17]
Religion
The Hermit Intercessors of the Lamb, a Christian contemplation group in the state of Nebraska, wears habits with a teal scapular to symbolize intercession between heaven (blue) and earth. Originally organised as a Roman Catholic association, it was suppressed in 2010 by the Archbishop of Omaha, who directed members to cease wearing the scapular in Church activities.
Politics
In Australia, the color teal, and the term "teal independents", have become associated with a group of independent candidates in the 2022 Australian federal election who campaigned on a platform highlighting the importance of climate change action, tackling corruption in politics, and gender equality.[18][19] These candidates are largely supported by Climate 200 and are often referred to by the media as 'teals' because that color is a dominant feature in some of their campaigns. Nominally, their policy platform reflected those of both the Liberals and the Greens.
Art History
Green pigments for paints and fabric dyes were difficult to obtain from nature in the past, thus they were rarely employed in clothes or heraldic emblems. While green may have been blended with blue and yellow paints, mixing dissimilar substances was frowned upon due to suspicion of alchemy. Only during the early Renaissance did the superstitious custom fade away, and in the late eighteenth century, the German Swedish scientist Carl Wilhelm Scheele found new copper greens.[20]
Teal is the color of ovarian cancerawareness. Ovarian cancer survivors and supporters may wear teal ribbons, bracelets, T-shirts, and hats to bring public attention to the disease.[21][22]
Maerz, Aloys John; Paul, M. Rea (1930). A Dictionary of Color. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. pp.205 (text), 101 (teal color sample). Plate 39 color sample L7 (on p.101).
