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Iris (color)

ambiguous color term

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionOct 24, 2025
Entity authorityQ6070109 ↗
Source-derived summary

Iris is an ambiguous color term, usually referring to shades ranging from blue-violet to violet.

However, in certain applications, it has been applied to an even wider array of colors, including pale blue, mauve, pink, and even yellow (the color of the inner part of the iris flower).

The name is derived from the iris flower, which comes in a broad spectrum of colors.

The first recorded use of iris as a color name in English was in the year 1916.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Iris (color)” as ambiguous color term. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Iris, color and ambiguous.

Editorial reviewA dependable orientation record for establishing vocabulary, names and a first evidence trail. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1916—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Iris, color and ambiguous providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Iris (color)”, the useful work is to connect “ambiguous color term” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 24, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q6070109. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1916.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
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The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Iris (color)”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Iris (color) primary sources, Iris (color) archive and Iris research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

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  2. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Iris (color)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.