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Rousing Zard

#bc8310
Notes

Rousing Zard (#BC8310) is a true amber with a vibrant character. It holds its own as a focal accent, carrying visual weight without tipping into neon territory. Its HSL profile (40°, 84%, 40%) places it in the highly saturated band at a mid lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary azure. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#bc8310
RGB
rgb(188, 131, 16)
HSL
hsl(40, 84%, 40%)
HWB
hwb(40 6% 26%)
OKLCH
oklch(65.1% 0.133 77.1)
HSV
hsv(40, 91%, 74%)
LAB
lab(58.94% 13.40 61.79)
LCH
lch(58.94% 63.23 77.77)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 30%, 91%, 26%)

Etymology

Rousing
adjective

Old English rūsan, to rush — present-participle of rouse. As a color modifier, rousing implies a saturated-and-wakening-and-active quality, the bright color of dawn-chorus-and-morning-bell atmospheric-and-aural stimulation. Sits at the bright-and-active end of the grid, parallel to awakening and invigorating in usage.

Zard
noun

The Persian word for yellow — used for the saffron-yellow of zard-čubeh (turmeric), the gold of Zoroastrian ritual fire, and the zard-i tu (your yellow — pallor) of Persian poetry. The color refers to fresh turmeric powder in a Persian kitchen: a saturated, slightly cool yellow with the dusty finish of plant pigment. The Iranian cousin of yellow.

Closest matches

The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.

Variations

Click any swatch to explore

Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.

#bc8310
Original
#988600
Protanopia
#a69317
Deuteranopia
#cd7370
Tritanopia
#878787
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AA Largeon White
3.29:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAon Black
6.39:1

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