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Abstract

In minority societies, clothes and architecture are often designed to ward off disasters, such as severe weather, strong winds, torrential rains and floods, and attacks from hostile forces. In this sense, color is used to protect people against real threats to their existence. The function of color language associated with clothing and architectural design is, in other words, to ward off evil, chase away demons, and pray for the bestowal of good fortune; i.e, to rid society of malevolent forces, to pray for blessings from various gods and spirits, and to attempt to manipulate the powerful forces of nature to serve the interests of humanity. In this sense, the social function of color language is to guard the people's peace and welfare. This is a translation of Chapter 2 of the authors' From Totemic Symbol to Social Symbol: Deciphering the Color Language of Ethnic Minorities (Kunming: Yunnan renmin chubanshe, 1993), pp. 12-63. Part I of this article appeared in the Summer 1997 issues of Chinese Studies in Philosophy. (edited)