Seas with color names

There are four seas in the world that are named in English after common color names, although most look blue. The names are: The Red Sea, White Sea, Black Sea, and Yellow Sea. Their names are given by the color of the water. Sometimes a system of color symbolism was used as the following method green or light blue for east, black or dark for north, white for west, and red for south. This method is called cardinal directions. There are other theories but these two methods of colors are also used.

Red Sea


The Red Sea is one of the four seas named in English after common color terms.. The Red Sea is lying between Asia and Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Yemen and Saudi Arabia on the Eastern shore and Sudan, Djibouti, Egypt, and Eritrea on the Western shore. The name of the Red Sea is given on the same symbolism scheme as the Black Sea. Since it is situated south of Turkey, the name of this sea is the “Red Sea”. Sometimes the bacteria of this sea creates red tides.

White Sea


The White Sea is one of the four seas named in English after common color terms. The White Sea is located on the northwest coast of Russia in the Arctic Ocean. The White Sea is covered in ice for most of the year giving its name of the White Sea.

It is noted that the Mediterranean Sea is situated in western part of Turkey. In Turkish culture, the name of the Mediterranean Sea was the “White Sea” according to symbolism scheme or cardinal direction.

Black Sea


The Black Sea is one of the four seas named in English after common color terms. The Black Sea lies between Asia and Europe. It is surrounded by six countries; Romania and Bulgaria in the west, Georgia and Russia in the east, Ukraine in the north and Turkey in the south. The name of the “Black Sea” is due to the dark color of water. Since it is situated in northern part of Turkey, hence name of this sea is “Black Sea” according to symbolism scheme or cardinal directions. It was called either Bahr-E Siyah or Karadeniz during the Ottoman Empire, the meaning of the both words are “Black Sea” in Turkish.

Yellow Sea


The Yellow Sea is one of the four seas named in English after common colors. The Yellow Sea lies between East Asia and Korea or between the Korean Peninsula and mainland China. Three countries border it: China, North Korea and South Korea. The yellowish water of Yellow River flows into this sea. The water contains sand and silt in great quantities, which contribute to the yellowish color of the sea.

Chinese culture used a fifth cardinal direction besides East, South, West and North. The fifth one is the Middle or Center, symbolized by the color yellow. The Huang He River is renowned for its central importance to Chinese life. The Yellow Sea could be so named for a similar relationship.