Teal is a beautiful color that combines shades of blue and green. To understand teal, it helps to break it down into its component colors. This article will examine the percentages of blue and green that make up teal, looking at common teal shades and how color mixing works. We’ll discuss color theory, how the eye perceives color, and the history of the teal pigment. Tables will visualize data on teal’s RGB values. By the end, you’ll know precisely what percentage of teal is blue and what percentage is green.
Defining Teal
Teal is a medium blue-green color, similar to cyan. The first recorded use of “teal” as a color name in English was in 1917. Teal gets its name from the common teal bird, which has blue-green feathers on its body. As a result, many languages use the word for this bird to name the color, including Russian, Dutch, Persian, and Lithuanian.
Teal sits between blue and green on the color wheel. It combines the calming, intelligent properties of blue with the renewal and growth associations of green. Different proportions of blue and green create different teal shades.
Teal RGB Values
Teal is made by mixing the primary colors blue and green. This mixing can be represented by RGB (red, green, blue) color values.
| Teal Shade | Red | Green | Blue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teal | 0 | 128 | 128 |
| Dark teal | 0 | 102 | 102 |
| Light teal | 0 | 153 | 153 |
As seen in the table, teal always has a red value of 0. The green and blue values are equal, creating an even mixture. Lighter teals have higher green/blue values, while darker teals have lower values.
Percentage of Blue and Green in Teal
Based on typical teal RGB values, teal contains equal parts blue and green. Each contributes 50% to the final teal color.
For example, a medium teal with RGB values of (0, 128, 128) gets 50% of its shade from the green value of 128, and 50% from the blue value of 128. The red 0 contributes no color.
This 50/50 split can be seen across different teal tints. Light teals may have RGB values of (0, 170, 170), maintaining the even blue/green balance. Dark teals like (0, 80, 80) also stay at 50% blue and 50% green.
Human Perception of Teal
The human eye does not perceive all colors equally. We are more sensitive to certain shades, especially in the green region. This affects how we see teal.
Although teal contains a balanced blue/green mix, our eyes detect it as slightly more green. We need less green to match the effect of blue. This skews teal’s apparent composition to be 60% green, 40% blue.
However, this is just a quirk of perception. The technical RGB values still show teal as a even 50-50 split between blue and green shades.
Mixing Paints to Create Teal
When physically mixing blue and green paints, you similarly need a higher ratio of blue to balance the green. Mid-range teal can be mixed using:
- 60% Phthalo Blue
- 40% Sap Green
A higher proportion of blue paint counteracts our eyes’ bias and creates an accurate teal. Mixing 60% blue and 40% green approximates the even digital RGB balance.
Teal in Nature
In nature, teal gets its blue-green coloration from a pigment called tealite. This organic pigment is found in the feathers, scales, and shells of certain birds, reptiles, and mollusks.
Tealite contains both a blue component (triclinic bismuth chloride) and a green component (triclinic copper chloride). These two parts combine in the creature’s body to create the blue-green teal coloring.
So even in living organisms, teal arises from a blend of blue and green pigments working together in equal proportions.
History of Teal as a Color Name
Despite being an equal mix of blue and green, teal has only been recognized as a distinct color name relatively recently.
| Year | Teal Color History |
|---|---|
| 1917 | “Teal” first recorded as a color name in English |
| 1929 | Teal added to the X11 list of web colors |
| 2010 | Teal designated a web safe color |
Before 1917, blue-green shades were simply called “green” or “blue”. The teal bird gave rise to the specific name that’s now universally recognized.
Conclusion
Teal occupies a unique spot between blue and green. While it appears more green, technically teal is made of equal parts blue and green.
Modern color theory shows teal as a 50/50 split. Across different teal shades, RGB values confirm that teal contains a balanced blue/green ratio.
When mixing paints, more blue is needed to offset our eye’s perception. But at the technical level, teal is an even mixture, with 50% blue and 50% green.
