What Does The Color Yellow Really Represent? Here's What To Know, According To Color Experts

Colors impart texture and richness to the environment. When we see yellow, we immediately think of imagery related to vitality, spring, and optimism. The bright color can indicate warmth and other spiritual and symbolic meanings too, such as enlightenment—or caution. 

Yellow is a luminous color that attracts light, exuberance, and freshness. We can't help but be drawn in by its perky cheeriness. As world history and Western symbology expert Michael Pastoureau noted in his book Yellow: The History of a Color, yellow shares a similar likeness to gold and honey, which epitomized pleasure and abundance in ancient cultures and religions. It also signified opulence since royals would wear it in their clothing. 

According to Nina Ashby, psychic and author of Simply Color Therapy, the color yellow is symbolized by the sun and represents joy, light, and mental positivity. Spiritually, the color yellow is also embodied by the solar plexus chakra—the seat of power and will. Ashby points out yellow is associated with the mind and the logical, left side of the brain that organizes information. 

"When you think about yellow in the spiritual sense, yellow's grounded in the spiritual world and less about whimsy," aura reader and stylist Susanna Merrick tells mindbodygreen. "It's all about self-confidence, communication, and how you see yourself," she says, adding that it also represents intellect and clarity because it's associated with the solar plexus. 

Dreams are amplifiers of your thoughts and feelings. Because dream interpretation on a symbolic level is very complex, there's no catchall answer for what yellow represents in the subconscious. Since most people link yellow with positivity and contentment, that could be a good jumping-off point to intuit further. 

To dig into the meaning more, Ashby suggests sifting through the elements of the dream. "You would need to interpret what is yellow, where it appears in the dream, the shade of the color it's manifesting, and the feeling associated with it in the dream." 

"When it comes to yellow's connection to love, it can align with seeing the world through new eyes or represent a reconnection with your joy," Merrick says. 

She adds that yellow can visualize something new, active, and empowering, like the possibility you may experience at the beginning of a relationship. "Yellow can be about being excited and hopeful for what's to come, which can feel like a very flowy, head-in-the-clouds kind of energy," she explains.

If you feel yellow represents you, you may be someone who enjoys the thrill of a mental challenge and a wide variety of intellectual interests. 

"A dominant yellow person is logical," Ashby says. "They are curious, questioning, and intellectual. They need to learn how to be sunny and optimistic. Karmically, they have had many lifetimes as an overemotional persona and need to find balanced judgment in this lifetime."

Looking to spruce up your place with a welcoming touch? Consider yellow as an uplifting pop of color to add to major areas of the home. In feng shui, yellow is known as a powerful attractor for good fortune and prosperity. 

Certified feng shui consultant Marianne Gordon previously explained to mindbodygreen that if there's a desire for knowledge and self-cultivation, incorporating yellow in the northeast or bottom-left corner of your home can distribute positive and harmonious energy. 

As Ashby and Merrick have noted, yellow corresponds to the solar plexus chakra—the third energy center out of the seven main centers that make up the chakra system. The solar plexus chakra is called Manipura, which translates to "shining gem" in Sanskrit. 

If you're looking for clarification and knowledge, yellow is the perfect color to usher in new beginnings. 

"When yellow is around you, it's all about action and learning. It symbolizes a great time to optimize on taking forward motion and what you're manifesting in your life," Merrick says. If it's been invited into your aura, she says you may have the desire to do new things, start a new business, and absorb information.