How to convert a hex value into a color name

0
votes

Is there an algorithm (I've searched and haven't come up with much) that, given a hex value, is capable of returning the color name? It doesn't have to be anything too specific, any shade of blue coming back as just 'blue' is fine.

Or short of that, is there a large list somewhere that consists of hex values and their corresponding color family. I've found lists, but they only seem to be a couple hundred colors long.

I saw this post, but the solution there seems to only break the color down into three regions.

EDIT

I altered the RGB text file so that each color would only fall into the following color ranges:

  • white
  • grey
  • magenta
  • brown
  • black
  • blue
  • green
  • turquoise
  • yellow
  • orange
  • red
2
colorshex
As indicated in the post you pointed out, converting RGB color space to HSV or HSL is probably the easiest way. You can determine far more than three regions. You can separate Hue in as many different colors as you want. V or L will tell you if color is white or black. And Saturation will tell you if it is gray. - Charles Brunet

2 Answers

2
votes

As you said you had already found lists, then it is simple.

Calculate Euclidean Distance of the color for RGB (for instance), and call that color the nearest name.

By the way, over a hundred colors is actually a big number for human languages, and even for just a hundred colors, ordinary people may not able to tell the differences between quite a few colors.

1
votes

rgb.txt is the usual list used for color names. Just find the closest triplet and call it that.