Abstract

Ever since the famous study by Berlin and Kay (1969), colour perception has been cited as one of the prime examples where, despite great surface diversity, robust cross-cultural universals can be found. They found that although colour terminologies appear to differ so widely, these colour terminologies exhibited certain patterns and even obeyed certain general laws. But this apparent vindication of the psychic unity of humans can be challenged not just from the viewpoint of cultural relativism, but also from that of the work of those, such as Mollon, who have analysed the differences in individuals' colour discrimination.