Israel, By Its Colors

Notes regarding pictures: These are not my images. I am pointing to various images around the web, mostly on Flickr and Wikipedia. I have tried to include only images under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will replace the image (if it is indeed an infringement). Click any image to see the attribution. Not all images are from Israel.

White Israel's history was strongly influenced by a series of white papers issued by Britain.
	The tallit, the Jewish prayer shawl worn every morning in synagogue and at the Western Wall. The tallit also has vertical stripes of blue or black, as well as white fringes. On some tallits, one of the fringes is blue.
	The Israeli flag, colored white (and blue) to symbolize the tallit.
	White robes and kefiyyahs worn by a majority of the Arab population. A few Hassidic sects also dress in white.
	White sands in some parts of the Negev desert.
	White waves on the shores of Ashdod, Tel Aviv, and Acco.
	White water on the upper Jordan River.
	White wildflowers
	White birds.
	White snow which falls every decade or so over the country, and every year on Mount Hermon.
	White colored cars (thankfully, this trend is disappearing). White ambulances, ever too present. White U.N. license plates on the odd car, here and there.
	White kippahs, kittels, ark curtains, and bimah covers from Rosh Hashana until Yom Kippur. White shirts every shabbat. White flowers in the synagogue on Shavuot.
	Ashkenazi wedding dress.
	Most of the interior walls of our houses are plain white.
	Matzah, the bread of Passover, is white or pale tan with brown spots. White cheese and white yogurt.
	Humus, a national food.
	White pages. We are the people of the book.
Gold/Yellow Jerusalem is called the city of Gold.
	White wines from the Golan winery.
	All buildings in Jerusalem are faced with "Jerusalem stone", which turns gold at night in the sunset or in the streetlights.
	The Dome of the Rock
	Yellow wildflowers.
	Israeli yellow pages.
	Paz (lit. "refined gold"), a leading Israeli gas station
	The yellow and/or green etrog used on Sukkot.
	Yellow grapefruits.
	Yellow license plates on Israeli cars and yellow bus stop signs.
	Shabbat candles.
Orange A non-citizen's identity card is orange.
	Israeli oranges
	Orange was, and is, the color of protest against the disengagement from Gaza.
	Orange wildflowers.
	Sunset over the Mediterranean.
	MDA safety vests.
	Orange Israel, a leading cellular phone provider and fashion trend.
Red Police car license plates in Israel are red. A red and white curb means no parking.
	Sunset paints the mountains across Jordan red.
	Chili powder and paprika in big piles in the shuk.
	In March, hillsides and valleys are covered with poppies.
	Coca Cola is Israel's soft drink, partly because they ignored the Arab boycott in the 1970s.
	The Israeli Post Office
	Red roofs on the houses in most settlements.
	Red tomatoes.
	Red pomegranate seeds.
	A whole lot of people seem to have a strange color of red hair.
	Israeli paratroopers wear red berets.
	Magen David Adom: the Israeli ambulance service. Also the color of too much blood that has been spilt.
Purple Purple is known as a "holy" color. Some Israelis adopted purple as a sign of unity between those who wanted disengagement and those opposed.
	Purple wildflowers.
	Purple grapes make red wine.
	Purple eggplant.
	Givati soldiers wear a purple beret.
Blue Beret colors for both military police and navy. A blue and white curb means paid parking for up to two hours.
	The citizen's identity card is blue.
	The sea and the sky. And the stripes on the flag and some tallits, as I mentioned above.
	Blue buds on trees.
	Police uniforms.
	Tzfat is known for it's rich blue colors.
	Chagall windows at Hadassah Hospital.
Green The "green line" marks the boundary between Israel proper and the "territories".
	Evergreen forests, planted by the JNF.
	Green Egged busses. They used to be red and white. Someone decided that a dark color that is hard to see at night would make for a good color for busses in a country with one of the world's highest traffic accident incidences.
	Dumpsters and recycling containers are green in most places, yellow or orange in others.
	Green romaine lettuce, used on Passover and all year round.
	Green (and black) olives, an ancient Israeli industry.
	The ever present Israeli soldier in green army uniform. Green army vehicles, too.
	Women in Green - for a united Israel.
Brown Our torahs are held wrapped around brown handles.
	Any part of the land not covered by streets, or by trees in the spring.
	Brown fox.
	Brown bird on a brown wall.
	Camels wander around the desert. Wild goats and sheep are also brown.
	Brown scorpion. Most Israeli animals are brown.
	Brown tree without leaves. Many trees are actually gray.
	Brown challah, the bread of shabbat.
	Brown shofar.
	Falafel in pita, a national food.
	Goldstar and Macabbi are the national beers, but there are many others.
Black There used to be a black market until currency exchange became legal. Army license plates are black.
	Coffee, with or without milk or sugar, is the other national drink. Some Sephardi Israelis put different spices in their coffee.
	Black coats and hats of the Haredi.
	Black olives.
	Black bird.
	Women in black - for the end of the "occupation".

Yehuda