just for comparison, here's a short item from my newspaper today about
changes in the use of red in China, where wedding gowns used to be red
Catherine Linda Walton (in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, U.K.).
Color red takes on new meanings in modern China | World news | The
Guardian = The Associated Press
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/10532906
The color red has long had special significance in China, symbolizing
health, wealth and good wishes.
Newlyweds and children are presented with gift money tucked inside red
packets, brides traditionally wear red gowns at their weddings, and
celebratory fireworks always come wrapped in red paper.
That made the color a perfect fit for the Communist movement. Its red
army and a sea of red flags and banners came to characterize both cities
and countryside following the success of the 1949 revolution.
However, in the more than three decades since the death of revolutionary
leader Mao Zedong and the jettisoning of orthodox Marxism, red has taken
on different meanings and contexts, some ancient, some very modern,
finding its way into home furnishings, luxury items, clothing, and
leisure goods, as well as the restored vestiges of Beijing's imperial
heritage.
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