Senufo People in the Prism of the Psycho-Pragmatic Perception of Colors

Abstract

Abstract: Colors’ matter is a diverse one in the world because of their important role. People use colors for many purposes such as in art, at school, in politics, in the street, at the shop, at the market, in medias, during events, at home and in office. Colors are always present in human beings’ life and they are used everywhere in daily life. They have deeply influenced physically and biologically humans. Very often, the psychology of colors varies across world cultures and it can cause a positive or a negative effect. As a matter of fact, the language, behavior, and worldview of Senufo people living in the north of Côte d’Ivoire have been really influenced by the perception of colors. The word color is designated by the term “feligi” in Senufo. Colors are deeply marked by three main classes or groups of colors for Senufo people. Henceforth, each group of colors has been identified by a specific term. There are “yɑ-wưɔ or wo-wưɔ” for darken colors, “yɑ-ɲiigė or wo-ɲiigė” to show warmth colors, and “yɑ-fiigė or wo-fiigė” when referring to whiten or brighten colors. In Senufo languages several colors are combined and considered as similar. Keywords: colors, effects, psycho-pragmatic, Senufo people.