Tan (color)
Tan is a pale tone of brown. The name is derived from tannum (oak bark) used in the tanning of leather.
The first recorded use of tan as a color name in English was in the year 1590.
Colors which are similar or may be considered synonymous to tan include: tawny, tenné, and fulvous.
Variations of tan
Sandy tan
Displayed at right is the color Sandy tan.
This color was formulated by Crayola in 2000 as a Crayola marker color.
Tan orange
Displayed at right is the orangeish tone of tan called tan since 1958 in Crayola crayons and 1990 in Crayola markers.
Windsor tan
Displayed at right is the color Windsor tan.
The first recorded use of windsor tan as a color name in English was in 1925.
Tuscan tan
Displayed at right is the color Tuscan tan.
The first recorded use of Tuscan tan as a color name in English was in 1926.
Tan in human culture
Military
Tan is the color of the United States Army Rangers beret as well as Canada's Canadian Special Operations Regiment and Joint Task Force 2.
Sunbathing
When a person sunbathes to make his or her skin darker, he or she is said to be getting a tan.