ABSTRACT
Colors are often used in medical terminology: white in albinism (Latin albus) and leukocyte (Greek leukos), yellow in flavobacterium (Latin flavos) and icterus (Greek ikteros), blue in ceruloplasmin (Latin caeruleus) and cyanosis (Greek kyanos), green in chloroma (Greek chloron), red in rubedo (Latin ruber) and erythrocyte (Greek erythron), purple in purpura (Latin purpureus) and porphyrine (Greek porphyreos), pink in rose-ola (Latin roseus) and rhodopsin (Greek rodeos), brown in fuchsin (Latin fuscus) and pheochromocytoma (Greek phaios), black in nigrosin (Latin niger) and melanoma (Greek melas), grey in canities (Latin canus) and tephrosis (Greek tephros), silver in argentaffin (Latin argenteus) and argyrophil (Greek argyreos), and gold in aurotherapy (Latin aureus) and chrysotherapy (Greek chrysos), among many others (Bossy, 1999, pp. 39–41). To the best of our knowledge, the forerunners in neuroanatomical terminology had recourse to five colors: red (for the red nucleus), blue (for the locus coeruleus), black (for the substantia nigra), and white and grey (for the white and grey matters).
