The Color Pink is Named After the Dianthus Flower

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In the same way that the word orange described a fruit before a color, the color pink got its name from the Dianthus flower. 

Dianthus isn’t actually a single flower but a genus of about 300 species
The flower is native to Europe and Asia, but it can be found in North Africa too
In the 16th Century, the Dianthus Plumarius was commonly referred to as a pink
The verb “to pink” dates back to the 14th century and means “to decorate with a perforated pattern”
The color pink got its name not simply because the flowers are pink, but because the edges of their petals are “pinked”



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