Among Egyptians, black was seen positively, while it was seen as the color of rectitude and regularity in China. Over time, it became a color used to express authority and austerity. It is difficult not to associate black with death. It is why historians have called black plague the epidemic that devastated Europe and Asia in the 14th century. The Grim Reaper is also depicted as wearing a black robe. In more recent times, black became more popular with Coco Chanel’s famous black dress, which is still considered elegant even today.
Black is used on some national flags but less frequently than white. The fourth most used combination of colors on flags is red, white, green and black together. The use of this color has very different meanings but in most cases, it is to represent the people, a dark past, Islam or the soils. Indeed, this color on the Jamaican and German flags is associated with their past difficulties. For its parts, black on the Belgium flag represents the Duchy of Brabant, which symbol was a golden lion on a black background. In short, the pirate flag is not the only one to be black!