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Black as a symbol of mourning

Black became the traditional color of mourning in predominately Christian areas for many reasons. And none of those reasons was because Black is "slimming" or "classy." Traditionally Black has represented negative ideas, such as death and the devil throughout history. It would make sense that this color is associated with the loss of a loved one, when in theory; a person's world becomes very dark and unhappy. In art heaven and angels and God are usually presented in light colors, (take the ceiling of the Cistine Chapel for instance), while death is almost always portrayed in black or other dark hues. The opposite of God is the devil. The opposite of white is black.

Black is the generally accepted color in the United States as a carry over from Victorian times, when mourning lasted one to two years and strict fashion guidelines would be observed. Widows would wear black for a certain period, (at least a year and one day) then they would be allowed other colors, such as dark blue, purple and grey, as they moved out of "deep mourning." Widowers would be expected to observe somber colors as well, but their clothing did not take on the radical formality of women's dress.
In other areas of the world the color for mourning varies. In Japan red is the color of mourning, while in Muslim societies white is the color of mourning. Even in medieval France queens wore white while in mourning.

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