50+ beautiful colour palettes inspired by African art, landscapes, textiles, and culture. Click any colour to copy its hex code.
Colour plays a profoundly symbolic role in African art and culture. From the bold geometric patterns of Kente cloth to the earth tones of Maasai beadwork, African colour traditions carry deep meaning and have influenced global design for centuries. These curated palettes draw from textile traditions, natural landscapes, architectural heritage, and contemporary African design movements.
African textiles are among the world's most colourful and iconic. Ghanaian Kente cloth uses specific colour combinations with symbolic meanings — gold for royalty, green for fertility, blue for peace. Nigerian Ankara (African wax print) features bold, high-contrast patterns. Maasai shuka cloth is known for its distinctive red and blue checks. Ndebele art from South Africa uses vibrant primary colours in geometric wall paintings.
Across many African cultures, colours carry specific meanings. Red often represents life force, blood, and spiritual power. White symbolizes purity, peace, and the spirit world. Black represents maturity, spiritual energy, and ancestral connection. Green represents growth, fertility, and the land. Gold/yellow signifies wealth, royalty, and the harvest. Understanding these associations enriches the use of African-inspired colour palettes in design work.
Contemporary African designers and brands are creating a distinct visual language that draws from traditional colour palettes while embracing modern aesthetics. From Lagos to Nairobi to Cape Town, a new generation of graphic designers, fashion designers, and architects are defining what African design looks like in the 21st century — often characterized by bold colour, pattern mixing, and a connection to cultural roots.
Browse curated African-inspired palettes, copy individual hex codes, then export one palette or the full set as CSS or JSON for design handoff.
Local palette browser. Cultural inspiration should be credited thoughtfully.
Source/freshness note: palettes are design inspiration, not official cultural documentation; verify context before using heritage references in commercial branding.
Yes, these colour palettes are freely available for any commercial or personal use. Colours themselves cannot be copyrighted. However, we encourage crediting African design traditions as inspiration when using these palettes in your work.
All colours are provided as hex codes (e.g., #E4572E). Click any hex code to copy it to your clipboard. You can convert hex codes to RGB, HSL, or other formats using any colour converter tool.
Each palette was curated by studying actual African textiles, artworks, landscapes, and architectural traditions. Colours were sampled from authentic sources and harmonized for use in digital design. The palettes aim to capture the spirit and feel of their inspirations while being practical for web and graphic design applications.