Black is one of the less significant, yet frequently occurring colours. In non-German heraldry, it is also known as 'sable'.
In the Middle Ages, black was used as a pure, unmixed colour derived from plant-based black obtained from grape marc, or ivory black (burnt ivory) was employed. Soot was used for dyeing textiles. In black-and-white depictions of coats of arms or three-dimensional representations of coats of arms in stone, black is represented by a fine vertical grid pattern. Black is associated with the planet Saturn and the gemstone diamond, and it often symbolises mourning, although this plays almost no role in heraldry.
Today, the colour black – particularly on flags – is associated with protest, the earth, mourning, anarchy and the skin colour of certain population groups. In some regions, black is regarded as a colour of Islam, as it represents the Abbasids, a caliphate dynasty tracing its origins back to Caliph Abbas I. This is also why black is one of the pan-Arab colours.
Black also features prominently on the flags of the Malay states of the Hinterind. This custom dates back to the Malay Sultanate of Lingga, which was one of the most powerful Malay states in the region until the mid-19th century. Lingga subjugated large parts of Malaya and spread its black flag across the entire south of the Malay Peninsula. The flags of Johor, Pahang and Terengganu are, and were, thus derived from the flag of Lingga.
Of course, black is also a political colour. It is favoured by both anarchist and fascist groups.
