Bermellón

[irmamar]

Vermilion or vermillion? Thanks.

[Perikles]

Originally Posted by irmamar

Vermilion or vermillion? Thanks.

BrE: used to be spelled vermillion, but now vermilion.

[irmamar]

Thanks, I can find both ways of writing it in the dictionary, I thought that one of them could be AmE. I guess that if I write "vermilion" is correct in a BrE exam.

[hermit]

yes, both might be accepted in the U.S., but Canadian spelling conforms
to British.

[irmamar]

What do you mean, hermit? I don't understand you.

[poli]

I can't believe they are making you learn the word vermillion. Truly one out of twenty know this word, and that may be an exageration. Red is unsually all you need..maybe magenta, crimson and maroon, but rarely vermillion.

[JPablo]

Well, poli, it all depends on the usage... if you are dealing with painting, design, photography..., or any other subjects that have to do with "color", you sure are going to hit the word "vermilion" or "vermillion" (per Wikipedia and many other sources both spellings are interchangeable). Random House gives vermilion 1. a brilliant scarlet red. In Spanish, Moliner gives, 2 adj. y n. m. Se aplica al *color rojo vivo, y a las cosas que lo tienen: ‘Un vestido rojo bermellón’. In Spanish, I believe, it is definitely more common. Also "bermejo", although this one is used mainly with "hair", ie. "cabello bermejo" = "red/reddish hair".
Irmamar, what Hermit means (Hermit, correct me if I am wrong) is that the way the Canadians spell the word is the same way British people spell it. (I would think, however, that both spellings are used all over the place, as in a cursory Google search, the spelling with two "ls" gives 3,410,000 hits, and the one with one "l" gives 4,640,000. American Heritage gives it with one "l", but then says "also vermillion".)
At any rate, since we are on the subject of colors, I would say something in Spanish, that I hope it is not too "off the main subject", (and this is from my memory, by the author Ramón de Campoamor and then checked in Google, En este mundo traicionero, nada es verdad ni es mentira, todo es según del color del cristal con que se mira.) (There are several versions of this too.)
A matter of "viewpoint" or "slant".

[irmamar]

Thanks, Poli, but if I could write all the words that I have to study (of a very common use, according to my teacher) you would understand that sometimes I bang my head on the wall (furthermore when many of the words I have asked here I've been told that they're not common).

Thanks, JPablo.

[poli]

Wow J Pablo, it never occurred to me that bermejo meant red as in reddish hair (the color auburn I suppose). I only knew it as a last name. Is it a commonly used word?

Irmamar, I suppose it's not bad to know the word vermillion. I may help
you complete a cross word puzzle (crucigrama) some day

[hermit]

Hi Irmamar - I meant that while I've seen both spellings in the U.S.,
Canadians would use the BrE spelling, "vermilion".

[JPablo]

Well, Poli, it is the kind of word (bermejo) that I would see in a book about painting, or in a buccaneer book, or Moby Dick or something like that, "el pirata tenía un diente partido, cabello bermejo y estaba picado de viruelas" (this phrase is just invented). In google "color bermejo" gives me 15,300 hits, so I would say it is quite used. In terms of meaning, I believe "bermejo" is not as dark as "auburn", it is more intense and/or vivid. For "auburn" in Spanish you could use 'sobermejo' which I found in Moliner, although hardly used (I guess only by painters?) (It means "bermejo oscuro" and also similar to "bermejón"). As I say, "Bermejo" like "bermellón" is a more intense red, not so much "brown" or "gold" in it. I would relate it to "pirates" or "Normands" or "Vikings". (If you see an Asterix and Obelix comic, "Astérix y los normandos", you will see that many Normands there have "cabello bermejo".)
(On a second thought, and checking on bilingual dictionaries they give, [color bermejo (m)] n. russet, reddish-brown or yellowish-brown color, so maybe "auburn" may do fine too as a translation into English.)
As for the second name, yes, I also knew it. In fact, Sergio García Bermejo was a painter and a teacher (and author of books on painting) and you can find his books in Google. There are many second names and nicknames, which had an original meaning, so you have "Eric, the Red" "Fernando de Rojas", and so forth...

Irmamar, as far as words, one can always find more and more... it is key to know the ones people use more commonly, but like a guy from Salamanca told me once, when we were the only 3 kids who decided to learn Catalán "de motu proprio", on a voluntary basis, "El saber no ocupa lugar". And so, what is important is to know when to use the word and for what purpose. If you have the intention to "apply in real life" what you study in "an ivory tower", then you will always benefit from it. Even if it is only on a crossword puzzle, like Poli says. But if you become the secretary (or the manager) of a painter, a photographer, or a designer, you will know the word "vermilion", and be able to use it, and not blush scarlet or flush crimson when some 'learned' art critic comments on 'the intensity of the vermilion' in the Goya's painting and you don't know what he or she means... (I do not want to be pedantic, but every time I learn a new word, or clarify fully one that 'I knew' but 'not fully', I try to make as many sentences with it, until I am fully acquainted with its usage... I see how others use it, and in this way, after 10 or 20 sentences using the term, "it is mine".) I hope this helps everybody, and that nobody "sees red" (becomes angry or enraged) with my long explanations and elucidations...
Thank you Hermit. Interestingly enough, “red” in Catalonian is “vermell” and it is the most commonly used word for “plain red”, together with “roig” (which is also a Catalonian second name: Roig... like Montserrat Roig.) And I better put a “red-light” here (halt-stop) otherwise, this will become the “unending comment on the 50 ways of saying ‘red’ and other stories”...

[ROBINDESBOIS]

JPABLO you are an artist de los pies a la cabeza. ( form head to toes???)

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by ROBINDESBOIS

JPABLO you are an artist de los pies a la cabeza. ( form head to toes???)

'From head to toes' is correct.

[JPablo]

Thank you Rusty, and thank you ROBINDESBOIS, you are going to make me walk around more "modestly" today... ;-), or otherwise blush a bit crimson with such a compliment... (which I guess is good for blood circulation!)

(I have also seen "from head to foot" and "from top to toe" in English. In Spanish I heard "De pies a cabeza. Aplicado a personas, completamente. ‘Ese rasgo le retrata de pies a cabeza. Me mojé de pies a cabeza’.") (And given that I am still 'blushing from top to toe', and my color is still kind of 'vermilion', I hope we can consider I have not gone off the subject of this tread!) (Irmamar... 'sorry' for the roundabout!)

[Rusty]

Yes, it's also quite alright to not pluralize the 'toe' in the saying. "From head to toe" is much more popular than the plural form, but both work.

"From top to bottom" is very popular, as well.

[JPablo]

Thank you, Señor Speedy!