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Show HN: A color name API that maps hex to the closest human-readable name

(meodai.github.io)
97 points meodai | 1 comments | 19 Jun 25 10:40 UTC | HN request time: 0.278s | source

I built this API to return the closest named color for any hex value—using curated lists like my own [1], XKCD [2], and others.

I made it from scratch without Express or any frameworks because:

- I’m a frontend/interaction dev and wanted to learn how to build an API from the ground up. - Existing APIs didn’t guarantee unique names per color—mine does. - It also supports WebSocket updates, gzip responses, and multiple name sets.

I’ve been collecting color names for over 10 years [1]. With ~30,000 entries, bundling them into every color-related project became excessive. This API keeps things lightweight—for me and hopefully for others too.

GitHub: https://github.com/meodai/color-name-api

Would love feedback on naming logic, accuracy, performance, or backend best practices I might’ve missed.

[1] Large Color Name List: https://github.com/meodai/color-names [2] XKCD color survey results: https://xkcd.com/color/rgb/

Show context
kotaKat ◴[21 Jun 25 09:43 UTC] No.44336110[source]▶
Curious if you could run it against the big old list of HN topcolors...

https://news.ycombinator.com/topcolors

replies(2): >>44336243 #>>44338253 #
meodai ◴[21 Jun 25 10:10 UTC] No.44336243[source]▶
I just did, using `npx palette-aldente hn-colors.yml --formats name --namelist bestOf`: https://codepen.io/meodai/pen/ByNqbKE
replies(1): >>44336483 #
bargainbin ◴[21 Jun 25 10:58 UTC] No.44336483[source]▶
"Safety Orange" is quite apt!
replies(1): >>44337570 #
1. jen729w ◴[21 Jun 25 13:46 UTC] No.44337570[source]▶
I've based my entire colour palette on a tweak of international orange. A delightful colour. (I went with #f04c00.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_orange