Everyone knows what a toy store looks like.

In the corner for the girls, the Barbies and princess castles are stacked, in the corner for the boys there are cars and action figures.

If one could only see the world in black and white, it would not be so easy to see at first glance.

Because which corner “belongs” to whom can be seen primarily from the colors of the toys and packaging on the shelves.

The Barbies are usually packed in pink or pink, the action figures are mainly available in blue or other dark-colored boxes.

Kim Maurus

Volunteer.

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"That is clear," one can now think.

Blue is for boys, pink is for girls.

There are not only the toys in the respective colors.

The selection is also similar in clothing stores; this is already the case with babies.

There are blue rompers for boys and pink ones for girls.

If you're a bit older, the same goes for the tops.

Pink glitter can only be found on girls' sweaters, excavators and robots only on sweatshirts for boys.

Books, satchels, bed linen, dishes, everything is available for boys and girls.

But why is that actually the case?

Again and again there are adults who claim that this division of colors is quite natural. That this is not the case becomes clear when you look back at history. More than a hundred years ago - that was so long ago there weren't any Barbies or action figures - it was even the other way around with the colors. The color red was considered royal and strong, it was associated with masculinity, fighting spirit, blood and war. Because boys are not yet fully grown men, they wore the color pink back then, as a belittling of the stately red color. For example, the pregnant Belgian Princess Astrid is said to have decorated the cradle for her child in pink in 1927 because she assumed she would have a son. For girls, on the other hand, it was common to wear blue.That came from the Christian faith and was based on the blue robe of the Virgin Mary.

Why is it the other way around now, a century later? It's not that girls and guys have agreed to like each other's color all at once. Or that they just changed their minds and now they like the other color much better. In fact, researchers say, it's more of a coincidence. Society as a whole has changed quite a bit in the past century - and with it our perception of what is “right” for girls and boys. For example, in the 1940s, the jeans we all wear today came to Europe from the United States. Initially, they were mainly common work trousers for craftsmen - and most of the craftsmen were men. The uniforms of sailors, mostly male, were also blue. So it came about that blue was seen more and more as a color for boys.Pink for girls became popular at the latest when the Barbie doll was invented. The manufacturers sold the Barbie in pink packaging in the 1950s - and a trend was born.

It was all a long time ago.

But researchers are convinced that such developments shape us to this day.

Mainly because the TV commercials and packaging keep telling us: pink is for girls, blue is for boys.

We are all so used to it that we no longer question it - and many people see this color assignment as completely natural.

That doesn't bother the companies that sell us clothes and toys, on the contrary.