Although it is generally accepted that colors carry meaning, experimental research about individual, situational and cultural differences in the meaning of colors is scarce. The current research examines whether the Dutch national color functions as a perceptual representation of The Netherlands. A person dressed in orange clothing was judged to identify more with his nation compared to the same person dressed in blue (Study 1). When national identification was salient, such as during (vs. before/after) the European soccer championship, or when participants recalled an experience in which they identified (vs. not-identified) with The Netherlands, and people were more aware of the use of the color orange as a perceptual representation of The Netherlands, orange was evaluated more positively (Studies 2 and 3). Furthermore, orange evaluations correlated with self-reported national identification. These results support the hypothesis that national colors carry psychological meaning, which can influence person ...