Why is the color white white and black black?

Black in the name for an object that absorbs most of the light waves that hit it.

White is the name for an object that refelcts most of the light waves that hits it.

Your eye interperts the number of differing frequency light waves as a differing colors.

Maxwell's theorm states that it is impossible to have perfectly white or black object.

Something that is white reflects (pretty much) every wavelength of visible light. Something that is black (pretty much) absorbs all wavelengths of visible light. All the wavelenghts of light put together look white, no reflected light looks black. Same goes with other colors - the color of an object is determined by the wavelenghts of light it reflects and which it absorbs.

White is the combination of all the other colors.

Black the absence of all the other colors.

White reflects all wavelengths of light, black absorbs all wavelengths of light

White has no color pigment in it while black has every color pigment in it.

Receptors in your eye just recieve those colors as so.

because black is to gray as white is to yant

The same reason blue is blue and red is red

cus it just is?...what if the color "white was called pink..lol and why is pink called "ppink"? think about that! lolO_o

Because they aren't red or green.