Why Do Some People Spell Color With A "U"? (colour)

Anonymous 93% helpful

'Colour' is the correct way to spell the word in Britain. Somewhere along the way, the 'u' was dropped, so that 'color' is used in the United States. This can be a bit confusing for people from Britain visiting the United States and vice versa. Some other words that are spelled differently in Britain and the United States are 'aluminium' (spelled 'aluminum' in the United States) and 'centre' (spelled 'center' in the United States). It is a common saying that although Britains and Americans both speak English, they speak different languages. In today's world of international commerce and worldwide websites which draw readers from many countries, the difference in spellings can cause some confusion. Some people think that English should be universally standardized but this might be an impossible task given the variations in regional dialects. The general rule when contacting a company from another country is to address the company using the same spelling that it uses.

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Anonymous 50% helpful

The bible for U.S. newspaper usage is the Associated Press Stylebook, which dictates that no British spellings are allowed. This includes dropping the "u" in all words containing "- o(u)r" and reversing the "r" and "e" in words such as "theater" and "center."
But proper names with British spellings must retain the original spelling in AP stories. As inconsistent as it sounds, this sentence could conceivably appear in a U.S. newspaper: "The Spaceship Endeavour will endeavor to link up the shuttle's pod on Tuesday."
The sole exception to AP's no-British-spellings rule is the word "glamour."

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Anonymous 40% helpful

Every English-speaking country spells it colour (South Africa, Great Britain, Ireland, Jersey, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Jamaica..) with the acception of the United States because your accent does not fit with it.

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