Xanthophylls (originally
phylloxanthins) are yellow
pigments that occur widely in nature and form one of two major divisions of the
carotenoid group; the other division is formed by the
carotenes. The name is from Greek
xanthos (ξανθός, "yellow") and
phyllon (φύλλον, "leaf"), due to their formation of the yellow band seen in early
chromatography of leaf pigments.