Abstract
Some new algebraic structures related to the coloured Yang-Baxter equation, and termed coloured Hopf algebras, are reviewed. Coloured quantum universal enveloping algebras of Lie algebras are defined in this context. An extension to the coloured graded Yang-Baxter equation and coloured Hopf superalgebras is also presented. The coloured two-parameter quantum universal enveloping algebra of
gl(1/1)
is considered as an example.