We know red hair is rare, with less than 2% of the population having naturally red hair, but have you ever wondered where red hair originated? Like most physical features, red hair can be traced back to certain regions of the globe. However, these regions aren’t the ones you would probably guess.
Most people assume red hair is native to Ireland and Scotland, and that must be where it originated. While this makes sense because those two places have the most redhead per capita to date, it’s actually not where red hair came from.
Historians believe red hair actually originated in central Asia about 50,000 years ago. It is believed there are so many redheads in Ireland, Scotland, and Scandinavia because our redhead ancestors migrated to cooler climates. As you know, redheads have more sensitive skin that burns easily, so a cooler climate was a more comfortable place for our ancestors to live many thousands of years ago. A new study indicates red hair is still a dominant recessive gene among many Europeans today.
There are many beliefs about where red hair came from, and we may never actually know the 100% truth. Redheads can be born anywhere and into any family with two parents who carry the gene. News flash: redheads are not going extinct and our history is very interesting and complex.
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READ: How It Was For This Redhead Man To Grow Up With Red Hair
READ: 8 Redhead Stereotypes: Are These True?
Rock it like a Redhead!
