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The gene for red hair is recessive, meaning to be weaker than other genes, like the brown hair gene, for example. Because of this, in order to have natural red hair a person needs to have red-haired ancestors present on both the maternal (mother's) and paternal (father's) side of the family. The MC1R mutation is thought to be an evolutionary adaptation to the cold, dark climates of the North. Subsequently, those with red hair do not react well to prolonged exposure to sunlight.
Culture
To reiterate, that was likely due to the fact that since having red hair is so rare, you stand out from the crowd, and are, therefore, evil. Even before the witch trials, 15th-century artwork portrayed witches with red hair. There’s an argument amongst experts on whether Vikings did scatter the red hair gene or not. If the evidence points to a majority of them with red hair, then it means that they could’ve spread their red hair genetic traits in this area and even Ireland when they traveled there. However, despite these rare attempts to rationalize red hair, ancient accounts emphasize certain traits as prevalent in redheads.
Ever wondered how some people have red hair? Get the scoop on this vibrant trait.
It is only in the Late Bronze Age (c. 1500–1155 BCE), over a thousand years after the Indo-European expansion into Central Europe, that the Proto-Celts really expanded over the Italian and Iberian peninsulas. Greece also didn't become Indo-Europeanised until the Mycenaeans, another group of Indo-European speakers from the Steppe took over the country circa 1600 BCE. Red hair is a rare and unique hair color that has captivated people for centuries.
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Pheomelanin is not as efficient as eumelanin in protecting the skin against UV radiation from the sun. The earliest known example of red hair appears in a cave painting from 35,000 BC in Spain. It is also believed that red hair was present in early European populations, particularly among Celtic tribes. As these tribes migrated throughout Europe, they spread the gene for red hair, leading to its prevalence in certain regions such as Scotland and Ireland. So far, there are two theories related to the Vikings that contribute to this phenomenon in these countries. One popular theory relates to the adoption of this red hair gene when the Vikings conquered these countries.
Scientists have studied the science behind red hair pigmentation in depth. They have found that two main pigments, eumelanin and pheomelanin, are responsible for producing the various shades of red hair. Eumelanin produces darker shades of red, while pheomelanin produces lighter shades. Factors such as age, hormones, and sun exposure can all influence the amount of each pigment produced, resulting in a wide range of shades. Additionally, red hair can also occur in Black people as a result of Albinism, a genetic condition that reduces melanin in the skin.
The Ginger Gene
The earlier, non-tartan-wearing Tarim mummies from 2000 BCE, which were DNA tested and identified as members of haplogroup R1a, did not have red hair, just like modern R1a-dominant populations. This makes the odds of having both unusual features highly unlikely - in fact, it is the rarest physical combination in the world! Most natural redheads have brown eyes, followed by green or hazel coloured irises.
In Scotland and England, 13 percent and 6 percent, respectively, are redheaded, according to the Daily Mail. From turning into a vampire after death to being an unlucky, soulless creature, redheads have endured a barrage of preposterous beliefs throughout history. Fortunately, times have changed, and with scientific studies behind the causes of red hair, no one is hunting for redheads to be burnt at the stake. Thanks to their lack of melanin, redheads burn more quickly and severely than other hair colours. The melanin that ginger haired people possess almost always takes the form of freckles, which are actually just concentrated patches of melanin. While this color hair can be found in various parts of Europe, there are still areas where it’s more common than the rest of the continent.
How does someone get red hair and blue eyes
Bizarrely, redheads require greater amounts of anaesthetic during surgical procedures. This is thought to be connected to a hormonal receptor found in redheaded individuals which is related to pain-relieving endorphins. Those whose hair is red, of a certain peculiar shade, are unmistakably vampires. It is significant that in ancient Egypt, as Manetho tells us, human sacrifices were offered at the grave of Osiris, and the victims were red-haired men who were burned, their ashes being scattered far and wide by winnowing-fans.
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BBSRC is pleased to have helped support the largest genetic study of human hair colour. It has provided some fascinating insights into what makes us such distinct individuals. We are very pleased that this work has unravelled most of the genetic variation contributing to differences in hair colour among people. Although almost everyone with red hair has two copies of the red-haired version of MC1R, not everyone carrying two red-haired versions is a redhead. Scientists knew there must be other genes involved but these have mostly remained a mystery until now. According to the largest ever study on hair genetics, at least 8 genes are involved in determining whether or not someone has red hair.
The 45th parallel north, running through central France, northern Italy and Croatia, appears to be a major natural boundary for red hair frequencies. Under the 45th parallel, the UV rays become so strong that it is no longer an advantage to have red hair and very fair skin. Under the 41th parallel, redheads become extremely rare, even in high R1b areas. It is hard to calculate the exact percentage of the population having red hair as it depends on how wide a definition one adopts. For example, should men with just partial red beards, but no red hair on the top of their heads be included or not? The southern and eastern boundaries, beyond which red hair only occurs in less than 1% of the population, are northern Spain, central Italy, Austria, western Bohemia, western Poland, Baltic countries and Finland.
People with red hair colour produce vitamin D more efficiently in less sunlight, making their bones stronger and leaving women more likely to survive pregnancy and childbirth in primitive times. Nowadays, the recessive gene thrives mainly in Scotland, Ireland and Scandinavia, leading to theconfusion surrounding its origin. After all, there weren’t a lot of Viking warriors who were naturally blond, and genetic studies on Vikings continue to highlight that there was a mixture of blonds, dark haired, and red haired people as you would find today. The only difference is that where you would find red haired Vikings would vastly depend on where you were located.
Southwest Norway is unique amongst the Scandinavian countries for the emergence of red hair which some feel justifies the portrayal of Vikings as red-haired. However, genetic analysis suggests that the genes dictating red hair in Norway was brought back there from Ireland and Scotland by Viking raiders. Instead, the origins of red hair have been traced back to the Steppes of Central Asia as much as 100,000 years ago. The haplogroup of modern redheads indicates that their earliest ancestors migrated to the steppes from the Middle East because of the rise of herding during the Neolithic revolution. The Steppes were the perfect grazing lands for the herds of the agriculturists. Unfortunately, however, the lower UV levels of the area limited their bodies’ ability to synthesize vitamin D.
"Families can carry a variant for generations, and when one carrier has children with another carrier, a redheaded baby can appear seemingly out of nowhere." Wilson said, as quoted in the Daily Mail. A study suggests that redheads are resistant to the effects of analgesics, such as subcutaneous lidocaine, and are also more sensitive to pain from cold or heat. Redheads have a mutated version of the very same gene that causes the gene to make faulty or no MC1 receptors. This is called a loss-of-function mutation and leads to the increased production of pheomelanin. On the other hand, deactivating or inhibiting the MC1R gene will have quite the opposite effect. Your melanocytes will have fewer or no MC1 receptors, which will cause an increase in the production of pheomelanin, meaning that you’ll end up with a fair complexion and red-orange hair.
Folkmoor: Red Hair - The Moorlander
Folkmoor: Red Hair.
Posted: Mon, 15 Nov 2021 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Red hair, occurring in just 1 to 2 percent of the population, is the least common. Dr Kat Arney finds out where it comes from, if it can change the way we feel pain, and whether redheads are really endangered. And a widely reported study from the Journal of the American Dentistry Association found that redheads are more sensitive to pain and require extra anesthesia during surgery, according to ABC News.
The origins of haplogroup R1b are complex, and shrouded in controversy to this day. This theory also happens to be the only one that explains the presence of red hair among the Udmurts, Central Asians and Tarim mummies. In Ancient Greek myths, redheads were said to turn into vampires after death, and, during the 16th and 17th centuries, most women who were branded as witches had red hair. Somewhere around 45,000 red-haired women are estimated to have been burned as witches, during the trials, which is a considerable portion of the population.
We can also appreciate the science behind the various shades of red hair pigmentation, and how factors such as age, hormones, and sun exposure can influence the color. To survive their environment, people living in northern regions, in general, had begun to evolve to suit their environment and to allow their bodies more access to the limited light. A mutation occurred in a gene known as M1CR which caused hair color not merely to lighten but to change entirely- to red.
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