Original photo by Viorel Poparcea/ iStock
Just .17% of the global population — around 1 in 600 people — has red hair and blue eyes, making this pairing the rarest natural combination of hair and eye color. Each trait on its own is already unusual: Only 2% of the population has red hair and around 8% to 10% has blue eyes. Both traits are recessive, meaning a person must inherit the relevant gene variant from each parent for the trait to appear.
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It's a fibWhile many babies of European ancestry are born with blue or gray eyes that may darken over time, babies of African, Asian, and Hispanic descent are often born with brown eyes that stay brown.
Red hair is primarily caused by variants of the MC1R gene on chromosome 16. Those variants lead to greater production of the red pigment pheomelanin over the darker eumelanin, resulting in red hair, lighter skin, and often freckles as well. Blue eyes are influenced by several genes, the most important being OCA2 and a regulatory region of the HERC2 gene on chromosome 15. Variants in those genes reduce melanin in the iris, resulting in blue eye color.
Because they’re generally recessive, the traits can be passed down through generations before appearing in an offspring with the right genetic combination. This genetic alignment is more likely in people of Northern European ancestry, particularly in regions such as Ireland and Scotland.
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Many redheads are sensitive to ______ because the MC1R gene variant also affects how people perceive pain.
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Many redheads are sensitive to cold because the MC1R gene variant also affects how people perceive pain.
Elizabeth Taylor probably didn’t have violet eyes.
Actress Elizabeth Taylor was known for her striking eyes, which were often described as violet. While her natural eye color was more likely a deep blue, she enhanced the violet effect with purple-toned makeup, clothing, and careful lighting in films and photos, creating the illusion of a rare purple hue. She even extended the theme to her personal brand, naming one of her perfumes “Violet Eyes” to play up the mystique of her legendary gaze.
True purple eyes are extremely rare, though blue eyes can sometimes appear violet under certain lighting conditions. In very rare cases, people with forms of albinism may have violet eyes due to minimal pigment combined with visible blood vessels. But Taylor’s unforgettable eyes weren’t the result of a genetic mutation — it was the combination of her natural blue eyes, deliberate styling, and savvy branding that made them iconic.
Kristina is a coffee-fueled writer living happily ever after with her family in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia.
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