Why do Europeans have blonde hair and blue eyes?

It seems like the same thing might have happened in northern Europe in the Ice Age. Around this time, humans were hunter-gatherers, so most men were off hunting for (and being killed by) wooly mammoths and such. For whatever reason, men in these populations developed a preference for blonde hair and blue eyes.

Why are blue eyes so common in Europe?

Blue eyes are most common in Europe, especially Scandinavia. People with blue eyes have the same genetic mutation that causes eyes to produce less melanin. The mutation first appeared in a person living in Europe about 10,000 years ago. That individual is a common ancestor of all blue-eyed people today.

Are blue eyes becoming rare?

Blue eyes are indeed becoming less common in the world. One study showed that about 100 years ago, half of U.S. residents had blue eyes. Nowadays only 1 in 6 does. In the past, blue-eyed people tended to have kids with other blue-eyed people.

Is blonde hair recessive?

The blond allele is recessive, and gets covered up. You can think of recessive alleles as t-shirts, and dominant ones as jackets. Since you have two copies of each gene, that means the only way to have a recessive feature like blond hair is for both of them to be the recessive allele.

Why do some people have blonde hair and blue eyes?

Blond hair and blue eyes are the result of having less brown pigment (melanin). Some genes that reduce melanin overall, cause people to have blond hair and blue eyes. In Northern regions of Europe, evolution seems to have favored blond hair and blue eyes for physiological and social reasons.

Are blonde hair and blue eyes recessive traits?

Your biology teacher is most certainly right that blonde hair and blue eyes are indeed recessive traits! There’s a few possible ways in which your friend ended up with blonde hair and blue eyes. Albinism can be ruled out if your friend is not light-skinned.

Should blonde hair and blue eyes be the dominant characteristics of Irish people?

They changed the course of Irish history and left a lasting legacy on the island’s gene pool, but blonde hair and blue eyes were often not their dominant distinguishing characteristics, a major international study has found – prompting the suggestion that some TV shows may have to rethink their casting calls.

What are the chances of having a blue eyed child?

And the chances of a blue eyed child are even higher if one of the parents has that recessive trait. Some traits are inextricably tied to your ancestry. Certain ethnicities share some traits more frequently than other groups. Traits like blonde hair and blue eyes occur most often in European countries — especially Northern Europe 2,3.