The other day my sister mentioned to me that she couldn’t believe how many redheads she saw during a trip Ireland. After living in Ireland myself for five years, I had to disagree with her. In my quest to find out if there really are redheads aplenty in Ireland, I discovered all sorts of interesting facts, myths, and stereotypes about them. Here’s what I found:

♣ Throughout history, redheads have been stigmatized and seen as suspicious characters with fiery personalities and unstoppable tempers. There’s even an old Irish superstition that says that if you should see a redhead on the street, turn around and go straight home because your day has been cursed with bad luck.

♣ Some believe that the redhead negative connotation stems all the way back from the famously brutal warriors the Celts whose population allegedly had many redheads. Source

♣ Redheads are discriminated against still today. In 2007 a woman in England successfully sued her boss for sexist and “ginger” abuse (this is how people in the UK, Ireland, and Australia often describe redheads) and was awarded $35,000 compensation. Source

♣ A few years ago several media outlets inaccurately cited a study from the Oxford Hair Foundation which stated that by 2060 redheads will be no longer. The truth is that redheads are not going extinct. In order for this to happen all carriers of the recessive gene MC1R which causes red hair would either have to fail to reproduce or die. This is not going to happen and therefore redheads may reduce in number but will still be around for a very long time. Source

♣ It’s true: Red haired people need more anesthesia than other people. A study at the University of Louisville found that redheads on average need 20% more anesthesia to cope with pain. To read more about this on one of my favourite websites Howstuffworks.com, click here.

♣ Finally, let’s talk numbers. 13% of the Scottish population is said to have red hair. It’s believed that almost 50% of the Irish population carry the recessive redhead gene and 10% of the population actually has red hair. Red hair is also prevalent in Wales with a 10% redhead population. And lastly it’s estimated that over 6 million people in the United States have red hair (though some say it’s as high as 18%). Source

With over 400,000 redheads in Ireland, it seems my sister is right.

Image Source 1; Image Source 2

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1. The Bayrisch And The Irish
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3. Ireland: Did you know? Part IV