"Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life.
Don't be trapped by Dogma which is living with the results of other people's thinking.
Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your inner voice.
And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become."
- Steve Jobs

Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Redhead facts & myths

Good Lord I should go into hiding!

  1. Red hair is seen on the heads of only four percent of people. Most of these exist in the U.K., the Republic of Ireland, and Australia.
  2. There is a belief that redheads are prone to industrial deafness. This actually could be true as the melanocytes are found in the middle ear.
  3. A 2002 study found that redhead are harder to sedate than any other people requiring twenty percent more anesthesia. Inadequate doses cause people to wake up during surgery and have increased recall of procedures.
  4. In the late 16th century, the fat of a redheaded man was an essential ingredient for poison.
    The Egyptians regarded the color as so unlucky that they had a ceremony in which they burned red-headed maidens alive to wipe out the tint.
  5. An Irish judge in 2001 fined a man for disorderly conduct stating "I am a firm believer that hair coloring has an effect on temper and your coloring suggests you have a temper."
  6. Redheads have always been thought untrustworthy. Judas is most always depicted as a redhead displaying the prejudice against red hair.
  7. Adolph Hitler reportedly banned the marriages of two redheads as he feared their children would be "deviant offspring".
  8. Red haired children have been historically branded as offspring of "unclean" sex. This has earned them taunts such as "red-knob" or "tampon tops."
  9. Bees are thought to sting redheads more than others.
  10. In Denmark it is an honor to have a redheaded child.
  11. In Corsica, if you pass a redhead in the street you are to spit and turn around.
  12. In Poland, if you pass three red-heads you'll win the state lottery.
  13. In Greek Mythology, redheads turn into Vampires when they die.
  14. During the Spanish Inquisition flame colored hair was evidence that its owner had stolen the fire of hell and had to be burned as a witch.
  15. Russian tradition declares that red hair is both a sign that a person holds a fiery temper and craziness.
  16. A Russian Proverb warns "There was never a saint with red hair."
  17. Aristotle was known to believe that redheads were emotionally unhousebroken.
  18. A French Proverb states that "redheaded women are either violent or false, and usually are both." 

See also: 

Redheads are vampires, and other interesting myths

DNA project aims to count Scots redheads

Is gingerism as bad as racism?

Redheaded donors are being turned away at sperm bank

Understand Red Head Genetics - cool but nerdy reading!

37 comments:

neyney said...

Aww rubbish. I'm a redhead with blue eyes. Yes I'm a bit deaf but that comes from all the loud rock concerts I used to attend. My temper is no worse than anyone else's and if I'm a witch then I need to learn to cast more lucrative spells. It's all nonsense however the prejudice against us "gingers" isn't. I still get the occasional insult related to my hair color. It's insane in this day and age.

Restless Cynicism said...

People are afraid of the Unusual. We redheads are now so few and far between we appear unusual :D Everyone else is a boring blonde or brunette!

Anonymous said...

Blondes may have more fun but Red Heads get all the attention.
Plus we turn in to vampires and live for ever

morganwhit said...

i am as well a redhead with blue eyes. and at school i have gad people come up to me (that i dont even know) and have told me that i have no soul because i am a "ginger" my natrual hair color is no where near a ginger color. it is more of a deep redish...

TyGerr4 said...

aha people used to..well still do call me ginger all the time, and it's kinda funny becasue they all think it bothers me:P haha my two best friends are twins with red hair so i dont really care,

and i think a orange hair and blue eyes would look awesome to tell you the truth:) i have orange hair, and my eyes are Amber, girls think it's adorable so

Heaven's_misfortune said...

Psh.
I'm a redhead with eyes that match, so I get pretty weird comments all the time...
I haven't heard anyone lately asking if I was going to turn into a vampire after death. However, the Rusian person was pretty acurate.
I probably will go deaf since I listen to heavy metal and screamo all the time, and Arestotle is just plain crazy! I AM emotionally sound.

Dr. Doris Jeanette said...

Please tell me which Greek myth you are talking about. Never read it and want to read the source.

Thanks,

Doris Jeanette

Violette♫♪ said...

I, too, am cursed with a life of red hair, and friendly banning from hair-dye. My friends and parents have banded together to prevent me from Dying, or whacking off my hair. Terrible. And just for that, I hope that I do end a bloodsucker, and vengence will be mine upon my 'buds'.

Dustin Corbiere said...

Redheaded-ness is not a curse. I love my red hair, not to say I haven't dyed it before. And people should be fine with whatever you decide to do because it's your decision in the end. I had people ragging on me for wanting to change my hair colour, but I still did it. Because I wanted to.

Unknown said...

Haha i thought it was brilliant reading these myths, people were generally scared of us and obviously though we were unhuman, i love my red hair, will never dye it and i have a bad temper =P its all good! love it!

Unknown said...

I am a Redhead with auburn eyes.
I'd say all redheads are unique. More unique then brunets and blonds.

Kellie said...

Red Heads Unite!!! :) Blondes are boring. I think many brunettes are beautiful, but the true beauty of a redhead is immeasurable.... And growing up as 'different' gives us a certain understanding and compassion throughout our lives. I love my hair, but I just wish I could stay in the sun for more than 10 minutes without burning!!!
And ladies, we all know that MANY men adore redheads ;)

ekaweds said...

You know what, when people are idle this is what they think of. They think of these crazy stupid ideas which separate humanity instead of bringing them together. I think we have so much on our plate. But all you hear and see are people arguing about who is better according our look. No matter how we look we are all human, Period. And how we behave or however we are it is not right to generalize it to everyone who looks that way. I think now it’s time to move on and start thinking ahead and not how it used to be. Let’s think like adult now. What are we teaching our kids with this kind of stuff? I am black and God knows how I love redhead. You know what nobody chose to be born the way we are. Nobody chose to be black, redhead, Asian, Latino or whatever you could think of.

thornedRose said...

I am a 45yr young redhead, with auburn hair and amber eyes.
I love my uniqueness and love seeing other redheads, especially when they enjoy their beauty.
I also compliment every redheaded child I meet, to attempt to build their egos. Ive woken in 2 surgeries, bees love me, also wasps, but have only been stung when I stepped one as a child, the hearing problem plagues me, have the double whammy of being a redheaded scorpio. FUN! ...ummm, thats scarcasm, in case a blondes reading this! lol
Blondes have more fun, Brunettes have better, but its Hell keeping up with us Redheads!!!

Unknown said...

Haha, I'm a redhead and I love my hair color! A lot of my school mates say that my hair looks more orange than red XD But whatever! And some of these things are true about me; my hearing kind of sucks! XD Girls in my Polish school tell me I should dye my hair, but I never will! I'm a proud redhead, and I love bein' proud!

Dominic Moccia RPA-C said...

I unfortunately am not a red head, but I love the gingers=) Im actually in a relationship with one and I think you guys and gals rock! All us non-gingers are just a little jealous cuz you guys get to be crazy awesome while we're just boring.

Unknown said...

OMG!! name is Dominique! and im a read head... i just thought it was cool cause we have sorta the same name :D
haha

Unknown said...

im a read head!
and im luvin it :D

Tegansmommy3310 said...

my daughter(10 months) is a redhead and has green eyes i tell her everyday how beautiful her hair is and how beautiful she is. i hate that people make fun of redheads. people sould stop and take a look and how beautiful the red hair is

Unknown said...

wow! im just amazed about how people can be proud to be a redhead, i mean im am at times i am but im 13 and in middle school and get teased sooo much and i hate it. they call me names, bully me, and i hate how the other girls who are blonde think im stupid...Ha i get straight A's. But still i have bright red hair(which makes my skin look even more pale!!) and bright blue eyes ughh sometimes i hate it. but other times im happey to have red hair because poeple who are smart know that when everyone get older people will wish that they had red hair. well peace out girl scouts!!!

firetown said...

most rhesus negatives have reddishness in their hair

Mike
www.rhesusnegative.net

Anonymous said...

I'd be curious to know if you've run across any myths/superstitions regarding redheads in Japan. I'm a new england native working in Japan and I get stopped all the time in Tokyo. I have auburn to strawberry blonde hair with brown eyes, however the teenage/twenty-something set in Japan tends to dye their hair to pretty much my color - they are astounded to see it naturally here, even if I am a westerner. If anyone has any insight on this I'd love to hear it!

reynolds5942 said...

Haha My name is Thomas james cliffton Reynolds. My brothers and I all have Red hair and not blue but BROWN (Not Auburn but Brown) eyes. Maybe it's because my older brother is well know, or because my little brother is such a pimp. Haha kids may call us gingers or fire crotch but kids would be dumb to take it too far and push uss to the limit. Red heads are crazy not only in bed either, haha. maybe morrison colorado is just one of those civilliazed places.

magda said...

hey i`m the same red head and when i was a young girl i was hate it coz of comments and i couldnt understand why older ppl keep telling me that i`m the lucky one but now i can say - YES i am the lucky one and unique and im proud of it and i would never belive how many guys love it.
my experience shows me that some things are right here... like about anaesthesia and hair colour changes.
also i believe that we are the happiest and luckiest ppl from all

magda said...

when ppl are young they don`t like to see someone different than they are but when they become older they are jealous to ppl like us and try to be similar but natural is natural and im sooooooooo happy `im naturally red head.

Redhead4ever said...

Being a natural red head for 58 years now is one of the highlights of my life! I hated it as a child for all the obvious reasons but if I could go back and find all the nasty people who made nasty remarks I would simply say.....Pssstttt can't touch this! Eat your hearts out!

SB said...

I'm an "older" redhead and yes I got teased a lot in elementary school until I learned to defend myself and started to fight them; then I got tagged a rabid animal but people left me alone. Bullying is just bullying it doesn't matter WHY.

Funny thing is that as soon as I was of dating age they seemed to be standing in line to get a chance to go out with me.

Now I have three daughters who have all done modeling; two of them redheads. One is the brightest copper that I've personally ever seen and the other is a dark auburn (both blue eyes and freckles).

Red hair is rare and anything rare is more valuable. So deal with it.
We have a blast, we're special and we know it and just like my mom used to tell me "they're just jealous".

Just don't cross us.

Mountain Mama said...

Happy redhead here. I have never really hated my hair for the color, but dang I can go without the frizz. I have a dark red so maybe that was why I was not really teased too bad in school. But as an adult, the men line up, so something is working. Oh hazel eyes here.

Anonymous said...

Red hair, hazel eyes, lots of freckles, and everyone teases and bullies cause of it..but anyway. I LOVE MY HAIR AND DONT CARE WHAT ANYONE ELSE THINKS! REDHEAD AND PROUD! Lol peace out!

demwem said...

I'm 38 & I'm a natural red head with blue eyes. As a kid I was tormented as an adult all I hear is compliments from men & women. I love being unique. The shade of my hair has changed over time but I've never had a grey hair. I'm smart, independent & full of sassiness. People know when I mean business & clear the way when I become angry. I also am the one my friends & family lean on & trust with their secrets. Before today I never heard the untrustworthy stuff due to Judas. I have a high pain tolerance & mental endurance level. Bottom line I love being me!

SarahG said...

Im 18 and all my life people have pretty much always adored me and the way that i look. Random people i don't know are always giving me compliments and asking me tons of questions.my friends have group discussions of how they wish they could look like me. its been a crazy consistent thing in my life. And some people do tend to think I'm a bit of a vampire. LOL. or and angel. oh ye, my hair is bright kinda orange, pale blue eyes like the ocean, so i've been told.

UbiquitousGinger said...

I'm 17, copper hair with eyes to match, and I love being a redhead. I know that when you're younger you're more susceptible to teasing, but honestly I've found that as you grow older it's more lighthearted and I actually enjoy the "banter" that comes with being a redheaded girl. People (especially other girls) are always telling me how lucky I am to have interesting and beautiful hair, and honestly I think it's a major part of who I am- you'd be surprised at the amount of guys I know who are totally obsessed with gingers! Although it comes with both pros and cons, I would never dye my hair and encourage all those who are finding school or the bullying or whatever difficult- soon you will learn to appreciate the flames :P

Unknown said...

I'm a 15 year old, naturally-born redhead and i hate it how others bully us a lot more than others. I've grown up getting bullied or sorta separated. In 7th grade, i even had kids talking about me wearing a wig, I don't know who started it or why but who ever it was is very stupid or very jealous. I'm proud of being a redhead even though I have thought about dying it once... or twice in the past.

Restless Cynicism said...

Don't ever dye it, look how stunning Christina Hendricks is http://www.nypost.com/pagesixmag/issues/20081012/images/Features/hendricks/1.jpg I read an article about a redhead who bleached her hair for over 20 years and by the time she decided to be red and proud her hair would only grow back a muddy brown and she sooo regretted dyeing it!

Unknown said...

38 and it was tough growing up a red head with blue eyes.. Children can be cruel, but I'm glad it made me into the man i am today...
Once reaching adult hood I've had no problems picking up women except they always fall for me too fast...sad for them really... To any young reds out there smile and bask in knowing you will own them when you come of age...

Unknown said...

Red headed amber eyed leo! The fire in me is roaring with pride an im hotter than hell. I could make make a bomb fire wet it's self :D

Unknown said...

Well I was teased my whole life especially growing up in Brooklyn NY. But I've also received countless compliments on my red hair. I wrote lefty and my Catholic school forced me to use my right hand. I must say life as a red head has been special for my 44 years but certainly not without its problems in the form of prejudice. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯