Red hair is caused by a mutation in the MC1R gene and is recessive, meaning both parents must carry a red hair gene for there to be a 25% chance of having a redheaded child. This makes natural red hair quite rare globally, occurring in only 1-2% of the world’s population.
What causes red hair?
Red hair is caused by a genetic mutation in the MC1R gene, which regulates melanin production. Melanin is the pigment that gives hair and skin its color. People with red hair have two copies of a recessive gene variant that causes the MC1R gene to produce a reddish type of melanin called pheomelanin instead of darker eumelanin.
Since the red hair version of the MC1R gene is recessive, a person needs to inherit two copies of it – one from each parent – to have red hair. If someone inherits just one copy, they will be a carrier but have brown or black hair.
How common is red hair worldwide?
Globally, only 1-2% of the population has natural red hair. However, the percentage varies widely across continents and ethnicities:
Europe
Red hair is most common in northern and western European populations, where on average 4-6% of people have red hair:
| Country | Redheads |
|---|---|
| Scotland | 13% |
| Ireland | 10% |
| Wales | 6% |
| England | 4% |
| Germany | 3% |
| Netherlands | 4% |
| Denmark | 4% |
| Sweden | 4% |
| Iceland | 5% |
| Norway | 4% |
In contrast, red hair is rare in southern and eastern European countries like Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Poland, with only 0-2% having red hair.
Asia
Red hair is extremely rare among native Asian populations and is virtually unseen in East Asians and Southeast Asians. The exception is South Asia, where red hair regularly occurs:
| Country | Redheads |
|---|---|
| India | 2% |
| Pakistan | 2% |
| Bangladesh | 1% |
| Sri Lanka | 2% |
This is due to South Asian groups like the Nuristani having some Western Eurasian ancestry where red hair genetic variants originated.
Africa
Natural red hair is extremely rare among native African populations and essentially absent. The only exception is North Africa, where red hair occurs in Berber and other communities with Eurasian ancestry at frequencies of 0-2%.
Americas
In the Americas, red hair is rarest among Native American and Latin American populations and more common among North Americans and Oceanians of European descent:
| Country | Redheads |
|---|---|
| USA | 2-6% |
| Canada | 2-5% |
| Australia | 6-10% |
| New Zealand | 6-12% |
This reflects settlement history, as red hair originated in Western Eurasia.
Is red hair going extinct?
Some speculate that red hair will disappear over time due to being a recessive trait. However, there is no evidence it is headed toward extinction. Red hair frequency has remained stable in most European and South Asian populations over the past century.
While some small declines have occurred in places like England (from ~5% to ~4%), overall red hair does not appear to be rapidly vanishing. The trait has persisted for thousands of years and will likely continue at roughly similar frequencies over the next century barring any extreme population shifts.
However, red hair may become quite rare someday in the distant future through genetic drift. But in the near future, redheads are not going away.
Conclusion
In summary, red hair is globally quite uncommon, occurring naturally in only 1-2% of the world’s population. The trait reaches peak frequencies of 10-13% in Scotland, Ireland, and scattered South Asian groups. But across most of Asia, Africa, and the Americas, red hair is extraordinarily rare to nonexistent among native populations. While the trait may gently decline in places like England, there is no evidence redheads are going extinct anytime soon.