We’ve all heard the saying that the eyes are “the mirror ofthe soul,” but could this idea bemore concrete than wethought? What isthe real story behind your eye color, and where did the slew ofseemingly endless shades really come from? Whatever the answer maybe, one thing’s for sure, eye color isentirely unique, like afingerprint. Thatis, nobody else has exactly the same eye color asyou. Infact, some recent studies show that our eye color ismuch more complex than weonce thought.
The recent findings sparked the curiosity ofthe Bright Side team, sowedecided totake acloser look into the secrets behind different eye colors.
Brown eyes existed before all others.
However strange itmay sound, all people had only brown eyes atone point inhistory. Then, one day, agenetic mutation happened inthe gene that determines the color ofthe eyes. This mutation reduced the production ofmelanin tothe point where itwasn’t enough tocolor the eyes brown— and that’s how blue eyes first came inexistence.
Today, brown isstill the most widespread eye color inthe world. Thanks tohigher levels ofmelanin, brown eyes are more resistant tosome types ofeye diseases. Light brown eyes are most common inthe Americas, West Asia, and Europe, while dark brown eyes are most frequently found inAfrica, Southeast Asia, and East Asia.
All blue-eyed people have acommon ancestor.
Asingle mutation inthe genes that produce melanin gaveus countless variations ofblues, greens, grays, and hazels. What’s more, this genetic mutation has been linked toone common ancestor. Scientists believe that this ancestor was aEuropean from the Black Sea region who probably lived between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago.
The percentage ofblue-eyed people inEurope today ranges between20% and40% while only8% to10% ofpeople worldwide have blue eyes. Blue eyes are most common inNorthern Europe. Arelatively high percentage (27%) ofblue-eyed people inAmerica ispartially thanks toAmericans with Eastern European, Irish, and British ancestry.
Eye color evolution corresponds toour ancestors’ migrations.
Scientists theorize that the evolution ofeye color corresponds tothe migrations ofour ancestors from warmer tocolder climates. Today, the widest variety ofeye colors can befound among the Europeans, ranging from light blue todark brown. The reason why dark-colored eyes are more common inhotter climates, such asAsia and Africa, ismelanin, which protects the eyes from the sun andUV damage.
Less than1% ofpeople have gray eyes.
Until recently, itwas believed that asingle gene was responsible for the color ofour eyes. But, asitturned out, there are about 16genes atplay when determining eye color, which can produce some rare and unique hues, like gray. Although gray eyes may appear “blue” atfirst glance, unlike pure blue eyes, they tend tohave specks ofbrown and gold.
Less than1% ofthe world’s population has gray eyes, which makes them one ofthe least common eye colors. The shades ofgray eyes may vary from greenish tosmokey blue tohazel-brown, which often depends onthe environment, especially lighting. They are most common inNorthern and Eastern Europe.
Fair-eyed people have abetter pain tolerance.
According toastudy that surveyed 58pregnant women, ladies with light-colored eyes have ahigher pain tolerance than those with brown orhazel eyes. Blue and green-eyed women experienced less discomfort while giving birth. Another interesting find was related topostpartum depression. Thanks tohaving less melanin, light-eyed women were less likely tofeel anxious and depressed than dark-eyed women.
Green ismost frequently found inNorthern and Central Europe.
With only2% ofthe world’s population having green eyes, this color isthe least common among natural eye colors. Although green eyes can occur naturally inall races, about16% ofpeople with green-eyed people are ofGermanic and Celtic ancestry. Tobemore precise, astaggering86% ofpeople from Ireland and Scotland have green eyes.
Amber eye color isamong the most unique colors.
Often called ’’golden eyes,’’ amber eyes belong tothe family of ’’brown’’ eyes, but they have acouple ofunique characteristics. What sets them apart from the group ofhazel and brown eyes isthe fact that they donot contain brown, orange, orgreen hues. Unlike hazel eyes that may appear tohave hints ofdifferent colors, the hue ofthe amber eyes isalways clear gold. People with amber-colored eyes often have Spanish, South American, South African, orAsian ancestry.
Hazel eyes are often confused with brown.
Depending onthe lighting, hazel eyes can seem light brown. However, they contain more diverse shades than brown eyes. Inhazel eyes, wecan usually see amix ofbrown, green, and amber that can appear assmall dots orrings inside the iris. People with hazel eyes have amoderate amount ofmelanin toaccount for these green and brown hues. About5% ofpeople have this eye color.
Although itnaturally occurs inall races, hazel eyes are most common inthose ofMiddle Eastern, Brazilian, Spanish, orNorth African descent. This isarelatively rare eye color, especially among people ofAfrican and Asian ancestry. The majority ofpeople born with this eye color probably have some Caucasian roots.
Less than1% ofthe population has different colored eyes.
Human eye color can appear infascinating variations, including some rare cases ofpeople having heterochromia, arare condition that affects less than1% ofthe population. Itoccurs asaresult ofthe uneven concentration ofmelanin inthe eyes. This can cause the eyes tohave partially orcompletely different colors. There are different causes for this condition, including genetics, some rare syndromes, orphysical injury tothe eye.
True black eyes don’t exist.
While some people’s eyes may seem black, they don’t really exist innature. People whose eyes appear black have very dark brown eyes that almost blend inwith the pupil, making them look black.
The reason why having black eyes would benaturally impossible isthat black objects have atendency toabsorb moreUV light than other colors. Because ofthis, wewould have major difficulties handling sunlight ifwehad completely black eyes. This would cause problems with vision and the deterioration ofeye health.
Does the shade ofyour eyes fit into any ofthese groups? Are you happy with your eye color, ordoyou sometimes wish itwas different?
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