It's perfectly legal and acceptable to pick on red heads

[~°2012°~]

It's perfectly legal and acceptable in our society to pick on people with the most Germanic features.

What emerges is a fascinating portrait of gingerdom. They talk about their resentments, defensiveness, the stereotype of a fiery character (of course, it's not genetic, most say, it's because of what we've been through), their weariness, their suspicions of fellow gingers ("Would we produce weird looking kids?"), the difference between ginger men and women (the consensus is that it is easier to be a ginger woman), the prominence of gingers among Celts (Scotland has the world's highest percentage, at 13, followed by Ireland with 10), the tensions between fighting and embracing gingerness, analysis of the word itself, and ultimately the sense of solidarity this genetic minority share. David Snoo Wilson, who makes an astonishing orb with hair, beard and mouth, says, "I remember being at primary school and hanging together with a few other gingers and forming a ginger club. I must have been about seven. There were three or four of us ..." He pauses and grins. "It wasn't the biggest club in the world."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/jan/24/gingerism-ginger-prejudice

[Skandi]

There are campaigns to save the ginger, and to encourage gingers to replicate themselves (both parents have to carry the ginger gene to have a chance of producing a ginger child).

My friend and I were jokingly going to set up a "save the gingers club" although I suppose that would meann breeding with him! (We're both redhead)

[~°2012°~]

"They are teased, bullied - and heading for extinction."
I must admit it makes me really angry and sad watching people of Germanic ethnic background bullying and attacking members of their own race for no other reason other than they look ..well ..Germanic. :sad:

[Vargtand]

Hmm I can't say I can relate to this...

at least not when I was a kid nor now when I am an adult have I ever encountered resentment towards red-heads.. hell people did not pay attention to that when I was in school.. at all. Maybe it is more predominant in more ethnical diverse regions... (I went to a well 95% ethnic Swede school 3 adopted children, Negros they are but still adopted and the rest of the percentage fins..)

[Treffie]

Gingers won't become extinct, it's due to a recessive gene which means it'll pop up from time to time. :thumb001:

[Osweo]

Gingers won't become extinct, it's due to a recessive gene which means it'll pop up from time to time. :thumb001:

Popping up in Mulattos and Quadroons, aye, the way things are going. They won't be quite the same... :(

I'm a carrier, by the way, so if Thrymheim and her mate rethink the breeding programme, you know where to find me. 50% chance redhead kid, 100% tall dark and handsome means to that end... :p;)

[Jägerstaffel]

Hmm I can't say I can relate to this...

at least not when I was a kid nor now when I am an adult have I ever encountered resentment towards red-heads.. hell people did not pay attention to that when I was in school.. at all. Maybe it is more predominant in more ethnical diverse regions... (I went to a well 95% ethnic Swede school 3 adopted children, Negros they are but still adopted and the rest of the percentage fins..)

I think it's a UK thing. We never treated red-heads differently here in the US either.

[Beorn]

We never took the piss out of the ginger kid in our school as he was the hardest.

I recently found out I had a great-great-Grandfather who was ginger, so that explains the ginger tinged beard and hair. :D

[~°2012°~]

Gingers won't become extinct, it's due to a recessive gene which means it'll pop up from time to time. :thumb001:

Good to know. We have many red haired people here in Iceland (still) and those I know are very spirited and beautiful and life just wouldn't be the same without them.

[Galloglaich]

There are campaigns to save the ginger, and to encourage gingers to replicate themselves (both parents have to carry the ginger gene to have a chance of producing a ginger child)


...I'm a carrier, by the way, so if Thrymheim and her mate rethink the breeding programme, you know where to find me. 50% chance redhead kid, 100% tall dark and handsome means to that end... :p;)

My wife and I are both carriers (although we both express to varying degrees). I guess there's something wrong with us, but we were actually hoping that one of our children expressed serious rufiosity. Alas, our children went the blonde route, but I really would have liked it if at least one of them had some more red. I don't understand the whole "ginger" thing.

[Treffie]

Distribution of red hair in Europe


Geographic distribution

Historical

Several accounts by Greek writers detail redheaded people. A fragment by the Greek poet Xenophanes describes the Thracians as blue-eyed and red haired. The Greek historian Herodotus described the "Budini", probably Udmurts and Permyak Finns located on the Volga in what is modern-day Russia, as being predominantly redheaded. The Greek historian Dio Cassius described Boudica, the famous Celtic Queen of the Iceni, to: "be tall and terrifying in appearance ... a great mass of red hair ... over her shoulders".

The Roman Tacitus commented on the "red hair and large limbs of the inhabitants of Caledonia (Scotland)",[4] which he linked with some red haired Gaulish tribes of Germanic and Belgic relation.

Red hair has also been found in Asia, notably among the Tocharians who occupied the northwesternmost province of what is modern-day China. The 2nd millennium BC caucasian Tarim mummies in China were found with red and blonde hair and most likely were of European origin.[5]



Modern

Today, red hair is most commonly found at the western fringes of Europe; it is associated particularly with the people of the British Isles (although Victorian era ethnographers claimed that the Udmurt people of the Volga were "the most red-headed men in the world").[6]

Redheads constitute approximately four percent of the European population.[7] Scotland has the highest proportion of redheads, as 13 percent of the population has red hair and approximately 40 percent carries the recessive redhead gene.[8] Ireland has the second highest percentage; as many as 10 percent of the Irish population have red, auburn, or strawberry blond hair.[9] It is thought that up to 46 percent of the Irish population carries the recessive redhead gene. Red hair reaches frequencies of up to 10 percent in Wales.[10] In England, the county of Cornwall, the far north, near the Scottish border, and the counties of Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire also have significant proportions of redheads.

In the United States, anywhere from two to six percent of the population is estimated to have red hair. This would give the U.S. the largest population of redheads in the world, at 6 to 18 million, compared to approximately 650,000 in Scotland and 420,000 in Ireland.

Red or reddish-tinged hair is also found in other European populations particularly in the Nordic and Baltic countries as well as parts of the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, Russia and South Slavic countries.

[Birka]

"They are teased, bullied - and heading for extinction."
I must admit it makes me really angry and sad watching people of Germanic ethnic background bullying and attacking members of their own race for no other reason other than they look ..well ..Germanic. :sad:

My ginger brother was the biggest, strongest and fastest kid growing up. He was the star football and basketball player in high school. NO one ever fooled with him. He sired 3 blond children by the way.

Oh, my son is a ginger. I have dark brown hair (now salt and pepper gray) but I grow a red beard and mustache.

[Beorn]

I don't understand the whole "ginger" thing.

Although the British Isles holds the greatest numbers of Gingers, the colour of hair is still in the minority.
As with all things in life, the minorities get singled out for ridicule and abuse.

I believe the media doesn't help the matter in portraying gingers as globally ugly and stupid, whilst other hair colours are deemed brilliant and beautiful.

'Ging-gers' are a hit and miss affair when it comes to beauty, but when you come across a redhead with beauty.....:eek:...you can stuff the rest. :D

[Jägerstaffel]

We never took the piss out of the ginger kid in our school as he was the hardest.

I recently found out I had a great-great-Grandfather who was ginger, so that explains the ginger tinged beard and hair. :D

My great-Grandfather was quite the Scotsman. A ginger with a handlebar mustache. Nothing more cool than that.

My facial hair has a tinge of red too, and I'm proud of it. Our beloved Red-beard himself; the God of Thunder; I assume has no qualms with his ginger locks.

[Beorn]

Our beloved Red-beard himself; the God of Thunder; I assume has no qualms with his ginger locks.

Haha! Yes, indeed! I often forget that Thor had red hair.

Always the explanation for the terrible temper of redheads and one cool family tree to boot.

We are all descended from Thor himself!! :D

[Jägerstaffel]

Had red hair?

Has, my friend. :)

[Skandi]

I'm a carrier, by the way, so if Thrymheim and her mate rethink the breeding programme, you know where to find me. 50% chance redhead kid, 100% tall dark and handsome means to that end... :p;)

:love_4:


:eek:

LOL

Reminds me of a conversation I had with a Canadian, who didn't quite understand the way we Brits use the word mate! Lead to an interesting discussion.

[Lady L]

I never heard of all this " ginger " stuff...:p

When I was a kid me and my mom would always get stopped by strangers talking about my hair...:cool:...they always said it looked like a penny..the color. :) My hair has always been auburn red, my son is blond but my daughter ended up with a strawberry blonde. :)

And, I think redheads are looked at a bit differently. Maybe w/ a bit of wonder..?;)