Are blue eyes really the most common eye colour in the U.K.?

[JuliTooley]

In my Sunday boredom I googled U.K. eye colour breakdown. I found a study from a few years ago that found blue eyes were the most common. Break down as follows:

Blue - 48%
Green - 30%
Brown - 22%

In contrast 90% of the world’s population has brown eyes 👀

Am I the only one surprised by this? I could have sworn brown was the most common and green was the rarest? I’m really not sure I believe it, especially as it misses out hazel.

It also said blue numbers are increasing due to natural selection.

Maybe my experience has been skewed by living exclusively in London and the South East all my life. Do these stats fit in with your experience?

I've got green, husband's are blue. One son has got blue, other son brown.

I guess green is more unusual with brown or blonde hair but I'm a redhead so green with red hair isn't that uncommon

Myself, DH and our kids have blue eyes.

Although I don't think it can be true.

@NotMyCat that's exactly what I think of when I think of someone with green eyes. I don't know why I'd associate red hair with them but it's the first thing that comes to mind.

In my family everyone has blue eyes except my mother who has brown, 1 brother who has Hazel, 2 of his children who have inherited brown eyes from both parents (sil has Spanish background), his other child has blue eyes and my youngest son.
I actually worked out that my youngest has a 0.2% chance of having brown eyes as its only his maternal grandmother who has brown eyes and everyone else has blue although I do have green spotches in my eyes and a brown ring and dot so I clearly carry the brown eye gene

@Bettybantz not in our house!
I have pale skin, red hair and blue eyes. Husband is Spanish, so darker skin, brown eyes and dark brown hair.
Our children are both blonde. One has hazel eyes and the other blue!

All blue eyes here, even the cat.

Depends on your genetics. Brown eyes are dominant in much of the world but not Northern European decent people

Green comes in lots of different shades. Not just cat coloured! I am related to two people with green eyes, very different from each other's, but green nonetheless. I know a few others with green eyes. Mine are very dark blue and, weirdly, have been mistaken for brown loads of times. Doesn't mean they're not blue though!

So anyway, I have blue eyes. DP has brown eyes. Both our children have blue eyes. So blue is the most common colour in our house

We're all blue or green in this house.

DGM - blue
DM - Green
DF - blue
Me - green
DB - blue, SIL - Hazel, DB's kids x 3 - blue

I have hazel eyes and OH has green
Dd1 has hazel and dd2 has blue eyes.

I find it bizarre people say they've never seen green eyes, or are mine hazel. Apols horrible 9 month post-roast cooking sweaty face!

I'm sure if it's a decently carried out study it is true. My dad is North African and there are plenty of blue eyes there too! My mum's side is Irish and they are all blue or green eyed.

Our family is 3/4 green (kids and I) and DH has lovely brown eyes which I've always found far more interesting/pretty. But really I think it's the shape of an eye that makes it attractive not the colour.

*9 month pregnant post-roast cooking face that is. Haven't been cooking a roast for 9 months.

Are there regional differences?

My parents, grandparents, sister and DS have blue eyes, as do I. Different shades of blue, but still blue. DH had blue eyes, DSS has blue eyes as does his DW. My DGD has blue eyes. Very unscientific but in our family, we have no other eye colour.

@VienneseWhirligig

My parents, grandparents, sister and DS have blue eyes, as do I. Different shades of blue, but still blue. DH had blue eyes, DSS has blue eyes as does his DW. My DGD has blue eyes. Very unscientific but in our family, we have no other eye colour.

The different shades of blue is interesting isn’t it? Me, 3 of my kids, my sister, her kids, brother, his kids ALL have different shades of blue.

Genetics is fascinating.

@PooWillyNameChange

*9 month pregnant post-roast cooking face that is. Haven't been cooking a roast for 9 months.

Well apart from the bun in the oven😆

I have blue as do both my dses. Dp has brown.
My parents - 1 blue, 1 green.
Dp's parents - 1 blue, 1 brown

I wouldn't have thought so but now you mention, all of us in my household have blue eyes. My dad did, my mum didn't. I had one sibling with and one without. So on balance, most of us have blue eyes.

Is there some bias here - would people with coloured eyes be more likely to complete polls about eye colour considering British society trains us that brown eyes are nothing special?

Well they are all coloured aren’t they?

@Ozanj

Is there some bias here - would people with coloured eyes be more likely to complete polls about eye colour considering British society trains us that brown eyes are nothing special?

British society trains us that brown eyes are nothing special? I must’ve missed that memo.

@Ozanj

Is there some bias here - would people with coloured eyes be more likely to complete polls about eye colour considering British society trains us that brown eyes are nothing special?

Yeah, blue is most common in my house:
Dh and ds are blue, dh bright, ds navy
I'm hazel but more amber than brown tones

However wider family:
Df and db are dark dark brown, almost black
Dm is grey/blue
Mil is blue
Fil and sil are both green

I have brown, DH and both DS have blue. My biological mother had blue eyes, so I passed the blue gene down to the kids, even though I don’t have blue eyes myself.