Why have I got blonde hair and no one else in my family has?

[Mincepiesforeyes]

I had white blonde hair as a child, now it’s still very light as an adult. I occasionally highlight it, but it’s still blonde without dye.

No one in my family has blonde hair ! I honestly thought I was adopted as a child.
My mum had very dark hair (now grey), my dad the same, almost jet black in wedding photos of them. My brother has very dark brown hair. My maternal grandmother had naturally jet black hair, my maternal grandfather had dark hair, my paternal grandmother had auburn hair and my paternal grandfather had dark brown hair too!

How does this work?!
My son takes after me with white blonde hair though.

White blond (though his eyesight is shit, too!)

I've heard of and seen dark haired people having blonde children and dark skinned having a light skinned baby due to paler genes being recessive. But our second son is the opposite.

There are 20+ genes controlling hair and skin colour. They are very close together so will often be inherited together, but not always. Each individual gene has recessive/dominant alleles so the possible combinations are many.

You are more likely to see an unusual combination when the recessive genes become unhidden, e.g. the classic example of red hair skipping multiple generations in a family occurs because someone inherited all the recessive genes from both sides; but if both parents have only a few 'dark' genes the offspring can still inherit all of them and look quite different.

Our daughter and son in law have mid and very dark brown (almost black) hair respectively and their child has Viking, flaxen hair,

@SplendidDaysInTheGarden

Regessive gene

This. Which is how we, both dark-haired brown-eyed and right-handed, have two blue-eyed, left-handed kids. One of which is strawberry blond.

My late father had red hair, light. Actually orange like carrots. Mother had very dark hair, almost black. One sibling has blonde hair and one of my twins has blonde hair. The other twin has auburn hair, same as me.

My full sister is 4 11" and I'm 5 11". Genetics are weird.

My DC is blonde with blue eyes, both parents have black hair with very dark brown eyes.

My best friend is mixed race and one of her children is pale and blue eyes and the other looks exactly like her. I love genetics.

Ds has natural white blonde hair yet me & his dad are both naturally very dark & we have no white blonde family members, I always joke he was the postman's.

Dark hair is dominant.
Lots of dark hair here, brothers and sisters all brunette and brown/hazel eyes.
Me though, blonde hair and bright blue eyes from my Dad, even though we've all got the same parents.
Genetics can be amazing lol

I have almost black hair and was born with a full head of it. Olive skin, dark brown eyes and dark body hair. I always imagined my children would be the same, but I have a light blonde, dark blonde and a light brown haired child, all with blue eyes. The lighter haired ones have olive skin and the brown haired one is very fair, so none of them look like mine whatsoever. Their father has dark brown hair (but blonde as a toddler) fair skin and blue eyes. I'm hoping one day I get a grandchild that looks more like me!

My grandparents had 10 children and all had dark hair except my dad who was blonde. His siblings often joke of having their hair washed with carbolic soap while his was lovingly washed with a special stay blonde shampoo. He's definitely not the milk man's as he's the image of my granda and I'm very like my granny. So it's just how genetics are.

It isn't unusual. I'm fair with brown eyes, siblings and parents the complete opposites dark nearly black hair.
Maybe I'm the milk mans

Both my dc and I were white blonde as babies/toddlers (but both my parents have dark hair). Dc are much darker now. Dh has dark hair. My hair is currently purple although obvs that is not my natural colouring..

As in first reply, it's down to recessive genes.

Redhead here - 2 dark haired parents and dark haired siblings and daughter

2 of my grandmothers were fair - 1 blonde 1 auburnish, great grandmother that I never met apparently had exactly my colouring and features (so that's 3 generations back)

Genes can be weird. My dd looks more like my sister than me! Her dad very dark is where the colouring comes from

Same sister used to wind me up as a kid that I was adopted and I seriously wondered at times, then I was later able to see a colour photo of the aforementioned great grandmother (family previously thought there were only b&w photos of her then when gran died we found this one) and I am the absolute spit of her! Colouring, features, body shape the lot! Very odd

@Buddhabowl I was v surprised when dd was born despite her dad being dark and my parents too I foolishly expected her to look like me and have my colouring, I think esp as babies where there's any fairness in the family tend to be fair to start with even if they get darker as they get older. She was really dark inc dark eyes and black tightly curled hair from the start to the point the hospital staff doubted paternity! Because even though her dad is dark he is at least from appearance a white person and usually only babies of non white parentage are born with such dark eyes! However even though ex is apparently a white but has dark colouring in his family there is adoption and paternity queries further up the line so it's entirely possible there's a non white relative we are currently unaware of. I think if dd did one of those dna genealogy things there's a distinct possibility of African or Asian heritage coming through

My own side we think there's Scandinavian or even Icelandic way back when which would explain the fair colouring and certain features.

Genetics can be really weird

You're a Fae Changeling

One of mine has blonde the other brown and my husband has brown and so do I.
Both the same father, it's just the way things work. X

You should see family photos of me when I was younger.

I was tanned with light, straight blonde hair.

My parents and DB are pale skinned with dark brown/almost black, curly or wavy hair!

I do have family “features” on my face though so there’s no doubting my genetics or I’d assume I was adopted

I wonder the same. I am very fair, doesn't sound like I'm as blonde as you, mine is blonde/red. Not quite blonde but not ginger either! It was more blonde as a kid. Dc are also very blonde. Ds is white blonde and Dd a little darker blonde.

My mum has very dark hair, my mums mum has almost black hair which she's still got now despite being 80 and I never known my grandad not to have grey hair so not sure what his natura colour is. I never had much to do with bio dad but as far ad I'm aware he has dark here. I've seen photos of his other kdis and they have black hair!!

It may be just a gene somewhere. My grandma did say her own mhm and similar colourings to me. Maybe it skipped a couple generations 🤷‍♀️

I am very blonde too, my siblings have questioned it in the past,, we have different fathers, although they do not know. I have two children, one of my two are very blonde.

Anyone mentioned recessive gene.

Me - brown hair, hazel eyes
DH - strawberry blond, hazel eyes
Dd1 - hair of many colours ranging from mouse to ginger, green eyes. Looks like DH’s mum.
Dd2 - white blonde, blue eyes. Doesn’t look like either of us or indeed anyone on either side! Must be a genetic throwback.

Me - dark hair almost black and dark brown eyes
Dh - brown hair and green eyes
Ds1- red hair and blue eyes
Ds2 - brown hair and eyes light brown almost gold colour
Ds3 - red hair darker than ds1 and dark brown eyes like me
Ds4 - brown hair and blue eyes
Dd - same red hair as Ds3 and green eyes.

Many generations of my family are all dark hair and dark brown eyes and tan really easily. I’m blonde, blue eyes and milk bottle pale. Genetics are very weird!

@Dishwashersaurous

Anyone mentioned recessive gene.

Yes, several people

My DH and I both have brown hair and brown eyes. DS1 is the same. DS2 is blonde with very light blue eyes! He's got my sister's colouring.