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"Platinum blond" redirects here. It is not to be confused with Platinum Blonde (disambiguation).

"Blonde" redirects here. For other uses, see Blond (disambiguation) and Blonde (disambiguation).

A man with blond hair and a blond beard

Blond or fair hair is a hair color characterized by low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The resultant
visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can be from the
very pale blond (caused by a patchy, scarce distribution of pigment) to reddish "strawberry" blond or
golden-brownish ("sandy") blond colors (the latter with more eumelanin). Because hair color tends to
darken with age, natural blond hair is generally rare in adulthood. Naturally-occurring blond hair is
primarily found in populations of northern European descent and is believed to have evolved to enable
more efficient synthesis of vitamin D, due to northern Europe's lower levels of sunlight. Blond hair has
also developed in other populations, although it is usually not as common, and can be found among
natives of the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji, among the Berbers of North Africa, and among some
Asians.

In Western culture, blond hair has long been associated with female beauty. Aphrodite, the Greek
goddess of love and beauty, was reputed to have blond hair. In ancient Greece and Rome, blond hair was
frequently associated with prostitutes, who dyed their hair using saffron dyes in order to attract
customers. The Greeks stereotyped Thracians and slaves as blond and the Romans associated blondness
with the Celts and the Germans to the north. In western Europe during the Middle Ages, long, blond hair
was idealized as the paragon of female beauty. The Norse goddess Sif and the medieval heroine Iseult
were both significantly portrayed as blond and, in medieval artwork, Eve, Mary Magdalene, and the
Virgin Mary are often shown with blond hair. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century,
scientific racists categorized blond hair and blue eyes as characteristics of the supreme Nordic race. In
contemporary western culture, blonde women are often negatively stereotyped as sexually attractive,
but unintelligent.

Etymology, spelling, and grammar

Varieties

Evolution of blond hair

Prevalence

Historical cultural perceptions

Modern cultural stereotypes

See also

References

External links

Last edited 2 days ago by Flyer22 Reborn

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