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Subject: [DNA] Red Hair Rare in Swedes?
Date: Thu, 3 Oct 2002 10:07:55 EDT
First, the more original people in Scandinavia and Finland and Iceland were
the Saami people (often called "Laplanders" which is considered an offensive
term). These people were very dark and Far East Asian in appearance, I would
argue. (Has anyone here seen the singer Bjork from Iceland?) Also, the
Karelians preceded the light-colored folks into Finland as they were driven
farther and farther north. The Karelians were/are traditionally darker
peoples. So, I would argue that wherever those redheads came from, they were
not the original people in Scandinavia, Finland or Iceland.
Second, my Swedish step-grandmother, a born redhead, said that her father, a
man born in Sweden, chided her throughout her childhood that, "You know, in
Sweden we drowned red haired babies. You are lucky you were not born in
Sweden!" That always astounded me as a child.
Cheers,
Mary Mallett
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