Hi there! I am hoping for some help with a genetics project I am working on.

I have been looking for data about the rates of hair and eye colours across different regions, in an effort to find a statistical relationship between them. There are some published studies regarding hair and eye colour, but unfortunately they are limited: the sample sizes tend to be small, and the studies tend to be held in European countries or current/former European colonies.

AncestryDNA has this handy feature for some traits called Where in the world does your [Trait] come from? Basically, it tells you the percentage of people in a given region that have a variety of a given trait. For example, in the Connacht, Ireland region, hair colour breaks down like this:

• 41.9% of people have Dark Brown hair;
• 32.2% of people have Light Brown hair;
• 9.5% of people have Red or reddish hair;
• 8.6% of people have Dark Blond hair;
• 6.2% of people have Black hair;
• 1.6% of people have Light Blond hair; and
• 0% of people are Not Sure what colour hair they have.

This feature shows the results for your top five regions, so I have the data for hair and eye colour from Central Scotland & Northern Ireland, Sweden, Southeastern England & Northwestern Europe, and the Hebrides & Western Highlands of Scotland; I also have the eye colour data for Devon & Somerset, and the hair colour data from Connacht, Ireland, shown above. Unfortunately, I can't see the results for any other regions, nor the hair colour data for Devon & Somerset, nor the eye colour data for Connact, Ireland.

Hopefully, that's where you all come in!

Below is a list of the 146 current AncestryDNA regions. I have put an eye emoji (👁️) next to the regions where I have the data for eye colour, and a hare emoji (🐇) next to the regions where I have the data for hair colour; regions with both have been struck out. Please take a look at the list, and if the hair or eye colour in any of your regions aren't marked, please let me know the results for those regions.

Whenever I get the data for a region, I'll mark it off, so we can all keep track. If you're not sure of the specific name for a region (for some reason the Ancestry site provided the map of the region but didn't label the maps for my traits), I've provided the link to the AncestryDNA regions map below so you can double-check.

I know this data isn't going to be perfect. Using genetic data to determine regional heritage is not an exact science, and Europe is still heavily represented in the list (seriously, Europe has almost as many regions as Africa, Asia, and the Americas combined). Not only that, but these results rely on self-reported hair and eye colour, which in some cases can be highly subjective. But at least this gets me a decent amount of data outside of Europe, and a much higher amount of data overall than I can currently find looking at the scientific studies that are available. 

I look forward to hearing from you! 🫶🏻 Thank you!

AncestryDNA regions

https://support.ancestry.co.uk/s/ancestrydna-regions

• Africa
  • Central Africa
    • Cameroon
    • Western Bantu People
    • Twa
    • Khoisan, Aka & Mbuti Peoples
    • Eastern Africa
    • Eastern Bantu Peoples
    • Nilotic Peoples
    • Ethiopia & Eritrea
    • Somalia
  • Northern Africa
    • North Africa
    • Egypt
    • Sephardic Jews in Northern Africa
  • Southern Africa
    • Southern Bantu Peoples
  • Western Africa
    • Senegal
    • Mali
    • Ivory Coast & Ghana
    • Benin & Togo
    • Yorubaland
  • Central West Africa
    • Central Nigeria
    • North-Central Nigeria
    • Nigeria
    • Nigerian Woodlands
• Americas
  • Central America
    • Yucatán Peninsula
    • Central America
    • Panama & Costa Rica
    • Ecuador
  • North America
    • Arctic
    • Canada & United States
    • Mexico
    • Cuba
    • Haiti & Dominican Republic
    • Puerto Rico
  • South America
    • Colombia & Venezuela
    • Bolivia & Peru
    • Chile
    • Eastern South America
• Asia
  • Central Asia
    • Iran/Persia
    • Lower Central Asia
    • Northern Iraq & Northern Iran
    • Mongolia & Upper Central Asia
  • Eastern Asia
    • Tibetan Peoples
    • Northern Asia
    • Korea
    • Japan
    • Southern Japanese Islands
    • Northern China
    • Western China
    • Southwestern China
    • Central & Eastern China & Taiwan
    • Southern China
  • Southeast Asia
    • Dai
    • Mainland Southeast Asia
    • Maritime Southeast Asia
    • Vietnam
    • Northern & Central Philippines
    • Central & Southern Philippines
    • Luzon
    • Western Visayas
  • Southern Asia
    • Burusho
    • Indo-Gangetic Plain
    • Western Himalayas & the Hindu Kush
    • Gujarat
    • Gulf of Khambhat
    • Southern India
    • Southwest India
    • The Deccan & the Gulf of Mannar
    • Bengal
    • Nepal & the Himalayan Foothills
  • Western Asia
    • Arabian Peninsula
    • Levant
    • Anatolia & the Caucasus
• Europe
  • Central Europe
    • Ashkenazi Jews in Central & Southeastern Europe
    • Estonia & Latvia
    • Lithuania
    • Slovakia
    • Eastern Czechia
    • Northeastern Poland
    • North Central Europe
    • Southern Poland
    • Romania
    • Northwestern Germany
    • Southern Germanic Europe
  • Eastern Europe
    • Ashkenazi Jews in Eastern Europe & Russia
    • Russia
    • Western Ukraine
    • Eastern European Roma
    • Germans in Russia
  • Northern Europe
    • Finland
    • Sweden 👁️ 🐇
    • Denmark
    • Norway
    • Iceland
  • Southern Europe
    • Cyprus
    • Sephardic Jews in the Eastern Mediterranean
    • Western Balkans
    • Northwestern Balkans
    • Slovenia
    • Southwestern Balkans
    • Albania
    • Northern & Central Greece
    • Southern Greece
    • Aegean Islands
    • Crete
    • Ionian Islands
    • Malta
    • Sardinia
    • Sicily
    • Central Italy
    • Southern Italy
    • Northeastern Italy
    • Northwestern Italy
    • Basque
    • Northern Spain
    • Canary Islands
    • Spain
    • Portugal
    • Azores
    • Madeira
  • Western Europe
    • France
    • Brittany, France
    • Acadia
    • Quebec
    • The Netherlands
    • Cornwall
    • Devon & Somerset 👁️
    • North East England
    • Northern Wales and North West England
    • Southeastern England & Northwestern Europe 👁️ 🐇
    • East Midlands
    • West Midlands
    • Isle of Man
    • Southern Wales
    • Central Scotland & Northern Ireland 👁️ 🐇
    • Hebrides & Western Highlands, Scotland 👁️ 🐇
    • North East Scotland
    • Munster, Ireland
    • Connacht, Ireland 🐇
    • Donegal, Ireland
    • Leinster, Ireland
• Oceania
  • Oceania

    • Guam

    • Melanesia

    • Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples

    • Tonga

    • Samoa

    • Hawaii

    • New Zealand Maori