Did you know how HATED redheads used to be? Here are 4 examples
Redheads make up approximately 1–2% of the human population around the world.
It seems as since I’ve gotten older having red hair has become more accepted. Being a young child with natural red hair you become used to the constant “ginger” jokes that many of us have heard. Though, today, red hair has become a staple during the cool fall months. Everywhere you look you will see someone with the many different hues of red hair.
Throughout history redheads have received a lot of hate simply because of the color of their hair. All around the world, there was a hatred for those with red hair. Here are 4 of the many ways in which redheads were treated.
1.) Red heads had very tragic deaths due to the color of their hair.
In school, many of us read “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. While we learned about the Salem Witch Trials, we didn't learn about the many witch trials that took place throughout the years all over the world.
People commonly associate the color red with anger, rage, blood, lust, desire and well the devil. Many Christians during the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries believed redheads were associated with the devil and satanic practices. Since red hair was an indicator of witchcraft, witch hunters would go after those with red hair to get rid of them to cleanse their societies of witches.
This was taken very seriously, between 40,000 and 60,000 people were sentenced to be executed during the witch trials. Many of those who were sentenced were drowned and burnt at the stake, freeing their society of witches. A large majority of those executed were red heads. People believe it was because of the location in which these trials had taken place, which was in Scotland.
In Egypt, redheads had been buried alive as sacrifices to their God Osiris. They did this because they thought redheads were unlucky and they should be sacrificed, once buried, they thought that would bring them good luck. How crazy is that?
2.) Many redheads were thought to be either a witch, vampire or werewolf.
Personally, I am a huge fan of the many movies and television shows about the supernatural creatures. When I learned about the fact many years ago, people thought red haired people like me were thought to be supernatural creatures, I was shocked.
In Medieval Europe, the witch hunters had warned everyone that those with red hair and green eyes were marks of witches, vampires or werewolves. It is so crazy to think that if I were alive during this time, I would be accused of being supernatural.
Many women with red hair during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries had been stripped naked and shaved in hopes to get rid of their “magic.” When that didn't work, they resorted to torturing and killing them.
Ancient Greeks thought that once a red-haired person died, they would return as a vampire.
3.) Red hair meant bad luck.
Many people believed the color red to be a sign of bad luck. In Ireland and Scotland in the fishing communities it was believed that if you were to see a woman with red hair, you were not going to catch any fish that day. Even to this day it is a superstition to not allow a redhead aboard.
Ancient Egyptians believed red haired people as well as animals were associated with the god ‘set’. Many of their pharaohs had red hair. They believed that the color red was unlucky. They ended up burning many of the red-haired maidens in order to wipe it out.
4.) Even today, some cultures still believe red heads are witches.
In some cultures, mainly in Africa where voodoo and magic are still heavily practiced, red heads are still believed to be witches. It is believed it is mostly due to the fact that there is barley any red heads in Africa.
As you can see red heads had quite a rocky and gruesome history. Thankfully times have changed and those with red hair are no longer killed just because of the color of their hair. Do you naturally have red hair? What phrase did you hear most from non- gingers? For me it was “never dye your hair!”
Oh, and yes, gingers do have souls.
There is a lot more information out there regarding the history of redheads than I have listed. If you have the time, take a look, it is so interested to read about!
