Could there be black people with blond hair like this character from House of the Dragon?

As well described in Books by George Martin and we have already seen Game of ThronesThe Targaryens are physically characterized by having hair so blond that they appear almost white. It really could happen in real life. However, it is not so plausible that Lord Corlis Velaryonone of the characters Dragon House, whose silver hair contrasts with his black skin. His kinship with the Targaryens could explain the hair, if we stick to fantasy novels. But if we focus on genetics and real life, it seems strange that these two traits could coincide in the same person. However, just because it’s weird doesn’t mean it’s impossible. In fact, in Solomon islands there is an indigenous group whose members, known as Melanesianscharacterized precisely by the presence of a considerable percentage of blondes with black skin.

It is important to note that they are not albinos. Albinos from black families also exist, but they do not have black skin. This would be impossible, since there is no melanin in their cells. Their story is very disturbing as they are considered bad luck in Africa, so their families are often abandoned. But they have nothing to do with the Melanesians. They still have black skin despite their blond hair, so they lack melanin.

His case has attracted the attention of many scientists for many years, although it was a group of researchers from Stanford University who found the clue in 2012. Its appearance is associated with a very specific mutation in the gene responsible for pigmentation. Who knows? Perhaps this is the case with Lord Corlis in dragon house.

Mutation of black people with blond hair

When scientists from Stanford University went to the Solomon Islands, in the area MelanesianThey were very surprised by what they saw. Reportedly living science one of them, Sean MilesAs they watched the children playing on the beach, they saw that quite a number of them had black skin and blond hair. In particular, it is assumed that from 5% to 10% Melanesians look like this.

But they needed to know why. So they took saliva samples from 85 islanders, 43 blondes and 42 brunettes and analyzed them for differences. So they saw that a mutation in one gene could explain 46.4% variation in their hair. The gene is called TIRP1 and it has instructions for synthesizing a protein involved in pigmentation. And the result is a completely different pigmentation of the skin and hair.

But there was something that caught the attention of these scientists. And this mutation not found in analyzed genomes of Europeans. One would think that in the past it was brought here from Europe during colonial movements. This explains the blond hair. However, it was more like a mutation that arose independently in the Melanesian population and, for some reason, survived there.

The Appearance of Lord Corlis in The House of the Dragon

Lord Corlis is of the Velaryon line of Mercaderiv. This is a very old breed. Valyria who came to Westeros before the Targaryens themselves. Their lives were separated by the Curse of Valyria, a natural disaster that devastated the city.

The families that lived there were saved by the daughter of Lord Einar Targaryen, Daenys the Dreamer. Twelve years before the incident, a young woman had a dream foretelling what would happen. So his family fled to stone dragonwhere it was later installed. The rest of the Valyrian families, including the Velaryons themselves, settled on other nearby islands. narrow sea. Thus, their families separated, but they could not avoid a relationship for which they have some common features. In particular, they are described in the books as silver hair and purple eyeslike the Targaryens. Of course, they are also described as having white skin, or at least this is taken for granted. All illustrations that were made from lord corlis before the presentation of the series, he was shown as a white man.

Possibly responsible for Dragon House They would like to add variety to history. And while there may be people who are bothered by this, it’s not a bad idea. In fact, it’s not even unreasonable. After all, you can’t fly on a dragon, but you can’t be black with blond hair. The Solomon Islands are proof of that.