It seems strange to a modern person that the Slavs were afraid of people with brown eyes, especially since now about a quarter of the population of Russia is dark-eyed. Since this is a dominant feature, every year there are more and more of them in the world. Why were the Russians wary of the owners of eyes of this color?
For the Slavs, the eyes were really a mirror of the soul and a measure of spiritual qualities. The most attractive were considered blue, but people treated brown and green with suspicion and even apprehension.
As a result of a study carried out by a group of scientists at the University of Copenhagen, it was found that blue eyes are the result of a genetic mutation that occurred about 10 thousand years ago. Until the 13th century, more than half of the inhabitants of Russia were blue-eyed. The people associated this color with the surface of the lakes and the endless dome of the sky. And blue-eyed people a priori were considered kind, sympathetic and flexible. The attitude towards gray and blue eyes was also loyal. The classic image of the epic hero is a tall, stately man, the owner of wheat curls and cornflower blue eyes.
A rare color of the iris - green is usually found in women. Because of the rarity, the ancient Slavic tribes saw in beauties with emerald eyes the embodiment of evil spirits. Green-eyed women were often considered witches. And in the opinion of the Russian people, a witch, by definition, cannot be beautiful. A clear proof of this is the well-known Baba Yaga.
But especially those born with dark - brown or black eyes were unlucky. They were clear evidence of foreign impurities, which is why the Slavs were afraid of people with brown eyes and treated them with apprehension. From 1242 to 1480, Russia was under the yoke of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. Naturally, women were subjected to violence during the raids of the Tatars and Mongols. As a result, children were born who showed the paternal dominant gene - black or brown eyes.
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Hatred of the invaders lived in the hearts of the people. The appearance of representatives of nomadic tribes was considered ugly and repulsive. They hated the short and stocky conquerors with "Busursman" eyes. The children born from them were raised, treated with pity and apprehension and considered ugly.
But some modern researchers argue that the influence on the gene pool of the Tatars and Mongols is greatly exaggerated. DNA testing determined the presence of only 2% of Mongolian characters. In addition, the Russians lack the epicanthus characteristic of the Mongoloids - the so-called "Mongol fold". It is located in the inner corner of the eye and partially covers the lacrimal tubercle. In the process of research, it was also found that the eastern features noted among the East Slavic population have nothing to do with the Tatar-Mongols, but are the heritage of the Finno-Ugric tribes. It is they who have common Asian characteristics with the eastern nomads.
Author: Galateya