Reply #16

This is a more speculative theory, but I'm inclined to believe it. Blond hair represents youth since children are often born with lighter hair. A blond woman looks younger, plus she would stand out in a crowd. A harsh environment would put strong evolutionary pressures for this sexual selection.

Also the different hair colors give men and woman more choices, which pushes the evolution of different hair colors - including red. Some northern European men and woman still like darker hair, and dark hair still exists in northern Europe - even when they have light skin for vitamin D production.