What are Some of the Rarest Eye Colours?

Illustration of six eyes in two rows with different iris colours: green, amber, grey, yellow, blue, and red.

6 Min Read | 31 Mar 2023

Content Manager

"Eyes that see beauty in everything” You might have come across this phrase a lot of times in life. Well, it is self-explanatory that eyes can see and observe beauty in everything. But, what if all of us have different eye colours? Yes, you read it right. Though most of the population in the world have black and brown eyes, some people also have different eye colours.

Unique eye colour can definitely get some heads turned because it is difficult to ignore beauty. From browns to grey to blue, there are different eye colours that people have. If you are keen to learn about some of the rare ones, we will be more than glad to provide you with some crucial insights. Stay tuned till the end and explore the different eye colours at a quick glance.

What Determines the Colour of Your Eyes?

Variations in eye colour can be due to many factors, but the most important thing is how much melanin is present in the front part of the Iris. Melanin is also responsible for the colour of your hair and skin. However, how much melanin is present in the body can vary due to various factors like genetics and geographical location.

For instance, people with brown eyes have a large proportion of melanin in the iris, while people with blue eyes have much less pigment. Also, blue eyes are relatively common in Northern Europe but extremely rare in Africa or Asia.

What Are the Top 7 Eye Colours?

Did you know? Green eye colour is one of the rarest eye colours of all and only 2% of the population worldwide has them. Sounds cool, right? Let’s get deep into all the details about these eye colours.

Violet or Red Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a bright violet-red iris and black winged eyeliner on a light background.

If you have ever wondered if red eyes are real, then we have the answer. Well, red eyes are a real phenomenon, caused by blood leaking into the iris or albinism. As albino people have little to no pigment in their eyes, they end up having this extremely rare and attention-seeking eye colour. Also, individuals exposed to albinism develop violet eye colours as well. In such cases, one needs to use proper eye protection while hitting the streets on a bright sunny day.

Grey Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a cool grey iris and black winged eyeliner on a tan background

Grey is another rare eye colour that often features brown spots in the iris. Theories say that people with grey eyes have lesser melanin when compared to people with blue eyes. However, the high level of collagen in the stroma layer sets these grey eyes apart from blue eyes. Since grey eyes come well-equipped with the right amount of stroma, it changes the way light reflects and scatters colours.

Green Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a vibrant green iris and black winged eyeliner on a tan base.

There is an ongoing debate, wherein a group of people consider green to be the rarest colour while others say it has been dethroned by violet, red and grey eyes. Some of the factors responsible for causing green eyes include a lot of lipochromes, little melanin and the Rayleigh scattering of light.

Studies say that about 2% of the individuals in the world have green eyes. Emma Stone, Adele, Jon Hamm, Amanda Seyfried, Kate Middleton, Eddie Redmayne, Gael Garcia and Clive Owen are some of the celebrities with green eyes.

Amber Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a golden-amber iris and black winged eyeliner on a light background.

While amber eyes and hazel eyes look alike, both of them are quite different! Amber eyes have a dark orange and solid colour. Amber eyes have a lot of lipochromes. Also referred to as wolf eyes, amber eyes highlight yellowish and strong golden shades.

These types of colour pops are more common in animals like cats, wolves and owls. However, very few people do have this type of rare yet pretty ‘windows.’ Some of the celebrities with amber eyes are Nikki Reed, Nicole Richie, Darren Criss, Evangeline Lilly, Joey Kern and Rochelle Aytes.

Hazel Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a hazel iris and black winged eyeliner on a light background.

While rare hazel eyes come with a lot of variations, they typically sport a brownish-yellow hue with green, brown, gold and blue specks. These types of eye colours contain enough melanin- just like brown eyes.

Hazel eyes are capable of changing shades quite frequently. Do you know why? It’s because they know how to reflect light, thus changing the colours due to the Rayleigh scattering effect.

Brown Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a light brown iris and black winged eyeliner on a light background.

To top the list of most common eye colours is brown. Most people have this eye colour but it comes with varying hues from dark to bright. In some light conditions, it can also appear black and they are most prone to get cataracts. However, there are some contradictions to this fact as well. No matter what your eye colour is, wearing appropriate eyewear is essential.

Blue Eyes

Stylised illustration of an eye with a vibrant blue iris and black winged eyeliner on a light background.

The second most common eye colour is blue and they don’t have any blue pigment rather they just have little melanin production. While blue eyes are not that rare, individuals with this eye colour might get exposed to ocular cancer, age-related macular degeneration and cataracts. Since these people are prone to damage caused by ultraviolet rays, one needs to invest in glasses that have 100% UVB and UVA protection.

Eye Conditions and Eye Colours

Illustration of a man with heterochromia, featuring one brown eye and one teal eye.

Now that we have touched upon the different rarest eye colours, let us dabble into some eye conditions that can change the hues of human eyes.

Heterochromia: It is an eye condition that creates different eye colours in an individual. For instance, a person with heterochromia might have one blue eye and one brown eye.
Arcus Senilis: It is one of the most common eye conditions that correlate with high cholesterol levels and ageing. As a result, one might develop eye colours that are blue or grey.
Anisocoria: It is a type of heterochromia that exposes a person to unequal pupil sizes. In these cases, one of your eyes will appear darker than the other one. Some of the symptoms of Anisocoria are high stroke risk, nervous system problems, previous eye damage, viral infection, horner syndrome etc.
Albinism: Here, the amount of melanin produced in a person’s hair, eyes and skin is affected to a great extent. People dealing with albinism especially have violet, light blue, red or pink eyes.
Hyphema: In hyphema, the blood gets collected inside the eye’s front portion. By covering the pupil along with the iris with blood, this eye condition makes your eyes appear red.
Cataracts: When the natural lens of an eye becomes cloudy, it leads to cataracts. Here, the person’s eyes might be grey or white.
Uveitis: Uveitis is nothing but inflammation in the eyes that mainly takes place because of toxins, infection and injury.

Final Thoughts

So, there we have it, a crisp overview of the eye colours that tend to stand out. Everyone has beautiful eyes. All you need to do is take care of them! Pick up the perfect pair of glasses and sunglasses, as they are functional and fashionable possessions that are crucial to keeping your eyes healthy and of course, happy.

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