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Many people assume Jon Snow from Game of Thrones is a Targaryen, but Targaryens have white hair.

Are there any other references mentioned in the book about this?

Alert if there are any spoilers.

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  • 10
    Actually HBO confirmed that Rhaegar is his father.
    – Chanandler Bong
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 9:28
  • 18
    It takes 2 people to make babies. DNA comes from both sides. You might want to have the "talk."
    – user25738
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 21:26
  • Concept of DNA doesn't exist in the world of Game Of Thrones. Jon Arryn & Ned Stark didn't come to a conclusion of Cersei's incest born based on DNA test. We are talking about fantasy & fiction here. There are no silly questions. Already got the required answer from Bebs & Chanandler. Thanks to them.
    – ashveli
    Commented Jan 26, 2017 at 14:55

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The dark hair seed is stronger than the Targaryen silver hair. Remember John Aryn's last words "the seed is strong". That means that the dark hair gene is dominant.

North people tend to have dark hair, and so was Lyanna Stark.

Lyanna

That's why Jon inherited Lyanna's hair.

References from the books (thanks Chanandler Bong).

  • Daeron II was married to Mariah Martell and his son Baelor had dark hair. The Hedge Knight
  • Rhaenys, daughter of Rhaegar, killed during the sack of King's Landing is described with dark hair too.
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  • 18
    Indeed, the Targaryen genes seem to be very weak, that's why they needed incest marriages to retain their dragon domination power. Also, IIRC, in The Hedge Knight there was a Targaryen prince whose mother was a Dornish princess and he had dark hair. This is of course similar to real life (more or less).
    – Chanandler Bong
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 9:04
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    Lolz, dair womens in GoT world can easily have child outside the marriage without anyone suspecting. Seed is Strong
    – Panther
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 12:09
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    You might equally ask why Robert Baratheon has dark hair. He also has Targaryen ancestry (as, of course, do his brothers), which was the basis for his claim to the throne during his rebellion.
    – Mike Scott
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 19:43
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    I am pretty sure that Jon Arryn's "the seed is strong" line refers to the line of reasoning that Robert Baratheon's seed is strong, though yes, the real reason would be because of the phenotype of black hair being dominant compared to the silver-blonde phenotype of the Targaryens.
    – TylerH
    Commented Jan 25, 2017 at 21:15
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    The seed is strong sentence is problematic. In the most unambiguous sense, Lyanna Stark being female can only accept a seed right.
    – KharoBangdo
    Commented Jan 28, 2017 at 11:17

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