Final answer:
The Bombay phenotype (h/h) is rare in Bombay, occurring only in individuals who have inherited two recessive h alleles from their parents. The rarity is consistent with the principles of the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium for a population.
Step-by-step explanation:
The h/h phenotype, also known as the Bombay phenotype, is a rare genetic trait where individuals do not express the H antigen that is necessary for ABO blood group antigens on the surface of red blood cells. In Bombay, the population showing the Bombay phenotype (h/h) is rare, affecting only a few individuals. This phenotype occurs when a person inherits two recessive h alleles, one from each parent.
In the context of the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium, if a trait is exceedingly rare in a population, it implies that the allele responsible for the trait is also rare, and the individuals expressing the homozygous recessive genotype for that trait will be very few. Therefore, the homozygous recessive phenotype of any given rare allele, including the h allele responsible for the Bombay phenotype, would likely be very low in a population unless the allele frequency is increased due to genetic drift or other factors.