Editing Hair (section)

==Social role==
{{See also|Hairstyle}}
[[File:Alessandro Allori - Portrait of Bianca Cappello.jpg|thumb|upright|''Portrait of a Woman'' by Alessandro Allori (1535–1607) at [[Uffizi Gallery]]. It shows a plucked hairline that gives a fashionably noble brow.]]
Hair has great social significance for [[human being]]s.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.11141/ia.42.6 | issue=42 | title=Archaeologies of Hair: the head and its grooming in ancient and contemporary societies | year=2016 | journal=Internet Archaeology | last1 = Ashby | first1 = Steven P.| doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.11141/ia.42.6.13 | issue=42 | title=Because You're Worth It: Women's daily hair care routines in contemporary Britain | year=2016 | journal=Internet Archaeology | last1 = Hielscher | first1 = Sabine | doi-access=free }}</ref> It can grow on most external areas of the [[human body]], except on the palms of the [[hand]]s and the soles of the feet (among other areas). Hair is most noticeable on most people in a small number of areas, which are also the ones that are most commonly trimmed, [[Plucking (hair removal)|plucked]], or [[shaving|shaved]]. These include the [[face]], [[ear]]s, [[human head|head]], eyebrows, [[human leg|leg]]s, and [[armpit]]s, as well as the [[pubic region]]. The highly visible differences between male and female body and facial hair are a notable [[secondary sex characteristic]].

The world's longest documented hair belongs to [[Xie Qiuping]] (in [[China]]), at 5.627 m (18&nbsp;ft 5.54 in) when measured on 8 May 2004. She has been growing her hair since 1973, from the age of 13.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Guinness World Records 2011|last=Glenday|first=Craig|year=2010|publisher=Guinness World Records |isbn=9781904994572|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldrec00}}</ref>

===Indication of status===
Healthy hair indicates health and youth (important in [[evolutionary biology]]). Hair color and texture can be a sign of ethnic ancestry. [[Facial hair]] is a sign of [[puberty]] in men. White or gray hair is a sign of age or genetics, which may be concealed with [[Hair coloring|hair dye]] (not easily for some), although many prefer to assume it (especially if it is a [[poliosis]] characteristic of the person since childhood). [[Pattern baldness]] in men is usually seen as a sign of aging that may be concealed with a [[toupee]], hats, or religious and cultural adornments; however, the condition can be triggered by various hormonal factors at any age following puberty and is not uncommon in younger men. Although pattern baldness can be slowed down by drugs such as [[Finasteride]] and [[Minoxidil]] or treated with [[hair transplant]]s, many men see this as unnecessary effort for the sake of vanity and instead [[Head shaving|shave their heads]]. In early modern China, the [[Queue (hairstyle)|queue]] was a male hairstyle in which the hair at the front and top was shaved every 10 days in a style mimicking pattern baldness, while the remaining hair at the back was braided into a long pigtail.

A hairstyle may be an indicator of group membership. During the [[English Civil War]], followers of [[Oliver Cromwell]] cropped their hair close to their head in an act of defiance against the curls and ringlets of the king's men, which led to them being nicknamed [[Roundhead]]s.<ref>Olmert, Michael (1996). ''Milton's Teeth and Ovid's Umbrella: Curiouser & Curiouser Adventures in History'', p. 53. Simon & Schuster, New York. {{ISBN|0-684-80164-7}}</ref> Recent isotopic analysis of hair is helping to shed further light on sociocultural interaction, giving information on food procurement and consumption in the 19th century.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.11141/ia.42.6.12 | issue=42 | title=Hair as a Window on Diet and Health in Post-Medieval London: an isotopic analysis | year=2016 | journal=Internet Archaeology | last1 = Brown | first1 = Chloe | last2 = Alexander | first2 = Michelle | doi-access=free }}</ref> Having [[Bob cut|bobbed hair]] was popular among the [[flapper]]s in the 1920s as a sign of rebellion against traditional roles for women. Female art students known as the Cropheads also adopted the style, notably at the [[Slade School of Fine Art|Slade School]] in [[London]]. Regional variations in [[hirsutism]] has caused practices regarding hair on the arms and legs to differ. Some religious groups may follow certain rules regarding hair as part of religious observance. The rules often differ for men and women.

Many subcultures have hairstyles which may indicate an unofficial membership. Many [[hippie]]s, [[Heavy metal subculture|metalheads]], and Indian [[sadhus]] have long hair, as well many older [[Hipster (contemporary subculture)|hipsters]]. Many [[punk fashion|punks]] wear a hairstyle known as a [[Mohawk hairstyle|mohawk]] or other spiked and dyed hairstyles, while [[skinhead]]s have short-cropped or completely shaved heads. Long stylized bangs were very common for [[Emo (stereotype)|emo]]s, [[Scene (subculture)|scene kids]], and younger hipsters in the 2000s and early 2010s.

Heads were shaved in [[concentration camp]]s, and head-shaving has been used as [[punishment]], especially for women with long hair. The shaven head is common in [[military]] haircuts, while Western monks are known for the [[tonsure]]. By contrast, among some Indian holy men, the hair is worn extremely long.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Berger |first=Arthur Asa |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1199967093 |title=USA Pop |date=2020 |isbn=978-1-5275-5998-1 |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |oclc=1199967093}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Innes |first=William C. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1249505982 |title=Religious hair display and its meanings |date=2021 |isbn=978-3-030-69974-1 |location=Cham, Switzerland |oclc=1249505982}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1223027644 |title=Cultural History of Hair in the Modern Age. |date=2021 |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |isbn=978-1-350-12283-3 |oclc=1223027644}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/37254408 |title=Hair : its power and meaning in Asian cultures |date=1998 |publisher=State University of New York Press |others=Alf Hiltebeitel, Barbara D. Miller |isbn=0-7914-3741-8 |location=Albany |oclc=37254408}}</ref>

In the time of Confucius (5th century BCE), the Chinese grew out their hair and often tied it, as a symbol of filial piety. Regular hairdressing in some cultures is considered a sign of wealth or status. The [[dreadlocks]] of the [[Rastafari movement]] were despised early in the movement's history. In some cultures, having one's hair cut can symbolize a liberation from one's past, usually after a trying time in one's life. Cutting the hair also may be a sign of mourning.

Tightly coiled hair in its natural state may be worn in an [[Afro]]. This hairstyle was once worn among [[African American]]s as a symbol of racial pride. Given that the coiled texture is the natural state of some African Americans' hair, or perceived as being more "African", this simple style is now often seen as a sign of self-acceptance and an affirmation that the beauty norms of the ([[Eurocentrism|eurocentric]]) dominant culture are not absolute. African Americans as a whole have a variety of hair textures, as they are not an ethnically homogeneous group, but an ad-hoc of different racial admixtures.

The film ''[[Easy Rider]]'' (1969) includes the assumption that the two main characters could have their long hairs forcibly shaved with a rusty razor when jailed, symbolizing the intolerance of some conservative groups toward members of the [[counterculture]]. At the conclusion of England's 1971 [[Oz trial|''Oz'' trials]], the defendants had their heads shaved by the police, causing public outcry. During the appeal trial, they appeared in the dock wearing wigs.<ref>[[Jonathon Green|Green, Jonathon]], (1999). ''All Dressed Up: The Sixties and the Counterculture''. London: Pimlico. {{ISBN|0-7126-6523-4}}.</ref> A case where a 14-year-old student was expelled from school in Brazil in the mid-2000s, allegedly because of his [[fauxhawk]] haircut, sparked national debate and legal action resulting in compensation.<ref name="cearamohawk1">{{cite web|date=28 September 2011|title=G1 – Justiça do CE condena escola por barrar aluno com cabelo 'moicano' – notícias em Ceará|trans-title=G1 - CE court condemns school for barring student with 'mohawk' hair - news in Ceara|url=http://g1.globo.com/ceara/noticia/2011/09/justica-do-ce-condena-escola-por-barrar-aluno-com-cabelo-moicano.html|access-date=18 February 2015|publisher=G1.globo.com}}</ref><ref name="cearamohawk2">{{cite web|date=30 September 2011|title=G1 – Aluno diz que jogador inspirou 'corte moicano' alvo de ação judicial no CE – notícias em Ceará|trans-title=G1 says student inspired 'Mohawk court' subject to legal action in CE - news in Ceara|url=http://g1.globo.com/ceara/noticia/2011/09/aluno-diz-que-jogador-inspirou-corte-moicano-alvo-de-acao-judicial-no-ce.html|access-date=18 February 2015|publisher=G1.globo.com}}</ref>

===Religious practices===
Women's hair may be hidden using [[headscarf|headscarves]], a common part of the ''[[hijab]]'' in [[Islam]] and a symbol of modesty required for certain religious rituals in [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]]. The [[Russian Orthodox Church]] requires all married women to wear headscarves inside the church; this tradition is often extended to all women, regardless of marital status. [[Orthodox Judaism]] also commands the use of scarves and other head coverings for married women for modesty reasons. Certain [[Hindu]] sects also wear head scarves for religious reasons. [[Sikhism|Sikhs]] have an obligation not to cut hair (a Sikh cutting hair becomes 'apostate' which means fallen from religion)<ref>Dilgeer, Harjinder Singh (2005) ''Dictionary of Sikh Philosophy'', Sikh University Press.</ref> and men keep it tied in a bun on the head, which is then covered appropriately using a [[turban]]. Multiple religions, both ancient and contemporary, require or advise one to allow their hair to become [[dreadlocks]], though people also wear them for fashion. For men, Islam, Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Christianity, Roman Catholicism, and other religious groups have at various times recommended or required the covering of the head and sections of the hair of men, and some have dictates relating to the cutting of men's facial and head hair. Some Christian sects throughout history and up to modern times have also religiously proscribed the cutting of women's hair. For some [[Sunni]] [[madhab]]s, the donning of a [[kufi]] or [[Taqiyah (cap)|topi]] is a form of [[sunnah]].<ref>The War Within Our Hearts – Page 65 Sa'ad Quadri – 2013</ref> [[Brahmin]] males are prescribed to shave their heads, but leave a tuft of hair unshaved, worn in the form of a topknot.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hiltebeitel |first1=Alf |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PRPymT12c40C&dq=Brahmin+male+topknot&pg=PA15 |title=Hair: Its Power and Meaning in Asian Cultures |last2=Miller |first2=Barbara D. |last3=Miller |first3=Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Women's Studies Program Barbara D. |date=1998-01-01 |publisher=SUNY Press |isbn=978-0-7914-3741-4 |pages=15 |language=en}}</ref>

===In Arabic poetry===
Since ancient times, women's long, thick, wavy hair has featured prominently in [[Arabic poetry]].<ref name="Sha'r">{{cite book |last1=Sadan|first1=J. |last2=Reinhart |first2=A.K. |last3=Reinert |first3=B. |editor1-last=Bosworth |editor1-first=C.E. |editor2-last=van Donzel |editor2-first=E. |editor3-last=Heinrichs |editor3-first=W.P. |editor4-last=Lecomte |editor4-first=G. |title=The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. IX (SAN-SZE) |date=1997 |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |isbn=90-04-10422-4 |pages=311–3 |url=https://ia600603.us.archive.org/14/items/EncyclopaediaDictionaryIslamMuslimWorldEtcGibbKramerScholars.13/09.EncycIslam.NewEdPrepNumLeadOrient.EdEdComCon.BosDonHeinLec.etc.UndPatIUA.v9.San-Sze.Leid.EJBrill.1997..pdf |access-date=13 June 2022 |chapter=SHA'R}}</ref> Pre-Islamic poets used only limited imagery to describe women's hair.<ref name="Sha'r"/> For example, [[al-A'sha]] wrote a verse comparing a lover's hair to "a garden whose grapes dangle down upon me", but [[Bashshar ibn Burd]] considered this unusual.<ref name="Sha'r"/> One comparison used by early poets, such as [[Imru al-Qays]], was to bunches of [[date (fruit)|date]]s.<ref name="Sha'r"/> In [[Abbasid]] times, however, the imagery for hair expanded significantly - particularly for the then-fashionable "love-locks" (''sudgh'') framing the [[temple (anatomy)|temple]]s, which came into style at the court of the caliph [[al-Amin]].<ref name="Sha'r"/> Hair curls were compared to hooks and chains, letters (such as ''[[fa (letter)|fa]]'', ''[[waw (letter)|waw]]'', ''[[lam (letter)|lam]]'', and ''[[nun (letter)|nun]]''), [[scorpion]]s, [[annelid]]s, and [[polo stick]]s.<ref name="Sha'r"/> An example was the poet [[Ibn al-Mu'tazz]], who compared a lock of hair and a [[birthmark]] to a polo stick driving a ball.<ref name="Sha'r"/>