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EveryHairstyle

History

Styles of the past: the powdered wig, the Gibson girl, the queue. 43 hairstyles on EveryHairstyle so far.

Hairstyles of the past show the tastes, rules and technology of their age. Ancient Egyptians wore wigs over shaved heads; Roman women built crests of curls; European men of the 17th and 18th centuries wore periwigs and women the fontange and the pouf; Qing China imposed the queue; and the 1920s brought the bob and the Eton crop. Many old styles return, renamed, decades later.

Courts and empires

The Fonseca bust in Rome shows the tall crest of curls of a woman of about AD 90 to 100. In 17th-century Europe, men of fashion wore a lovelock, a long tress over the left shoulder, and then periwigs. At Versailles the fontange rose around 1680 and the pouf in the 1770s. In Qing China, from 1645, Han men were made to wear the Manchu queue, a rule lifted only after 1912.

Revolutions in hair

After the French Revolution of 1789, wigs and powder gave way to short natural styles such as the Titus cut, named after the Roman emperor. In the 1920s many women cut their hair into bobs and the even shorter Eton crop, set with marcel waves. In mid-19th-century Scotland women wore their hair in a gathered knot called a cockernonnie. Hairstyles of the past live on in revivals, costume drama and the work of historians who recreate them.

Famous history hairstyles

FontangeThe tall headdress of about 1680 to 1710PoufThe towering style of the 1770sQueueImposed in Qing China from 1645LovelockA tress worn over the heart, late 1500s and 1600sRoman hairstylesCurls and braids of ancient RomeEton cropEton cropThe shortest cut of the 1920sTitus cutA short style after the Revolution

Still to be written: Cockernonnie.

Further reading

KindCutBraidUpdoPonytailLocsNaturalCurlsShavedFringeStyledWrappedAdorned
Hair typeStraight hairWavy hairCurly hairCoily and kinky hairFine hairThick hairAny hair
Worn byMostly womenMostly menAnyoneChildrenBrides and weddingsFaith and religious ordersUniform and workSubcultures and music
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy length
🇪🇸 SpainPeineta Large decorative comb worn under a lace veilAdorned · Any hair · 1800 🇮🇳 IndiaHead shaving in Hinduism A ritual act of head shaving in Hinduism for purification, mourning, and devotion.Shaved · Any hair 🇬🇧 United KingdomSnood A net or cloth bag that holds hair at the back of the head.Wrapped · Any hair · 1590 🇪🇬 EgyptNemes Striped head cloth worn by ancient Egyptian pharaohs.Wrapped · Any hair 🇺🇸 United StatesTignon A wrapped cloth headdress worn by Creole women in Louisiana.Wrapped · Any hair · 1786 WorldHair stick A long, thin accessory used to secure hair buns and updos.Adorned · Any hair 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreBuyao A Chinese hairpin with dangling ornaments that sway when the wearer moves.Adorned · Any hair 🇰🇷 South KoreaGache A heavy traditional Korean wig worn by high-status women and kisaeng.Wrapped · Any hair · 1788 🇰🇷 South KoreaDaenggi A traditional Korean ribbon used to tie and decorate braided hair.Adorned 🇮🇳 IndiaTonsure A religious practice of cutting or shaving scalp hair to signal devotion, humility, or clerical status.Shaved · Any hair WorldBangs Strands of hair cut to cover the forehead and fall over the eyebrows.Cut · Any hair · 1880 🇺🇸 United StatesAfro A rounded style of combed-out natural hair.Natural · Coily and kinky hair · 1960 WorldLong hair Head hair grown to a considerable length, often past the shoulders.Styled · Any hair WorldPayot Sidelocks worn by Orthodox Jewish men based on religious law.Styled · Curly hair 🇨🇳 ChinaQueue A historical hairstyle featuring a shaved forehead and a long braided tail of hair.Braid · 1645 🇺🇦 UkraineOseledets Traditional Ukrainian Cossack style with a shaved head and long top lock.Shaved · Any hair WorldBun A hairstyle where hair is gathered and coiled into a circular shape on the head.Updo · Any hair WorldBowl cut A short haircut with a straight fringe and even length around the head.Cut · Any hair · 1400 🇯🇵 JapanChonmage Traditional Japanese topknot worn by men, historically by samurai and now by sumo wrestlers.Updo · Straight hair · 1603 🇫🇷 France and 2 morePompadour High-volume hair swept up and back from the forehead.Updo · Any hair · 1950 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreUndercut Long top hair with shaved or buzzed sides and back.Cut · Any hair · 1910 🇵🇱 Poland and 1 morePolish plait A matted hair formation viewed as both a medical condition and a folk amulet in Eastern Europe.Styled · Coily and kinky hair · 1600 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreFontange A towering headdress and hairstyle popular in late 17th century Europe.Wrapped · 1690 🇪🇬 EgyptSidelock of youth Ancient Egyptian braided side hair worn by royal children.Braid · Any hair 🇬🇧 United KingdomQuiff A voluminous front sweep with short sides and back.Styled · Any hair · 1950 🇩🇪 GermanySuebian knot A historical male bun worn by the Suebi and other Germanic tribes to signal status and identity.Updo · Straight hair 🇺🇸 United StatesBeehive A conical updo piled high on the crown.Updo · Any hair · 1960 🇯🇵 JapanNihongami Traditional Japanese hairstyles characterized by elaborate updos, side wings, and wax styling.Updo · Straight hair 🇫🇷 France and 2 morePouf An elaborate 18th-century French hairstyle featuring extreme height and decorative ornaments.Styled · Any hair · 1775 🇵🇱 PolandCzupryna A traditional Polish haircut with shaved sides and a long top, worn by nobility.Cut · 1308 Amasunzu 🇷🇼 RwandaAmasunzu A traditional Rwandan hairstyle featuring crescent-shaped hair crests.Styled Rattail 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreRattail A long strip of hair at the napeCut · Any hair · 1980 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreDucktail A 1950s men's cut with a central rear parting.Cut · Straight hair · 1950 🇰🇷 South KoreaSangtu Traditional Korean topknot worn by married men.Updo · Any hair · 57 WorldShort hair A general category for haircuts kept above the shoulders or chin.Cut · Any hair · 1920 WorldMarcelling A heat-styled curl technique from the 1870s.Curls · Any hair · 1872 🇬🇧 United KingdomLovelock A single long braid worn over the left shoulder by 17th-century Europeans.Braid · Any hair · 1580 Victory rolls 🇬🇧 United KingdomVictory rolls A 1940s women's hairstyle featuring voluminous side rolls shaped like the letter V.Styled · Straight hair · 1940 🇺🇸 United StatesFinger wave S-shaped waves set by hand with comb and gelStyled · Straight hair · 1920 🇫🇷 FranceTitus cut Short layered cut with curls from late 18th-century FranceCut · Curly hair · 1791 Eton crop 🇬🇧 United KingdomEton crop A very short, slicked-down women's cut from the 1920s.Cut · Any hair · 1920 🇺🇸 United StatesConk Chemically straightened hair popular with African-American men mid-20th century.Styled · Coily and kinky hair · 1920 🇨🇳 ChinaLiangbatou A tall Manchu headdress featuring two side-parted hair sections and elaborate ornamentation.Wrapped

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: the hairstyle of the day, new pages on EveryHairstyle, and the conferences and anniversaries of the week ahead.