A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of
hair, usually on the human scalp. Sometimes, this could also mean an editing of
facial or body hair. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of
personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and
popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.
The oldest known depiction of hair styling is hair braiding
which dates back about 30,000 years. In history, women's hair was often
elaborately and carefully dressed in special ways. From the time of the Roman Empire
[citation needed] until the Middle Ages, most women grew their hair as long as
it would naturally grow. Between the late 15th century and the 16th century, a
very high hairline on the forehead was considered attractive. Around the same
time period, European men often wore their hair cropped no longer than shoulder-length.
In the early 17th century, male hairstyles grew longer, with waves or curls
being considered desirable.
The male wig was pioneered by King Louis XIII of France
(1601–1643) in 1624. Perukes or periwigs for men were introduced into the
English-speaking world with other French styles in 1660. Late 17th-century wigs
were very long and wavy, but became shorter in the mid-18th century, by which
time they were normally white. Short hair for fashionable men was a product of
the Neoclassical movement. In the early 19th century the male beard, and also
moustaches and sideburns, made a strong reappearance. From the 16th to the 19th
century, European women's hair became more visible while their hair coverings
grew smaller. In the middle of the 18th century the pouf style developed.
During the First World War, women around the world started to shift to shorter
hairstyles that were easier to manage. In the early 1950s women's hair was
generally curled and worn in a variety of styles and lengths. In the 1960s, many
women began to wear their hair in short modern cuts such as the pixie cut,
while in the 1970s, hair tended to be longer and looser. In both the 1960s and
1970s many men and women wore their hair very long and straight. In the 1980s,
women pulled back their hair with scrunchies. During the 1980s, punk hairstyles
were adopted by many people.
