User:Alexfaith/sandbox

Origins

African American hair has manifested over centuries, from Africa through the Middle Passage and to the Americas. African American hair has transformed over time, but its origins are rooted in purpose and livelihood. Before there were boundaries dividing Africa into states and countries through colonization, the continent was divided into kingdoms. Ancient African custom was for those who inhabited the kingdoms where a part of complex system of tribe and clan affiliations that where unique to their identity and personhood. During 15th century the way in which clan members wore their hair has a multitude of means. It was used as messaging system to communicate within and outside of their clan to convey their associations. Hair was biography tell a person’s age, martial status, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, surname, health status and geographic origin. One example is dreadlocks.

Dreadlocks from the Himba tribe of Northwestern Namibia indicates one’s age, life stage, and marital status. The tribe lives in the northwestern region of Namibia. A combination of ground ochre, goat hair, and butter are used as well as hair extensions when weaving to styling their dreadlocks. This hairstyle has several meaning that communicate information women of the tribe specifically. Dreadlocks worn down in their front of the face represent girls going through puberty while dreadlocks tied back are worn by women looking to marry, in order to show their face. Erembe headdresses area symbol of status worn my new mother and married women.

Hair was a marker of what clan someone belonged to and the styling was only entrusted to relatives for fear of enemies bring ill-will to the person. Hair was considered divine because was it at the top if the head so for someone to touch it they must be loyal to you. Members of the Wolof, Mende, Mandinka, Yoruba, Funlani, Ibgo, and Ashanti all had different hairstyles that communicated who they were that connected them to their people, culture, history, and heritage. Those same tribes were dismantled and dispersed when the Middle Atlantic Slave Trade began.

Diaspora

When Europeans infiltrate Africa and Africans were forcibly brought to the Americas like human chattel in the early 1600s, slave captures and sellers shaved the heads of all African women, men, and children. The claimed purpose for this action was for sanitary reasons, to avoid inevitable carry and spread of germs and inspects that could cause sickness and death. Nonetheless shaving their heads stripped them of a lifeline to their home and a connect to their people who arrived before them. Their language was taken away and they where unable to identify with others from their tribe.

Once their hair began to grow back plaits, braids, and cornrows were the most convenient hairstyle for slaves to do that would have their hair neat and maintained for a week. On Sundays, some masters allowed their slaves to have a time to themselves to prepare for the week of labor coming. They would braid each other’s hair using grease or oil they had available, like kerosene. Cornrows were given its name by slaves who thought the style resembled rows of corn in the field. Other slaves, in Central and Southern America and the Caribbean call them cane rows because the resembled sugarcane fields. This hairstyle was useful for the livelihood of slaves. Braid patterned became symbols for freedom. Different styles and patterns were used as guide to planations, resembling roads and paths to travel or avoid.

Bridget Boakye, How cornrows were used as an escape map from slavery across south america https://face2faceafrica.com/article/how-cornrows-were-used-as-an-escape-map-from-slavery-across-south-america

Emma Dabiri, Don’t Touch My Hair

Gina Conteh, A Brief History Of Black Hair Braiding And Why Our Hair Will Never Be A Pop Culture Trend https://www.bet.com/news/features/1619/the-history-of-hair-braiding-in-black-america.html

Lori L Tharps, Ayana Byrd, Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America

Siraad Dirshe Respect our roots: a brief history of our braids https://www.essence.com/hair/respect-our-roots-brief-history-our-braids-cultural-appropriation/

T. Causey-Hicks More than a hairstyle: how braids were used to keep our ancestors alive https://blackdoctor.org/508605/history-of-african-hair-braiding/5/

John D. Fage, T.C. McCaskie, Western Africa, https://www.britannica.com/place/western-Africa/The-fall-of-the-African-kingdoms, October 23, 2019

Lebo Matshego, A history of African women’s hairstyles https://africa.com/history-african-womens-hairstyles/