Why do black people braid their hair? (2023)

Why are braids important in black culture?

Braids are beautiful and they symbolize resistance, freedom, love, and power coming to fruition. If you are an individual that is interested in getting braided it is pertinent that you know the struggles black women had to endure in America as well as the culture that braids were built on.

Unfortunately, the most common hairstyles among African Americans can be incredibly damaging to hair if proper care is not taken. Braids, weaves, cornrows, and dreadlocks constantly pull on the hair follicles, causing traction alopecia and eventually irreversible hair loss.

Today, the style is seen worldwide and holds significance in West Africa, Sudan, and throughout the horn of Africa. In these locations, the braids can signify a person's age, marital status, wealth, kinship, religion, or personality.

For some, braids are a symbol of strength, wisdom, and are something that reflects their identity. Many of our readers stated the braid has a cultural significance, and many felt a connection to the creator, their ancestors and the earth.

1 Cornrows

Warriors and kings were identified by their braided hairstyles. Still largely worn throughout West Africa, Sudan, and the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia), cornrows can signify one's age, religious beliefs, kinship, marital status, wealth, and were also a form of self-expression.

In fact, African hair actually produces more oils than Caucasian and Asian hair. However, due to the tight curls, the oil doesn't spread evenly along the hair fiber. Without lubrication, the fibers can become dry. This causes the strands to become more brittle, which contributes to the hair's texture.

Although braids can last anywhere between two to eight weeks depending on which kind you go for and how you wear them, you should be prepared to cleanse roughly every two to three weeks. If you've been swimming (or happen to sweat a lot), your scalp will require a bit of TLC.

Talk to your stylist to determine how long your specific braids should be in to maintain the health of your hair and scalp, but as a general rule try to keep your braids in for no longer than 8 weeks at a time for optimal scalp and hair health.

Braiding your hair can help retain the length of your hair by protecting the scalp and ends. When your hair is in braids, you will not be brushing or detangling your hair, which is a common cause for breakage. However, when your ends are tucked away, it can minimize the likelihood of split ends and unwanted breakage.

Similarly, the practice is recorded in Europe, Africa, India, China, Japan, Australasia and Central Asia. Braiding is traditionally a social art. Because of the time it takes to braid hair, people have often taken time to socialize while braiding and having their hair braided.

What do the 3 braids symbolize?

For Native Americans, braided hair is more than just a coiffure - it is symbolic of their worldview. The three strands in a braid stand for the mind, the body, and the spirit - all three are intimately and inextricably linked to one another.

Cornrows have long been a facet of African beauty and life. In many African societies, braid patterns and hairstyles indicate a person's community, age, marital status, wealth, power, social position, and religion.

The women chose easier-to-manage styles, like single plaits, and used oils they had on hand, such as kerosene, to condition them. Braids also served another purpose: They became a secret messaging system for slaves to communicate with one another underneath their masters' noses.

Can cultural appropriation occur in the braiding industry? Yes. Among the rampant examples is one the most notorious; Kim Kardashian's when she wrongly attributed African cornrows to BO DEREK, a '70's white model and actress.

In Africa, braid styles and patterns have been used to distinguish tribal membership, marital status, age, wealth, religion and social ranking. In some countries of Africa, the braids were used for communication. In some Caribbean islands, braid patterns were used to map routes to escape slavery.

“The origin of braids can be traced back 5000 years in African culture to 3500 BC—they were very popular among women.” Braids are not just a style; this craft is a form of art. “Braiding started in Africa with the Himba people of Namibia,” says Pace.

"That's why conversations like this are so important." Braids — and cornrows, in particular — have a rich history in Black culture, she explains. The style was once used as a symbol of resistance for slaves, who braided rice seeds into their hair prior to their journey of enslavement in order to possibly grow food.

Cornrows dated far back to 3000 B.C., particularly in the Horn and West coasts of Africa. In the early 1500s, the style was used as a communication medium amongst various African societies that were later forced to migrate to the Americas as slaves, where their customs followed.

Caucasian hair usually appears thicker since it is more difficult to see through the scalp than other ethnic hair types. However, Asian hair is the thickest and coarsest hair of any ethnic group.

Black people's hair grows slower than any other ethnic group's hair. According to research hair grows an average of 1.3cm per monthand although it's true tha black people's hair grows slower than this, the difference is not extreme.

Which ethnicity has the best hair?

Which country has the best hair? Caucasian, Asian and Indian hair samples were put to the test for the World's Best Hair study. Their results put an end to any splitting of hairs over the issue: in terms of health, the Indian hair is the best, topping other ethnic groups on all four counts.

But even though you're all braided up, that doesn't mean you don't have to wash your hair while the braids are in. Quite the contrary, actually — if you skip washing altogether or don't wash enough, you could be reversing the benefits of your protective hairstyle.

Many women of African descent do not shampoo their hair daily because their hair is innately dry. The normal range is from several times a week to once monthly. Shampooing at least every one to two weeks is recommended to avoid product build-up, irritant dermatitis and seborrhoeic dermatitis.

You can get your braids wet in the shower, pool, and when it's raining. However, we do recommend taking certain precautions to protect your braids from fungal growth, hair damage, frizz, and unraveling.

Can Black people wash their hair every day? No, it is not advisable to wash black hair daily as it can make your hair dry and brittle. Which shampoos are best for African-American hair? For the best results, use SLS-free shampoos that are gentle on your hair and scalp (6).

Durags are a specific type of headwrap, worn by people with afro-hair and are used to protect the hair and maintain a specific hairstyle. Commonly, people use this accessory after having brushed their hair flat, repeatedly and in one direction.

Yes — Black people wash their hair, and black hair needs to be kept clean. Like all hair types, washing black hair helps eliminate excess dirt, oil, debris, and buildup from styling products.

There are many ways to wear braids, and you can tailor them to suit your personality and style. That said, braids are still seen as being inappropriate in the workplace, which is a greater comment on society. Natural hair should not be seen as unprofessional, and it is time we challenge this outdated way of thinking.

What does the Bible say about braids?

Their basis is the Bible where Peter instructed followers against braiding of the hair (1 Peter 3:3). Paul also told Timothy to convey to the women in the church of Ephesus not to braid their hair (1 Timothy 2:9). But the real message of the two verses is about humility and modesty.

The first braids were likely worn by Africans as early as the year 5000 BCE. Even cave paintings dating back to 3000 BCE depict cornrows and braids. This is why you often see people refer to braids as a historically African style.

“Some white masters would rape their African male slaves; subsequently, the victims were forced to wear their pants sagging so that their masters could identify them for future attacks.

Yes, you can wear braids. It's a good protective style. It only becomes cultural appropriation when non-black celebrities braid their hair like black women, and then claim that they invented that specific style of braiding.

Afros, cornrows, dreadlocks and beyond: The ancient roots of black hairstyles. Afros, cornrows, dreadlocks and beyond: The ancient roots of black hairstyles. For centuries black communities around the world have created hairstyles that are uniquely their own.

'Cornrows', 'canerows' (in the Caribbean), and 'boxer' braids are all the same thing. Three-strand plaits that are tight to the scalp, with the strands woven underneath so they pop off your head.

It is most commonly held that this idea originated from Benkos Biohó during his time as a slave in Colombia.

In the time of slavery in Colombia, hair braiding was used to relay messages. For example, to signal that they wanted to escape, women would braid a hairstyle called departes.

In early African civilisations, hairstyles could indicate a person's family background, tribe and social status. "Just about everything about a person's identity could be learned by looking at the hair," says journalist Lori Tharps, who co-wrote the book Hair Story about the history of black hair.

Braids are considered a protective styling on African curly hair as they allow for easy and restorative growth.

Are all braids cultural appropriation?

Braids ARE NOT considered cultural appropriation, they are just one of many hair styles that anyone can pick to wear. There is NO cultural appropriation.

He told me that its origin is from the time when slaves sold in Caribbean ports were forbidden to possess knives or other sharp instruments. Thus, unable to groom themselves, hair was braided into what became known as "locks." As a result, the term dreadlocks became associated with slavery.

They are an integral part of Black culture—past, present and future. ANCESTRAL ROOTS The discovery of ancient stone paintings depicting women with cornrows in North Africa shows that braids date back thousands of years.

Box braids are a type of hair-braiding style that is predominantly popular among African people and the African diaspora.

Durags are a specific type of headwrap, worn by people with afro-hair and are used to protect the hair and maintain a specific hairstyle. Commonly, people use this accessory after having brushed their hair flat, repeatedly and in one direction.

For some Blacks, the notion of assimilation in to White American society was ideal, because it held a perceived promise of better socioeconomic status. One way they attempted to assimilate was by straightening their hair to fit the White American beauty ideal. ...