Hair means something different to each of us, but Black hair has a uniquely meaningful history as a symbol of survival, resistance and celebration. It's been wielded as a tool of oppression and also one of empowerment—and our society's perceptions of Black hair still influence how Black people are treated today.
It is a dominant genetic trait, and it is found in people of all backgrounds and ethnicities. Black hair contains a large amount of eumelanin pigmentation, a type of melanin. This hair type contains a much more dense quantity of eumelanin in comparison to other hair colors, such as brown, blonde and red.
Black hair as identity. In pre-colonial African societies, Black hair was seen as a symbol of a person's identity. And during that time, there was a hairstyle for everyone and every occasion: whether you were royalty, a soldier going off to war, or a mother about to give birth.
Unsurprisingly, people with this hair color have plenty of eumelanin. In the world, about 70% of the population has black hair or a variation of black hair. These people are mostly concentrated in three regions and continents namely Africa, pre-Columbian Americas, and Asia.
The African hair is generally curly or frizzy, and grows almost parallel to the scalp. It has the slowest growth rate of 0.9 centimeters per month due to its spiral structure which causes it to twist on itself as it grows. African hair has a flattened shape.
So, why is Afro-textured hair so fragile? With its tight curls and twists, is more prone to breakage for several reasons. Its shape increases tangling and makes combing harder. The shape also creates internal stresses when the hair is unbent, untwisted or stretched that lead to fracturing.
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. The only reason black hair appears to grow slower is because it is extremely curly whereas other types of hair grows straight or in bigger curls.
There is no specific and separate term for someone with black hair. However, people have suggested the term noirette or brunette.
In general, however, the highest rates of male pattern baldness are found among Caucasian men. The second highest rates belong to Afro-Caribbeans. Native Americans, on the other hand, do not struggle much with male pattern baldness. As mentioned, pattern baldness is genetic, that is, hereditary.
The United States has predominantly black and brown hair in the population, with 85 percent for black hair and 11 percent for brown hair. Authentic blonde hair makes up only two percent of the population, and authentic red hair, the rarest hair color of all, makes up only one percent of the American population.
Not only is African hair often coiled, it also has a unique texture. So why is this? African hair produces plenty of protective oils, called sebum, which keeps our hair healthy. In fact, African hair actually produces more oils than Caucasian and Asian hair.
Cornrows were a sign of resistance for slaves because they used it as maps to escape from slavery and they would hide rice or seeds into their braids on their way to enslavement.
Afros and the Natural Hair Movement
With the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and '70s, came the rise of the natural hair movement that encouraged black communities to accept their hair and turn away from damaging products.
Fros don't absorb as much moisture as our caucasian cousins' hair, added to this the structure of our hair (curls and kinks, and increased density) means that nutrients often don't travel along the length of our strands as well as we'd like.
Scientifically, black hair is the slowest growing hair type due to its elliptical shape and only grows about one third of an inch per month. Alongside slow growth, you'll likely also encounter issues such as breakage, thinning and shedding whilst trying to grow your afro hair; typically, this is due to dehydration.
Long black hair was rated as more attractive than medium-length black hair in the study. While black hair is attractive on a woman, lighter and longer hair makes women look more attractive in some circumstances, research finds.
Genetics (which controls ethnicity) is the number one cause of hair loss. Certain races have higher rates of hair loss compared to others. Caucasians have the highest rates out of all the ethnic groups. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Native American Indians, Inuits, and Chinese have the lowest rates.
Caucasians have the highest hair density among the ethnicities studied. Black people have the lowest. Asian people have hair density that falls somewhere in between.
While the numbers are different according to different surveys, it appears that either Greece, Macedonia, or the Czech Republic has the highest rate of baldness in the world. These nations each have over 40% of men with acute hair loss.
Hair means something different to each of us, but Black hair has a uniquely meaningful history as a symbol of survival, resistance and celebration. It's been wielded as a tool of oppression and also one of empowerment—and our society's perceptions of Black hair still influence how Black people are treated today.
Definitions of black-haired. adjective. having hair of a dark color. synonyms: brown-haired, dark-haired brunet, brunette. marked by dark or relatively dark pigmentation of hair or skin or eyes.
Black hair is by far the most common natural hair colour in the world. In fact, around 75 to 85 percent of the people in the world have some shade of black hair.
Asian hair shows the fastest growth rate in comparison to the other two hair types. African hair has the lowest growth rate.
In addition, due to a phenomenon called 'shrinkage', kinky hair that is a given length when stretched straight can appear much shorter when allowed to naturally coil. Shrinkage is most evident when afro-textured hair is (or has recently been) wet. The more coiled the hair texture, the higher its shrinkage.
A 2005 study in the journal International Journal of Dermatology also found a difference among races in the rate of hair growth. For example, Asian hair grows the fastest, while African hair grows the slowest. Related: Fur, wool, hair: What's the difference?