Everything about Head Shaving totally explained
Head shaving is the practice of
shaving the
hair from a
person's
head, either completely or nearly.
Head shaving can be performed by most standard
razors or
electric hair clippers. Several companies produce razors designed specifically for head shaving. Because it's generally hard to shave long pieces of hair, people with longer hair cut their hair short using scissors before shaving it. Incidents of cutting one's scalp with a razor blade are common, but generally are avoidable if precautions are taken. Using an electric shaver generally results in fewer cuts.
Head shaving has been done for practical,
religious,
cultural, or
aesthetic reasons. Practical reasons include work safety or comfort,
lice prevention,
grooming simplicity and preparation for
surgery.
Competitive swimmers will sometimes shave their heads to reduce drag while swimming. Cultural reasons may include an emphasis on conformity and solidarity as identical haircuts can make diverse crowds look very similar, or as part of
hazing rituals. Many
Buddhists,
Hajj pilgrims, skinheads, and members of the
Hare Krishna movement shave their heads. The
Maasai people of Africa traditionally shave their heads.
History
The earliest historical records describing head shaving originat in ancient
Mediterranean cultures, such as
Egypt,
Greece and
Rome. The Egyptian priest class ritualistically removed all body hair by
plucking. This included hair on the head, eyebrows and beard. In ancient
Greece, long hair was a symbol of wealth and power, while a shaven head was appropriate for a slave. Throughout much of the 20th century in many Western countries, head shaving was considered somewhat unusual or lower class. Head shaving was often associated with manual workers such as
seamen,
dock workers and
soldiers, as well as with prisoners and
psychiatric hospital patients.
The practice of head shaving has often been used to punish people, such as criminals or political opponents. Especially for women, the act of shaving off an offender's hair serves to humiliate the victim and remind them of their offense. For example, thousands of European women had their heads shaved in front of cheering crowds in the wake of World War II, as punishment for associating with occupying
Nazis during the war. As of 2006, several countries — such as the
United States,
Libya and
Russia — still shaved the heads of
prison inmates as a punishment, and also to prevent the spread of
lice. Inmates of
boot camps for delinquent youths in the USA are forced to have their heads shaven.
The practice of shaving heads has been used in the
military, mostly for new recruits. The militaries of the United States, Russia and several other countries have welcomed their recruits by giving them haircuts using hair clippers with no guard attached. As of 2006, shaved heads continued to be standard haircuts in the
United States Marine Corps. In Greece, this practice was abolished on June 25, 1982, when the military started allowing recruits to have up to 4 cm of hair. Before then, the regulation haircut in the Greek army for recruits was
en hro (an archaic phrase for "shaved to the bone"), which was implemented for hygiene reasons. Shaved heads also emphasise a strict, disciplined and masculine persona, hence its use in the military and in many sports.
In some
Hindu societies,
Widows are required to shave their heads upon the death of their husbands.
Buddhist monks and
nuns shave their heads upon entering their order, and
Korean Buddhist monks and
nuns have their heads shaved every 15 days. Muslim men are encouraged to shave their heads (and sport a beard) to distinguish their masculinity as well as maintaining modesty. They are also obliged to shave their heads after the pilgrimage of
Hajj.
In the 1960s, some
British working class youths developed the
skinhead subculture, whose members were distinguished by short cropped hair (although at that time they didn't shave their heads right down to the scalp). This look was partly influenced by the
Jamaican
rude boy style. It wasn't until the skinhead revival in the late 1970s — with the appearance of
punk rock-influenced
Oi! skinheads — that many skinheads started shaving their hair right down. Head shaving has also appeared in other youth-oriented subcultures, such as the
punk,
hardcore,
metalcore,
Nu metal,
hip hop and
techno music scenes.
Famous people who have had shaved heads
Actors who have shaved their heads for roles
Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi in Heaven
Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now
Jeff Bridges in Iron Man
Yul Brynner in The King and I
Daniel Craig in I, Lucifer
Kim Cattrall in Sex and the City
Natalie Darryl in The Girl in the Kremlin
Renée Jeanne Falconetti in The Passion of Joan of Arc
Albert Finney in Annie
John Hurt in The Elephant Man
Tommy Lee Jones in Cobb
Persis Khambatta in
Judith Light in theatre production of Wit
Bai Ling in Anna and the King
Melanie Mayron in Playing for Time
Matthew McConaughey in Reign Of Fire
Maggie McOmie and Robert Duvall in THX 1138
Demi Moore in G.I. Jane
Edward Norton in American History X
Jack Nicholson in The Bucket List
Eleanor Parker in Caged
Hugh Jackman in The Fountain
Boris Karloff in Tower of London
Ellen Page in Mouth to Mouth
Lori Petty in Tank Girl
Justin Berfield for the Malcolm in the Middle two-parter Reese Joins the Army.
Natalie Portman in V for Vendetta
Tony Randall in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao
Vanessa Redgrave in Playing for Time
Michael Rosenbaum in Smallville
Kevin Spacey in Superman Returns
Emma Thompson in television version of Wit
Sigourney Weaver in Alien 3
Emile Hirsch in Lords of Dogtown
Robin Tunney in Empire Records
Willem Dafoe in Animal Factory
Hannah Taylor-Gordon in
Noémie Lenoir in Rush Hour 3
Kal Penn in The Namesake
Wentworth Miller in ""Prison Break"
Dominic Purcell in ""Prison Break"
Gage Toohey in Daschool
Shabana Azmi in Water
Colin Farrell in Daredevil
Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne in The Matrix
Arnold Schwarzenegger in Batman and Robin
Models who shaved their heads
Masumi max
Kumi Monster
Siren Song
The permanantly shaven model; Capricorn Moon
Lisa Ray in Water
Bryan Cranston for Breaking BadFurther Information
Get more info on 'Head Shaving'.
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