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our hair: a thread by a black woman
im gonna be giving some insight on the history and cultural impact of cornrows, box braids, dreadlocks and even bantu knots. i’ll also be providing links to articles in each one so you can read more and further educate yourself. here’s one now. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/news/black-hairstyles-visual-history-in-photos
let’s start with cornrows. if you didn’t know already, cornrows are small, tight braids laid on the scalp. these braids originated in africa and were used by enslaved african americans as maps and escape routes from their slave owners.
https://www.afrobizworld.com/the-secret-meaning-of-the-african-cornrows
https://www.afrobizworld.com/the-secret-meaning-of-the-african-cornrows
cornrows were also used to hide rice and seeds to avoid going hungry had a black person been captured, or stolen away from their family to be sold into the slave trade. they were forced to endure horrific conditions during transportation.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/blackdoctor.org/history-of-african-hair-braiding/amp/
https://www.google.com/amp/s/blackdoctor.org/history-of-african-hair-braiding/amp/
this article goes more in depth about the treatment of our people during slave trades. how they prepared themselves as best they could for the horribly high chance they get captured and sold. https://face2faceafrica.com/article/how-hair-was-used-to-smuggle-grains-into-the-caribbean-by-african-slaves
cornrows play a large part in identity as you could tell a persons age, marital statues, religion, ethnicity and what clan a person belonged to just from the way they styled their braids. there’s a lot of culture packed into our hair.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.essence.com/v/s/www.essence.com/amp/hair/respect-our-roots-brief-history-our-braids-cultural-appropriation/%3famp_js_v=0.1&usqp=mq331AQFKAGwASA%253D#ampf=
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.essence.com/v/s/www.essence.com/amp/hair/respect-our-roots-brief-history-our-braids-cultural-appropriation/%3famp_js_v=0.1&usqp=mq331AQFKAGwASA%253D#ampf=
lastly, we have thicker and curlier hair which makes holding these styles way easier than it would be if someone who wasn’t black were to wear them. it’s not the biggest thing in the world but while cornrows for us is a good protective style, on nb people it could thin your hair.
here’s another article on cornrows if you wanna learn more. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ebony.com/style/everything-you-need-know-about-cornrows/%3famp
the history of braids also trace back to african culture. braids were a pretty unique way for lots of african tribes to identify each other. like with cornrows they also have a variety of ways they present a persons identity.
https://www.byrdie.com/history-of-braids
https://www.byrdie.com/history-of-braids
it was originally braided into caps made out of wool, felt, and even human hair for reusal. they were a sign of wealth and class; adding things like cowrie shells, jewels and beads held a lot of meaning
https://www.onchek.com/theinsight/6-popular-braiding-styles-their-true-origin/
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bet.com/news/features/1619/the-history-of-hair-braiding-in-black-america.amp.html
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ebony.com/style/history-box-braids/%3famp
https://www.onchek.com/theinsight/6-popular-braiding-styles-their-true-origin/
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bet.com/news/features/1619/the-history-of-hair-braiding-in-black-america.amp.html
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ebony.com/style/history-box-braids/%3famp
bantu knots. “bantu” meaning “people” in the bantu language originated in south africa. bantu speakers had made a lot of cultural achievements and development, but colonizers had stolen all their resources and destroyed their creations. https://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/hairstyles/the-history-of-bantu-knots
bantu knots were appropriated and stolen a few years ago when Valentino had mostly white models wear these styles in 2016. Same with Marc Jacaobs in 2015. They even went as far as to make a tutorial on how to make these “twisted mini buns”
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ebony.com/style/everything-you-need-know-about-bantu-knots/%3famp
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ebony.com/style/everything-you-need-know-about-bantu-knots/%3famp
that’s all for now. i’ll most likely add more to this thread so if you have any info you’d like to add you are more than welcome to !
