A hairstyle, hairdo, haircut, or coiffure refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human head but sometimes on the face or body. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.
Hair removal is the deliberate removal of body hair or head hair. This process is also known as epilation or depilation.
Shaving is the removal of hair, by using a razor or any other kind of bladed implement, to slice it down—to the level of the skin or otherwise. Shaving is most commonly practiced by men to remove their facial hair and by women to remove their leg and underarm hair. A man is called clean-shaven if he has had his beard entirely removed.
A beard is the hair that grows on the jaw, chin, upper lip, lower lip, cheeks, and neck of humans and some non-human animals. In humans, usually pubescent or adult males are able to start growing beards, on average at the age of 18.
A turban is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Communities with prominent turban-wearing traditions can be found in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, the Balkans, the Caucasus, Central Asia, North Africa, West Africa, East Africa, and amongst some Turkic peoples in Russia.
In Sikhism, the Five Ks are five items that Guru Gobind Singh, in 1699, commanded Khalsa Sikhs to wear at all times. They are: kesh, kangha, kara, kachhera, and kirpan.
A dastār is an item of headwear associated with Sikhism and Sikh culture. The word is loaned from Persian through Punjabi. In Persian, the word dastār can refer to any kind of turban and replaced the original word for turban, dolband (دلبند), from which the English word is derived.
A kangha is a small wooden comb that Sikhs usually use twice a day and part of the Five Ks. It is supposed to be kept with the hair at all times. Combs help to clean the hair, and are a symbol of cleanliness. Combing their hair reminds Sikhs that their lives should be tidy and organised. The kangha makes the uncut hair neat and keeps away tangles. Kanghas were traditionally made of wood, but many modern Sikhs employ ones made of plastic.
On horses, the mane is the hair that grows from the top of the neck of a horse or other equine, reaching from the poll to the withers, and includes the forelock or foretop. It is thicker and coarser than the rest of the horse's coat, and naturally grows to roughly cover the neck. Heredity plays a role, giving some horses a longer, thicker mane, and others a shorter, thinner one.
A Hukamnama, in modern-times, refers to a hymn from the Guru Granth Sahib which is given as an injunction, order, or edict to Sikhs. It also refers to edicts issued by the contemporary Takhts. In the historical sense, it was used to refer to an issued commandment, instruction, injunction, order, or edict given by one of the Gurus of Sikhism or their officiated followers and associates during their lives.
Judaism prohibits shaving with a razor on the basis of a rabbinic interpretation of Leviticus 19:27, which states, "Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard." The Mishnah interprets this as a prohibition on using a razor on the beard.
In Sikhism, kesh or kes is the practice of allowing one's hair to grow naturally without cutting. The practice is one of The Five Kakaars, the outward symbols ordered by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699 as a means to profess the Sikh faith. The hair is combed twice daily with a kanga, another of the five Ks, and tied into a simple knot known as a joora or rishi knot. This knot of hair is usually held in place with the kanga and covered by a turban.
Horse grooming is hygienic care given to a horse, or a process by which the horse's physical appearance is enhanced for horse shows or other types of competition.
Religious clothing is clothing which is worn in accordance with religious practice, tradition or significance to a faith group. It includes clerical clothing such as cassocks, and religious habit, robes, and other vestments. Accessories include hats, wedding rings, crucifixes, etc.
Dog grooming refers to the hygienic care of a dog, a process by which a dog's physical appearance is enhanced. A dog groomer is a professional that is responsible for maintaining a dog’s hygiene and appearance by offering services such as bathing, brushing, hair trimming, nail clipping, and ear cleaning.
Facial hair is hair grown on the face, usually on the chin, cheeks, and upper lip region. It is typically a secondary sex characteristic of human males. Men typically start developing facial hair in the later stages of puberty or adolescence, at around fourteen years of age, and most do not finish developing a full adult beard until around sixteen or later. However, large variations can occur; boys as young as ten have also been known to develop facial hair, and some men do not produce much facial hair at all.
Facial hair in the military has been at various times common, prohibited, or an integral part of the uniform.
Sikhs and Sikh Americans have served in the United States military since World War I through all subsequent wars. Since the 1980s, observant Sikhs have faced difficulty in serving due to a discontinuation of exemptions to uniform standards which previously allowed Sikhs to maintain their religiously mandated beards and turbans while in uniform.
Sikhism was founded in Punjab in 1469 by Guru Nanak on the foundations that everyone is equal, regardless of caste, age, or gender. Both men and women are supposed to follow the Five Ks: Kesh, Kangha (comb), Kara, Kachera and Kirpan, and there was never a distinction between what a woman should be allowed to do versus a man at theological level. Men and women are treated equally in the temple (gurdwara), and everyone eats and prays side-by-side. Both men and women are meant to carry the Kirpan with them as they are responsible for their own physical protection, and should not depend on others. Sikhs are strictly against the caste system and many chose to use Kaur or Singh as a last name to push against the problematic caste system in India. There is only one god (Waheguru) in Sikhism and they are without form or gender, and everyone is equal in the eyes of God. Many Sikh women believe that this absence of assignment of code of conduct for a woman versus a man proves that their religion is historically committed to gender equality. Presently, the culture does not always follow these traditions and equality is often more true in ideals rather than daily practice. According to Kiman Kaur: "It is essential to take into account the diverse Kaur narratives in order to critically understand the violence Sikh women experience due to religious, ethnic, and gender minoritization through enabling more intersectional conversations."
Harnaam Kaur is a British social media personality, postpartum coach, life coach and motivational speaker.
