Afro , sometimes abbreviated as' fro or described as Jew fro under certain circumstances, is a hairstyle naturally worn by people with long or even medium long curly hair textures (which are known as natural ), or are specifically arranged in such a way by individuals with curly or straight hair naturally. Hairstyle is made by combing hair away from the scalp, allowing hair extends out of the head in a large round shape, like a cloud or ball.
In people with curly or straight hair, hairstyles are usually made with the help of creams, gels or other booster liquids to hold the hair in place. Especially popular in the African-American community in the late 1960s and early 1970s, hairstyles were often shaped and nurtured with the help of a rare-toothed comb known as the Afro pick.
Video Afro
Etymology
"Afro" is derived from the term "Afro-American". This hair style is also referred to by some as "natural" - especially shorter, less complicated Afro versions - because in many cases hair is left untreated by relaxers or straightening chemicals and is allowed to express natural curls. or childish.
Maps Afro
History in the United States
the beauty of Circassian
In the 1860s, a hairstyle similar to Afro was worn by the beauty of Circassian. Sometimes known as "Moss-haired girls," they are a group of women exhibited in a spectacle attraction in the United States by P. T. Barnum and others. These women claim to be descendants of the Circassian in the North Caucasus region, and marketed to white circles captivated by the "exotic East" as a purely Caucasian example of being kept as sexual slaves in the Turkish harem. It has been argued that this portrayal of Caucasian women as slaves saved during the American Civil War played a racial connotation of slavery at the time so that a distinctive hairstyle links the white sides of Circassian with African-American identity, and thus:
strange but striking resonate with the rest of his identification that identifies: his racial purity, his sexual slavery, his position as a colonial subject; her beauty. Elements of Victorian Victorian Woman's white blend with the features of black women enslaved in one curiosity.
African-American hairstyles before the 1960s
During the history of slavery in the United States, most African Americans styled their hair in an attempt to emulate the white-dominated style of society in which they lived. Afro-textured hair, characterized by rigid kinks, has been described as curly, rough, cotton, diaper, or wool. This characteristic represents the antithesis of the European American beauty standard, and causes a negative view of curly hair. As a result, enforcement practices are gaining popularity among African Americans.
The process of straightening hair often involves the use of caustic substances, such as alkaline abrasives, which need to be applied by an experienced hairdresser to avoid burning the scalp and ears. In the late 1890s/early 1900s, Mrs C. J. Walker also popularized the use of hot combs in the United States. Those who choose not to treat their hair artificially will often choose to tie into tight braids or cornrows. With all these hairstyling methods, a person is at risk of damaging the hair shaft, sometimes causing hair loss.
1960s and '70s
The effects of the Civil Rights Movement brought a new identity identity to the African-American community, which also resulted in a redefinition of personal style that included an appreciation of the beauty and aesthetic of blacks, as embodied by the "Black is beautiful" movement. This cultural movement marks the return of a more natural and unkempt hairstyle. The Afro becomes a powerful political symbol reflecting black pride and a rejection of the idea of ​​assimilation and integration - unlike long, untreated hair popularized by the White hippies.
For some African-Americans, Afro also represents reconstituted relations to West Africa and Central Africa. However, some critics have suggested that Afro's hair style is not very African: In his book Welcome to the Forest: A New Position in the Black Cultural Studies, cultural critic Kobena Mercer argues that contemporary African society in the mid-20th century do not consider hairstyles to indicate a particular "Africanness"; on the contrary, some Africans feel that these styles signify "worldly truth".
Similarly, Brackette F. Williams states in his book Stains on My Name, War on My Vein: Guyana and Politics of Cultural Struggle that African nationalists are troubled by Afro adoption by African Americans as a symbol of their African heritage; they see this trend as an example of Western arrogance.
The Afro is adopted by men and women and is a hairstyle that is easier to maintain by yourself, without the need for frequent and sometimes expensive visits to hairdressers as is often experienced by people who choose to braid, straighten or loosen their hair. Because the curly pattern protrudes in the Afro-texture hair, as it grows longer it has a tendency to extend out of the head, resulting in domelike hairstyles being easily shaped and carved into the desired shape. While Afro is a much more invasive and time consuming hairstyle option for many African Americans, some choose to achieve a thicker version of Afro with backcombing or teasing hair, a practice that can lead to damage to hair and scalp.
In the mid-1960s, Afro's hairstyle started with a fairly stiff form, like a hairstyle that became popular among Black Panther Party members. As the 1960s evolved into the 1970s, popular hairstyles, both within and outside the African-American community, became longer and longer. As a result, the late 1960s/early 1970s saw an expansion in the overall size of Afros. Some of the entertainers and sociopolitical figures of the time known to wear the larger Afros include political activist Angela Davis, actress Pam Grier, rock musician Jimi Hendrix, singer Miriam Makeba, and members of the band The Jackson 5 and The Supremes.
In contrast, the popularity of Afro among African Americans had begun to decline in the early 1970s; The introduction of Afro into the mainstream and its adoption by non-African descendants caused Afro to lose its radical political side. The 1970s saw an increasing popularity of braided hairstyles like cornrows between the two African American sexes.
1990s and 2000s
Afro saw a revival in the 1990s and 2000s. Afros will take on various shapes - some combine elements such as braids, beads or bends - as well as various sizes - from natural hairstyles that are cut short down to the vast Afro wig.
Some African Americans who are famous for wearing Afro or Afro wigs over the past two decades include NBA bassist Ben Wallace, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Beasley, as well as Lauryn Hill musicians Erykah Badu, Macy Gray, Ludacris, Questlove, Cindy Blackman, Wiz Khalifa , and Lenny Kravitz. Beyoncà ©  © Knowles also wore a great Afro wig for her role as Foxxy Cleopatra in the 2002 Austin Powers film in Goldmember .
Similar style internationally
A "Jewfro" (portmanteau of Jewish and Afro words) or "Isro" (portmanteau of the words of Israel and Afro) refers to the afro when worn by Jews. His name is inspired by Afro's hairstyle, which is similar.
The term is rooted in the 1960s and 1970s when many well-known figures are portrayed as sporting hairstyles. The Los Angeles Times calls college football star Scott Marcus a flower boy with "golden brown hair... in curls around his head in what he calls the Jewish Afro style".
The New York Times in a 1971 article on Harvard University's "University" basketball team, writes that Captain Brian Newmark "has not had a haircut since last May and his friends suggested his hairdo was the first cousin. to Afro... in the case of Jewish Junior from Brooklyn, though, the thick black hair that piled high on his head has been called Isro. "Novelist Judith Rossner is portrayed in the Chicago Tribune profile as" Wunderkind matures with an open face, an oval framed by an Afro Jew. "
Hadendoa Beja from Northeast Africa was called Fuzzy-Wuzzies by British colonial troops during the Mahdi War in the late 19th century because of their often large and mop-like hairstyles, which they form by applying butter or goat fat. In Somalia, some young men from nomadic and settled communities will grow their hair long and carefully comb it into the rather large bushes, which they then hold with the ghee. This elaborate hairstyle is very different from other hairstyle styles found among other Somalis, who will grow long and patted their fine, straight hair and place chewing sticks and combs in the middle.
Afro Variations have been imposed by one or both sexes in many different cultures from the African continent. Due to the association of hairstyles with members of African Civil Rights and the Black Power movement, Afro was seen by some outside cultures as a dangerous symbol of political unrest, including Tanzania where Afro was banned in the 1970s because it was regarded as a symbol of neocolonialism and as part of a cultural invasion America. In the 1950s and 1960s, South African women were also known to wear their hair in Afro-type style.
Afro did not rise to the same level of popularity among Afro-Caribbean communities as it did in the United States, in part due to the popularity of dreadlocks, which played a significant role in the Rastafari movement. Unlike Afro's significance among members of the American Black Power movement, dreadlocks symbolize the pride and empowerment of black among Rastafari in the Caribbean.
Tools
Long teeth, the width of the "Afro pick" or Afro comb are designed to dig into the scalp that allows the hair roots to be stretched directly into the desired style or shape using a picking motion.
See also
- Conk
- Jheri curl
- Wig Nubian
- Natural hair movement
References
Note
External links
- Media related to Afro on Wikimedia Commons
- Definition of afro dictionary in Wiktionary
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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