THE EVOLUTION OF TRADITIONAL IGBO HAIRSTYLES ACROSS THE ERAS

BY OKAFOR PRINCESS: NATIONAL MUSEUM OF UNITY ENUGU

 

ABSTRACT

The Igbo people of Nigeria are known for their rich culture and traditions and their hairstyles are no exception. Their hairstyles remind people of their cultural identity, the expression of beauty through their hairstyles has been a long-standing signature of Igbo culture, they see their hair as their glory and it is expected to be given great attention. This paper intends to espouse the significance of traditional hairstyles, historical background of the traditional hairstyles, fascinating history of traditional Igbo hairstyles across three eras and the different hairstyles adorned by Igbo women. This is a qualitative research that adopted the use of past literature, observations, case studies and photographs to collect data with a view to highlight the traditional Igbo hairstyles as a means of identification. This paper will be beneficial to the Igbo culture.

Key words: Culture, Adorned, Expression and Hairstyles.

INTRODUCTION

Igbo traditional hairstyles are a significant aspect of the Igbo culture representing not only the aesthetic beauty but also the cultural identity of Igbo women, they use their hairstyles as a personal expression of who they are. They often serve as a means of communication; it is also believed that hairstyles symbolize one’s social status, age, marital status, occupation, mood and more. These hairstyles are a work of art on its own they use principles of art and design including curves, zigzags, straight lines, horizontals and perpendiculars. (Oladumiye, Adiji and Olabiyi 2013, 96-98), they are often elaborate and time consuming to create. Some of the hairstyles have evolved overtime and continue to be cherished and celebrated today, the evolving of these hair styles is likewise endangering some of these traditional hairstyles. As put by Ogiri, “that with modernization and westernization, the traditional African hairstyles seems to be fading into history books” (Ogiri 2013, 34-36).  The same is to be said of the indigenous hairstyles of the Igbo women that is seen as her identity is gradually fading out and giving way to other foreign hairstyles.

            The history of Nigeria hair is as far back as 18^th century dating back over 300 years, some traditional Igbo hairstyles came to stay as a result of the connections with some other African countries such as the South Africa, these hairstyles include the Bantu knots, the Zulu top knots even dread locks. Over a period of time to this day women with long hair are considered attractive more than the ones with short hair, this was a time when hair was primarily a status symbol, it was used to connote age, class, marital and social status, profession and spiritual affiliation.  The hairstyles and the secrets of the designs are passed through generations, preserving cultural heritage and fostering the sense of identity among Igbo women. It is to be noted that most unique hairstyles are developed because of the different hair textures of the individuals. There are different significance of these traditional Igbo hairstyles and they are as follows;

 

• Aesthetic Significance - Igbo traditional hairstyles are very attractive because of their powerful, beautiful designs and were often seen as expressions of beauty and feminity, enhancing a woman’s appearance and boosting her confidence. An Igbo woman’s hair is seen as her glory and it is her crowning beauty according to its deep symbolism, it is expected to be given great attention. 

• Social Significance - the traditional Igbo hairstyles served as a carrier of messages, hair often communicated age, wealth, marital status. A widowed woman in most parts of Igboland shaves her hair and stop attending to their hair during the time of mourning so they will not look attractive to other men and to honor their late husband.

• Cultural Significance - Igbo traditional hairstyles held deep cultural significance, they served as a means of identification, allowing individuals to recognize the tribe or village a woman belonged to. Certain hairstyles are associated to with specific occasions such as festivals, rites of passage.

Hairstyles in the traditional Igbo society varies, the hairstyle worn by a maiden is totally different from the one a married woman has and a pregnant woman’s hairstyle is also different.  A girl’s hairstyle in Igbo land depicts her puberty age and thus attracts suitors to her, the young girl is expected to change her hairstyle frequently and make that style that is peculiar to her age. Women plait their hair firmly from the roots of their scalp with different kinds of ornaments such as threads, beads, cowries, bone etc.  these hairstyles are also very symbolic in that they are related to traditional skills required for weaving and tying together of materials to form abstract designs. The common hair styles amongst ‘ndi igbo’ and how they evolved:

Okuku - this hairstyle is a symbolic and popular hairdo of the Benin people, it can be dated back to the time of ‘Ogiso’ meaning the “sky kings” this was to become the Benin empire from 40 BCE to 110 CE in the great kingdom of Benin. However other women like the Igbo women adopted the hair style but with a big difference from the style adorned by the royal wives in the Oba’s palace.  High bun adorned with intricate accessories such as beads and cowries. Often worn by married women and signifies their marital status.

 

Photo credit: Pinterest

Isi-owu – this hair style has been practiced for hundreds of years in the 1910s and 1920s to help children’s hair grow and it involves wrapping the hair in black thread and consists of multiple braids mostly worn by young unmarried girls and signifies youthfulness. It is still common among some women today. 

Photo credit: Pinterest

Ojiugo - these hairstyles involve intricate patterns created with cornrows, this hair style history dates back millennia, it has been traced back to 3,000 BCE where it was found in various cultures of the west Africa, the earliest documentation was found in the stone age paintings in the Tassili Plateau of the Sahara. The cornrow is the kind of hairstyle braided very close to the scalp using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous raised row as seen below in the images, it represents royalty worn mostly by queens. 

 

Photo credit: Pinterest

Ngala Hairstyle - This is an Igbo traditional hairstyle known as Ngala, which represents pride and beauty. It demonstrates how lovely a lady with this hairstyle is. 

 

Photo credit: wokenationtv.com and seeafricatoday.com

Ojongo - Hair Style - The crested hairstyle, also known as ojongo, was popular until the mid-twentieth century and is a distinctive feature of Igbo arts depicting women. Women used ornaments like thread, feathers, shells, bone, wood, beads, as well as mud containing colorful ores, yellow and red camwood powder or paste, and palm oil and charcoal.

 

Photo credit: Ukpuru-tumbir

 

Ukpaka is a unique hairstyle featuring the use of palm kernels or woven materials, it is an artistic expression of beauty and creativity. It was often symbolic of royalty and also used to discern age and marital status. It was a customary tradition among the Igbo women from ancient times to the 1700s. 

 

Photo credit: Pinterest

 

In the late 80s and 90s most of our traditional hairstyles began to fade away. There was the adoption of perming the hair with a chemicalized relaxer and the jerry curls too.  The Igbo hairstyles was chief amongst it, western culture filled our television sets, the birth of salons gave rise to us abandoning our traditional hair styles even the traditional hair care we give to maintain our hair textures were thrown away. The introduction of hair extensions commonly known as attachments and wigs took over. It is worthy of note that in recent years there has been a renewed interest in the Igbo traditional hairstyles, many women are choosing to wear these hairstyles to connect to their culture.  Igbo traditional hair styles is seriously staging a comeback, it is uncommon to see any woman not adorning braids of different styles on their head, such as the cornrow, even the ‘isi owu’ have been modernized by the use of wool as seen below in these pictures; 

 

Photo credit: Pinterest

 

In conclusion, the Igbo traditional hairstyles are not only a testament of creativity and artistry, it also reflects their rich cultural heritage.  The intricate braiding, use of accessories and attention to detail in these hairstyles serve as a visual identity and contribute to the cultural heritage of ‘ndi igbo’. The Igbo traditional hair has been raving for over 300 years. National commission for museums and monuments is one of the institutions dedicated to helping the public understand and appreciate the history of civilization, they collect objects of historical importance and exhibit them.  As part of our duty to preserve and conserve these intangible heritages, there is need for these hairstyles to be documented even if it’s through pictorial exhibition as well as in paper for posterity sake.  The evolutionary and historical progression of cultures is also preserved in the publications of museums; both create and collect to support research (Hirzy 2008, 450-550)

 

REFRENCES

Bailey. A. (2015) Capturing a half century of Nigeria hairstyles. https://www.theworld.org. May, 2015

 Hirzy, E. (2008) “Museum. “Microsoft® Encarta® 2009 [DVD-ROM]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation

Ogiri, A. E. (2013) Hairdo and styles “Blue Print Newspaper. “Retrieved from http://Blueprints news paper.com

Oladumiye, B., Adiji.E. And Olabiyi. A. (2013) Nigerian museum and art preservation: A Repository of cultural Heritage. “International Journal of inclusive museum 6: 96-98.

Williams. A. (2017) the connection between hair and identity in black culture.

https://www.pulse.ng Pre-colonial Nigerian cultures: Hairdressing as a work of art. January 18^th 2019.

https://www.resarchgate.net Visual Documentation of traditional Nigerian Hairstyles and designs as a means of expressing social and cultural heritage through photography. June, 2015.

https://www.doriaaduke.com>exploring Traditional Nigerian Hairstyles with Ojeikere. July, 2022.

https://www.kwekudee-trpdownmemorylane.blogspot.com Hairstyles in African Culture. September, 2012.