Headwraps are popular statement-making hair accessories and cloth head coverings that adorn the heads of women across the globe. They are known as ‘Dukus’ in Ghana, ‘Geles’ in Nigeria, and ‘Doeks’ in South Africa. Regardless of the name, headwraps have a rich cultural history originating in Africa. While headwraps have become trademark hair accessories, they are more than just a fashion statement.
Head wrapping is ancient, with the earliest known record of headwraps dating back to the 13th century in what would now be Northern Iraq. Head coverings would only be worn by aristocratic women and were strictly forbidden to be worn by women of lower status.
In the beginning of the 18th century, these designs communicated a woman’s cultures and family practices. For some cultures, headwraps indicated a high social status along with which a woman’s marital status was indicated, from being engaged up till the marriage. In some tribes married women were expected to wear headwraps when visiting their in-laws as a sign of respect, and others wore headwraps when attending religious gatherings.
In 18th century Africa, when women started wearing headwraps, they did so to assert their womanhood and distinguish themselves from one another. As women have always struggled on how they can make it appropriate and safe for the society, but with the headwrap, women are really embracing the Africanness within them. Just like the evolution of iconic hairstyles, the headwraps made their way to be a fashion statement and symbol of self love.
Today, head wraps still hold a complicated history but are becoming a radicalized choice and reclamation for many communities.
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The Historical Significance of Headwraps
Headwraps originated in Sub-Saharan Africa in the early 1700s and soon became prevalent among Nubian queens in Egypt. Headwraps had distinct meanings depending on the color and pattern.
By the mid-1700s, in the US Black women were enslaved and forced to wear headwraps as a symbol of subservience. In South Carolina, British colonists passed a law in 1735 which mandated that Black women were only allowed to wear specific types of clothing.
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As popularity for hair extensions grew widely, Black women wore satin-lined headwraps to protect their hair from heat and humidity. By the 1990s, singers Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill celebrated Black womanhood in their anthemic chart-topping hits; they also popularized headwraps among the new generation.
In a groundbreaking 2006 anthem “I Am Not My Hair’, Arie spoke of the struggles that Black women experienced when wearing their natural hair textures, both in the workplace and in casual settings.
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Modern Interpretations
In modern times, headwraps have taken on new meanings while still fundamentally serving as an ode to African roots. Some women wear headwraps as a protective headgear while sleeping, as curly and kinky hair tend to turn dry when cotton pillowcases are used. Some women also opt to sport a headwrap on days when they are doing heatless styles.
African women still wear headwraps when attending cultural festivities such as weddings, baby showers and even funerals. Headwraps have numerous videos on how to artfully tie them. From dukus to geles to doeks, there’s no shortage of headwraps to choose from.
Headwraps have become so prevalent that many Black-owned hair brands sell an excess of custom-made ones in various patterns, shapes and sizes. Headwraps have a detailed cultural history which reveals that they are much more than mere hair accessories.
Traditional Ethiopian Hairstyles
Many types of hair styles exist in Ethiopia. Basically, braids (sheruba in Amharic), Afros (Goferay in Amharic) and dreadlocks of monks and pilgrims are common. In major towns however, the wonderful styles are not seen as common as in the rural areas.
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Most Ethiopians may proudly hang up photos of traditional hair styles in their homes but usually avoid wearing it themselves probably because they may be depicted as backwards. Many years ago The Ethiopian Post Office printed a set of stamps that depicted various tribes wearing unique and stylistic hair styles from the provinces of Arussi, Bale, Begemedir (Gonder), , Shoa and Kaffa. Some of these hair styles were actually used by the ancient Egyptians and Pharoahs and people of the Nile Basins.
In fact there are many traditions and cultures used in Ethiopia that are presently absent in other parts of the Nile valley such as Head Rests, Cistrums, Ear wax cleaners and reed Rain Coats are still used in Ethiopia.
Men usually have a hair style in the Afro fashion. However, they are known to also braid their hair. A well known examples of braids in men is that of Emperor Tewodros and Yohannes.
Hair styles also exists for the young. Mischievous toddlers receive a Mohawk type of hair cut. The Amharic name for this style is "Kuntcho".
The traditional story behind this style is that the angels will pull the kids out of trouble by holding onto the tuft of hair of the kids. Young girls receive a hair cut that includes a shaved top surrounded by a halo of an Afro style.
Common Ethiopian Hairstyles
- Quntcho: This hairstyle is used mostly in toddlers and the very young. It consists of a tuft of hair on top of a shaved head. In Ethiopian tradition, the angels save the child from mischief and trouble by holding them by the tuft of the Quntcho hair.
- Qaray: A narrow strip of hair is allowed to grow from the mid-forehead to the back of the neck. The rest of the head is shaved. This style of hair is known as a Mohawk in the United States of America. However, within Ethiopia, it has been practiced as a tradition for many centuries in young boys.
- Sadula: Teenager maidens shave their hair on the top of the head and leave the outlying fringes unshaven. The shaven hair is allowed to grow only after the women have matured and married. The first growth of this shaven hair after marriage is called Endermamit or Fesesay The hair that has not been shaved, that is, the outlying fringe, is either braided or combed into an Afro.
- Zur Gamay: This hairstyle is another name for Gamay Sheruba worn by young unmarried girls.
- Gamay Sheruba: This hairstyle is a Sadula hairstyle using braids.
- Endermamit: When a young virgin girl with a Sadula hairstyle has married, the one year growth of new hair from the previously shaved area is called Endermamit.
- Fesesay: This term is identical with Endermamit.
- Gofeiray: Any type of hairstyle that involves the excessive growth of woolly hair. In the West it is known as an Afro.
- Gufta: Gufta is a hairstyle commonly practiced by the Oromo and Gurage people in Ethiopia. Basically, the hair is combed into a fluffy Goferay (Afro).
- Eshem: This hairstyle is a thick large braid worn by women mostly but also by men in the older days. It is actually a large corn row beginning from the forehead and ending at the back of the neck.
- Eshem Dereb: This name implies a Double Eshem.
- Gungun: This is a type of Eshem braid.
- Mertu: This hairstyle is traditional amongst the Ethiopian Oromo people. The hair is braided in a rope-like fashion (twisted around) and ends in a tuft of hair. This is not done in the fashion of a cornrow.
Hairstyles of Specific Ethiopian Tribes
- Hamar Bumi and Karo (Southwestern Ethiopians) Women Hairstyle: Hamar Bumi and Karo Ethiopian women who are unmarried have their hair rubbed with fat into small balls then cover them with ochre. These women change their hairstyle after marriage by changing the balls into long twisted strands rubbed in ochre.
- Afar Women Hairstyle: Afar (Danakil, Dankali) women that are unmarried wear their hair as hanging ringlets.
- Hamar Bumi and Karo Hairstyle (Southwestern Ethiopians): Hamar Bumi and Karo men wear clay hair buns representing killing of an enemy or a dangerous animal. The hairdo lasts up to one year. Above the forehead, a small holder is made to hold ostrich feathers.
- Afar Hairstyle: Afar (Danakil, Dankali) men frizzle their hair into a fuzzy mop (so-called Fuzzy Wuzzy of the British).
- Nazrawi: This is a Christian monk who wears his hair in a Goferey (Afro style combined with dreadlock) and wraps a long chain several times around his shoulders and waist. This monk or pilgrim also carries a long metal rod that is topped with the crucifix (cross).
Clothing and Cultural Significance in Ethiopia
Clothing in Ethiopia includes traditional garments as well as modern fashion styles, accessories and cosmetics. Ethiopia has a rich history for textile production due to its cotton production. Textile outputs include handcrafted translucent shemma cloth made of Amhara embroideries. Habesha kemis is made of woven material worn by women. It is usually designed in white color outfit and widely used by the general population, becoming the most accepted dress in Ethiopian culture.
The traditional dress for females in Ethiopia is a Habesha kemis: a long, thin white gown decorated with colorful embroidery. Its breathable material makes for practical use as well, as it can assist Ethiopian women with increasing airflow in hot, dry weather.
“Women will use the head covering to carry their babies. They’ll wrap the baby on their back with it,” Dagne said. “ I love it over there.
Similar to the female Habesha kemis outfit, men's garments consist of well-designed woven patterns. Although the colors vary, the outfit is mostly white and usually cozy. Bernos is adapted and worn by Ethiopian and Eritrean highlanders. The Bernos is also worn by highlander élites and often seen more importantly in social status. The gabi (Amharic: ጋቢ) is a thicker garment, with four layers of fabric.
