I was just thinking of gender and hair length.

In the fifties, if you had asked a kid what the main difference between boys
and girls are, "girls have long hair" would certainly been one of the first
things mentioned.

But looking around, in the world, it still seems like a surprisingly good
rule.  Yes, there have been a lot of cultures where men wore long hair, but
mostly they stopped.  Sailors and chinese men both used to wear pigtails, but
neither does today.  I think that in cultures where men wore turbans, they
often had long hair underneath, but I think that is less common.

I can't think of any culture, current or historical, where women typically
wore their hair short.

So why is the hair/gender correlation so strong?

67 responses total.

Men working with machinery, long hair gets caught easily...  That can be a
source for why men no longer have long hair.  Look at a picture of george
Washington (in you wallet you might have some bills)... long hair!

South american indians in the amazones, I think have rather short hair.
In fact, I tend to remember from pictures the length is abou tthe same is with
men.
Do I remember correctly?

Roman soldiers cut their hair and beards off so they would not have them
grabbed during battle.  Fewer woman go to battle.  Short hair has been around
longer than machinery.  I think women's hair will also grow longer before it
falls off (about waist length or more, men's maybe shoulder length?).

I believe Guiness lists a man as the person with the longest hair, though.

Re#3: At least one man I know had hair down to his waist at one point.  

Didn't long hair used to be a sign of luxury?

Maybe it's because long hair is viewed as sensual.
And for some reason, in our species, the woman tries to look sexy
(instead of the male for lions, peacocks, pheasants etc.)

Basically what #6 said.  Long hair is a bother, and isn't good for a
whole lot beyond looks.  "Willing to put up with the bother for the
sake of the looks" is far more a feminine than a masculine trait.

This response has been erased.

How often do they think that short hair needs cutting, and how often do
they seem to wash their hair?  :)

I don't really remember how often I had to cut my hair back when I kept it
short, but I do recall that I could get away without washing it very often.
It looked horrid, though, even when I had just washed, dried, and brushed it.
My hair is midway between wavy and curly, and it would stick straight up in
the air in at least one spot no matter how hard I worked on it.  Finally, I
decided that wrestling it wasn't worth the bother.
So, now I have hair down a bit below my shoulders.  I haven't even trimmed
it in a few months, at least, but if I go more than a day without shampoo and
conditioner it gets hideously tangled.  It's still worth it.  I like being
able to just stick it back in a ponytail when I don't feel like dealing with
it; I like not having to worry about having cowlicks or putting my part in
the right place; I like the way long hair _feels_.  
So, it's not so much that it's less of a bother, it's that I prefer this kind
of bother :)

re 3:
        My hair is almost down my waist.  It certainly didn't fall out at
shoulder length.  The length it's at now does seem to be its maximum length.

I didn't really decide to have long hair.  I went through a period about seven
years ago of being very careful about keeping my hair short, getting it cut
every two or three weeks, and then I just stopped bothering with it. 
Eventually I had long hair, and I haven't been particularly motivated to have
short hair so it's still long.  When it was short it was in a sense easier
to deal with it, since combing took about 10 seconds.  On the other hand,
getting it cut was a drag.

Holy hindu men in India let their hair grow as a sign of ascetism, I have
taken a picture of a men sleeping (sitting on some stairs of a temple) whose
hair reaches the ground. I guess standing up his hair would've reached at
least his knees.
The picture can be found at the personal pages/files of my homepage, the url
should be:
http://huizen.nhkanaal.nl/~rickdos/india10.htm
(or else leave the India10 out and follow the links from my index page.)

Well, my hair is up to 2 inches long, but that is growing out from my last
1/8" buzz cut (I had it "neatened" since then).  I liked having a buzz cut,
since I didn't need a comb, and it dried in seconds.  I sort of like having
my hair longer now, but it's a toss up.  I hate sweating into my hair when
working out (itchy).

Yeah, that's another downside.  

I believe that very religious Sikhs do not cut any of their body hair, and
that's the reason they wear turbans.

I think that some men look better with long hair because it compliments their
face.  The same for women who choose to have short hair.  For example, (for
those who know Meg Heberlein), when she had very short hair a couple summers
ago, it looked great.  I can't picture her with long hair.  OTOH, I can't
picture Jeremy Weiss with short hair because his hair is long, red, and
gorgeous.  It's all a matter of looks, IMHO.  I think it's great that men and
women can choose their hair length now.  (This, of course, excludes jobs that
require short hair for men).

re #15 - Yes. And the newer the generation, the fewer the Sikhs who want
to keep their hair long.
Yeah, they tie up their hair in the turban.

i wore my hair short for several years, and found it to be much more work and
bother than just letting it grow. It's back down to waist length, and a
wash-comb-go operation. It's also much easier to tie it back and get it out
of the way than when it was short.

But short hair dries much faster, I should cut mine soon.

i like myself with long hair. i had experimented ith short hair
now and then.
for some reason, with my body-type, i think i look like a man
with short hair. actually, i had been mistaken several times..

I like to have long hair for several reasons --

1) I think it's attractive
2) It's far easier to care for -- just wash and go.
3) I've mostly had long hair for 28 years so it feels like a part of who
   I am.

I find short hair easier to care for, it dries much faster and I don't have
to comb it (it is curly).  Jim promised to cut mine very soon.  When my hair
is long it sticks out sideways up to 8".  My brother has always had long hair,
his is frizzy and he ties it into a ponytail and then ties down the other end
of the ponytail (and maybe also the middle).

maybe he could braid the ponytail?

Pursuing the "it's easier to care for" line...

I've been thinking of late about putting my hair up in dreadlocks.  It seems
like it would be much easier to care for, considering my long har is _far_
from trouble-free, needing quite a bit of conditioner and brushing and
whatnot.  
So, has anyone here had or known someone who had their hair like that?  Any
comments on it?
For that matter, where would be someplace around A2 where I could get them
done professionally, rather than trying to fake 'em myself and probably
botching the job?...

This response has been erased.

Well, you don't have dreadlocks made, you make them yourself.  The principal
thing you have to do is not wash your hair for a month or so, and I think you
have to start with much shorter hair anyway.

I'm with Valerie on that.  I think white people look silly with dreadlocks
because our hair doesn't have that same texture that Jamaican or
African-Americans have.  On them, it looks really cool, but on a white person
it just makes them look dirty and unkept.

But, it's your hair...do what thou wishes.  =)  

Orinoco -- your hair might be easier to care for if you threw away your brush.
;)  No really.  Brushing tends to be hard on the hair, breaking the shaft and
causing split ends (especially if you brush while your hair is wet.) which
then tangle far more easily.

Try using a comb instead of a brush after your next plit end trim -- I think
you'll find that your hair will tangle far less easily.

I have long hair, and I find that it's easier for me to just run my fingers
through it a bit after it dries to where it's just damp.  I never brush it
until it's dry, and I don't overdo it.  It always looks better, because if
I constantly brushed it after a shower or during the day, it would be really
frizzy with lots of split ends.

Actually, as it turns out, some people do have dreadlocks made.  For somewhere
in the neighborhood of $75.  No thanks.

I used to be of the same opinion, valerie.  I dunno, I've changed my mind on
it, but you have my complete permission not to like my hair afterwards.

Jim cut my hair to under 3", it now dries immediatly and it not as hot.

I had long hair when I was a child, like up to age 3 or so. Then that stupid
Dorothy Hammill haircut came in style and my mom decided to chop it. (She also
tried to give me a Toni home perm when I was two, but she said I kicked and
screamed and she had to abort the project). I've always had thin, fine hair,
but in the last year or so it seems thicker and curlier. Not sure why. 

Currently it's a little past my chin in length. I've had it short for so long
that I'd like to try it long again. Problem is I have NO patience. It seems to
get to a certain length midway down my neck and then it's like it just quits.
My bangs grow like weeds but the back of my hair just stops. Soon this results
in droopy, greasy-looking hair, although I wash it daily. (If I skip more than
one day it actually looks greasy). So in frustration I get it cut. Just got it
trimmed this weekend in fact. :/

I'd like my hair the same length of Helen Hunt's...past the shoulders.
I like the versatility and the femininity of long hair. It seems that men like
long hair on women as well. Plus I just want something different. I've actually
taken generic prenatal vitamins to help it grow but I'm not sure they're
working. I excerise a lot too and this is supposed to help it grow. But still,
a snail's pace. Any suggestions on helping it just GROW already?!!

do you have any build-up on your hair, like from conditioners or
styling products? that might make it look greasy and limp.
how often do you change shampoos? that may help.

I have 3 shampoos in my shower as it is. I have to be careful with conditioner,
or it will weigh it down. It's hard because this summer heat is frying my hair
so I have to use conditioner, but not too much.

I have the same texture, bees.  It can be frustrating!  But my hair is always
between shoulderblade length and waist length since I got out of my Mum's
hands.  (Pixies -- ick!)

What I find is that if I wash my hair with one shampoo weekdays and another,
clarifying shampoo weekends, and switch brands every time I buy, my hair stays
pretty clean looking.  (Otherwise it looks greasy and unwashed and also
tangles more easily.)  With fine, thin hair you have to be extremely careful
about buildup.  I use conditioner only from the neck down because my hair gets
plenty of "conditioning" from my scalp where it touches.

To get past the "irritating" stage, you might try using a hair biter to catch
the hair up on top of your head.  It has the advantages of:
* it doesn't tear at your hair the way elastic can and so there's less
breakage
* it holds your hair away from your scalp, reducing the "greasy" look
* it doesn't require as much hair as many other ways of putting your hair up,
so even if it's relatively short, as well as thin and limp, it'll stay in.

Also, when you wear your hair mostly up you reduce the stress on the hair
shaft and get fewer split ends.  Split ends are the most common reason for
hair to seem to stop growing at a certain point.  It continues to grow -- but
the ends break off when you comb or brush, and it never seems to get longer.
You might also try a shampoo for colour treated or amaged hair since that will
reinforce the hair shaft by "gluing down" the small breaks and preventing them
from getting worse.  (Shampoos and conditioners to "increase body" act exactly
the opposite.  hey ruffle the hair shaft to make the hair seem fatter -- but
also weaken it and make it more prone to damage.

Well, I guess valerie will be less than thrilled to know that I've started
in on dreadlocks  <g>

Can you wash dreadlocks, or is the middle of the felted area inaccessible?

From what I've heard, once they've set you can wash them just as you'd wash
hair, and the water and shampoo will soak through to the middle.

Hmmm,

Dreads certainly aren't always treated that way judging from the 
smell.
Not that I am saying you shouldn't try washing it.
Btw, I also thought about getting dreadlocks (very short ones), for I 
think they are dead cool. But, my hairdresser disapproved. She said my 
hair is getting too thin to get a headfull of dreads, and she doesn't do
 inwoven locks, or whatever they are called. So I stick to my
traditional haircut.

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