The history of Nigerian hair

Vivian Adeyemo explores the history of Nigerian Hair

In the UK, more and more black women have started to embrace their natural hair, as salons across the country were closed as a result of the lockdown.

For those women, like me, who would regularly go to salons, it has been a real learning curve in terms of understanding how to care for your hair, distinguishing which products work well with your hair, identifying the porosity levels of your hair, what styles work; and for some – how to braid!

For me personally, it has been quite a journey, as before the lockdown I heavily relied on protective, low maintenance styles, such as wigs and braids.

I would regularly go to the salon to have a steam treatment, which I considered a treat to myself, as I enjoy having my hair washed professionally and sitting under a hair dryer, as a sort of break and pampering session from my hectic work life schedule and raising a young family.

Black hair remains a political subject around the world. During the 19^th century, slavery was abolished in much of the world, however, many black people have felt pressure to fit in with mainstream white society and adjusted their hair accordingly with hair straightening techniques such as hot combs and relaxers.

The natural hair movement which encourages women and men of African descent to keep their natural afro-textured hair; and originated from the civil rights movement during the 1960s, steadily gathered momentum, with its most recent iteration occurring in the 2000s.

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However, many black people have faced opposition from wearing their hair in natural styles or other non-straight, protective styles. Many have found that they are treated unfairly simply because of the natural way their hair grows.

Celebrities like Lauryn Hill, Alicia Keys, and Lupita Nyong’o have openly celebrated their natural hair, inspiring black women worldwide to do the same.

There is currently a wealth of information online and on social media on how to care for afro hair.

There are social media platforms dedicated to black hair, and YouTubers who deliver masterclasses on how to style afros and braids.

As a black woman of Nigerian descent, this current trend of black women now becoming their own hair stylists, and embracing their natural hair had me thinking about the history of Nigerian hair.

The history of Nigerian hair, dates back to the 18th century. It symbolised a person’s family background, tribe, social status, profession, spiritual affiliation and even marital status. One of the best examples of this use of hair is the Agogo.

According to Victoria Sherrow in her book “The Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History”, “a traditional woman’s style called the Agogo showed the wearer is married.

It features a high crest running from the forehead to the nape of the neck.” Younger unmarried women would wear their hair “braided, wrapped, or in other styles that set them apart…”

Hair was also a symbol of fertility. If a person’s hair was thick and long, it symbolised that the person could bear healthy children. If someone were in mourning, they would pay very little attention to their hair.

With hair being an elevated part of one’s body, ancient communities believed that it helped with divine communication. This belief is the reason why hair styling was entrusted to close relatives.

People thought that if a strand of hair fell into the hands of an enemy, harm could come to the hair’s owner.

Hair was a prominent social activity, especially among women. People had the opportunity to socialise while styling each other’s hair. This communal tradition of hair still exists today.

Hair has been a part of custom and rituals designed to ward off evil spirits, bring good luck or comfort those in mourning. Many customs relate to the head and hair of newborns. For example, in the Yoruba culture, traditionally during the naming ceremony that takes place seven days after the birth, the baby’s hair is shaved to mark its passage from the spirit world into the world of the living.

Young women may wear styles that show their availability to marriage, whereas married women’s hairstyles show they are unavailable. For example, before marriage, Igbo girls in Nigeria would traditionally use clay, ground coal and palm oil to shape their hair into a horn shape that bends towards their brows.

Women in the Igbo heartland wore their hair in loose braids, threaded knots known as “Isi Owu” or elaborate braids adorned with ornaments for special occasions.

Yoruba culture deem hair to have spiritual qualities. Members of certain groups or faiths styled their hair to reflect their identity. The goddess Oshun (or Osun) the Yoruba deity of divinity, femininity, fertility, beauty and love; was connected to destiny and divination. She wore the most elaborate styles adorned with a range of ornaments.

In Yoruba mythology, Sango also known as Jakuta is perhaps the most popular Orisha; he is god of thunder and lightning, is often depicted with braids. His followers still wear those braids today.

Priests in certain sects would often let their hair grown wild and into dreadlocks. As the above photo of the young Igbo man shows, Nigerian men of the era styled their hair as a form of social communication.

The Fulani hairstyles of the era were unequivocal stunning feats as the photo below demonstrates.

Johnson Donatus Aihumekeokhai Ojeikere, known as J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere, was a Nigerian photographer known for his work with unique hairstyles found in Nigeria. He is credited with taking some of the most iconic photos of Nigeria starting in the 1960s. His eclectic collection of over 1000 portraits titled “Hairstyles” showcases a collection of portraits of Nigerian hair and headgear captured over three decades.

One of J.D’s most popular photos is this one of a Lagos woman donning the hairstyle known as “Onile Gogoro” which translates aptly translating to mean skyscraper in English. This encapsulated the Post-Independence Era when Nigerian hair became a social commentator.

This hairstyle was reminiscent of the new high-rises and skyscrapers that were showing up in Lagos; signs of growth and advancement in this optimistic new nation.

The completion of the Eko Bridge in 1975, the shortest link between Lagos Mainland and the Island was one of the many major projects after the war. This inspired the Eko bridge hairstyle, whereby the stylist divides the hair into 10 or 11 sections. The thin braids are then twisted to form a bridge-like focal point above the head.

The afro hair style, which emerged in the 1960s and was popularised during the civil rights movement in the USA; was a symbol of rebellion, pride and empowerment.

The afro represented an assertion of black identity in contrast to previous trends inspired by white mainstream fashion and was very popular in Nigeria during this era. With this trend, the afro comb re-emerged and in response to the racial politics of the time, the fist comb, with a handle shaped like a black power salute, was designed in the 1970s.

Near the end of the twentieth century, relaxed hair became popular again for black women in a wide range of short and long styles. Women and men also chose dreadlocks, twists, cornrows, fades, and other styles that used the benefits of black hair’s natural texture.

In the last decade, there has been an increased popularity of black women wearing protective hair styles such as wigs, weaves and extensions. Lace wigs and lace frontals as favoured by artists such as Beyoncé, have been particularly popular with black women as a low maintenance style and for achieving versatile looks.

Since the late twenty first century, Africa has taken centre stage in mainstream fashion, films and music; with the rise in popularity of Afro beats with Nigerian acts such as Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, Davido and Wizkid.

This, and the resolute success of the Marvel Studio’s movie – “Black Panther” in 2018 and the Nollywood film “Lionheart” directed by Nollywood legend, Genevieve Nnaji (nominated for the Best International Feature Film at the Oscars in 2018).

Furthermore, initiatives such as the “Return of Africa”, where many African Americans visited Africa in 2019, to commemorate 400 years since the first enslaved Africans touched down in Jamestown, Virginia in the United States, helped to increase the focus on Africa worldwide.

This accumulative adoration for everything Africa in the West, has only served to increase the celebration of natural hair texture for many black people in the Nigerian diaspora.

With that being said, for many black people, black hair is an extension of ourselves. It represents our culture, our history and how we choose to express our identities.