A bowl cut or mushroom cut is a simple
haircut
A hairstyle, hairdo, haircut or coiffure refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human scalp. Sometimes, this could also mean an editing of facial or body hair. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming ...
where the front hair is cut with a straight fringe (see
bangs
Bang or bangs may refer to:
Products
* M1922 Bang rifle, a US semi-automatic rifle designed by Søren Hansen Bang
* Bang, a List of model car brands, model car brand
* Bang (beverage), an energy drink
Geography
* Bang, Lorestan, a village in I ...
) and the rest of the hair is left longer, the same length all the way around, or else the sides and back are cut to the same short length.
[
] It is named so because in medieval times, when it was popular in Europe, a bowl would be placed on the head and then used as a cutting guide to trim the hair.
History
Historically, the bowl cut was popular among common European and Asian men, being an easy neat cut done by a non-professional. Indeed, it was done by putting a cooking pot of a fit size to the level of ears, and all hair below the rim was cut or shaved off. In some cultures it was a normal type of haircut. In other cultures the bowl cut was viewed as an attribute of poverty, signifying that the wearer could not afford to visit a barber.
In the 1960s the bowl cut made a return in popularity, in part due to celebrities such as
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
.
21st century
In the United States, the popularity of the bowl cut faded in the mid to late-2000s. Since the 2010s, the cut is ridiculed by many and is often mocked via internet memes.
By 2015, the hairstyle was uncommon enough that its use by mass murderer
Dylann Roof
Dylann Storm Roof (born April 3, 1994) is an American white supremacist, neo-Nazi, and mass murderer convicted of perpetrating the Charleston church shooting on June 17, 2015, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. During a Bible study at Emanue ...
was considered mildly noteworthy. The
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), formerly known as the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, is an international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the United States specializing in civil rights law. It was founded in late Septe ...
has documented its
metonymic
Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept.
Etymology
The words ''metonymy'' and ''metonym'' come from grc, μετωνυμία, 'a change of name ...
use by young
white supremacists
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
, among whom it represents Roof and
his crimes in particular, and white supremacist ideology in general.
See also
*
Pageboy
The pageboy or page boy is a past hairstyle named after what was believed to be the haircut of a late medieval page boy. It has straight hair hanging to below the ear, where it usually turns under. There is often a fringe (bangs) in the front. T ...
*
Curtained hair
Curtained hair or curtains is a hairstyle featuring a long fringe divided in either a middle parting or a side parting, with short (or shaved) sides and back. Curtained hair generally applies to males, although an alternative name, the undercut ...
*
Czupryna
*
Moe Howard
Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He is best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television ...
References
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Asian-American culture
Hairstyles
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