Sidelocks in English, or ''pe'ot'' in Hebrew,

anglicized Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

as payot (, "corners") or payes (), is the Hebrew term for sidelocks or

sideburns Sideburns, sideboards, or side whiskers are facial hair grown on the sides of the face, extending from the hairline to run parallel to or beyond the ears. The term ''sideburns'' is a 19th-century corruption of the original ''burnsides'', named ...

. Payot are worn by some men and boys in the

Orthodox Jewish Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tra ...

community based on an interpretation of the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Haredi Haredi Judaism (, ) is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that is characterized by its strict interpretation of religious sources and its accepted (Jewish law) and traditions, in opposition to more accommodating values and practices. Its members are ...

Hasidic Hasidism () or Hasidic Judaism is a religious movement within Judaism that arose in the 18th century as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine before spreading rapidly throughout Eastern Europe. Today, most of those aff ...

, Yemenite, and

Chardal Hardal (also spelled Chardal; , acronym for , , plural ) usually refers to the portion of the Religious Zionist Jewish community in Israel which inclines significantly toward Haredi ideology (in terms of outlook on the secular world, or in their ...

Jews. Yemenite Jews call their sidelocks ''simanim'' (), literally, "signs", because their long-curled sidelocks served as a distinguishing feature in Yemenite society (differentiating them from their Gentile neighbors).

Rabbinic interpretation

Reason

According to

Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah schola ...

, shaving the sidelocks was a heathen practice.

Specifics

The

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

says, "you shall not round off the ''pe'a'' of your head ()". The word ''pe'a'' was taken to mean the hair in front of the ears extending to beneath the cheekbone, on a level with the nose (

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

–

Makkot Makkot () is a tractate of the Mishnah and Talmud. It is the fifth volume of the order of ''Nezikin''. Makkot deals primarily with laws of the beth din ('' halakhic'' courts) and the punishments which they may administer and may be regarded as a ...

20a). The

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

interpreted the regulation as applying only to men. Thus it became the custom in certain circles to allow the hair over the ears to grow, and hang down in curls or ringlets.''Jewish Encyclopedia'' There is considerable discussion in the halachic literature as to the precise location of the payot and of the ways in which their removal is prohibited. Jewish haircut

Specifics by communities

kabbalistic Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal (). Jewi ...

teachings spread into

Slav The Slavs or Slavic people are groups of people who speak Slavic languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout the northern parts of Eurasia; they predominantly inhabit Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, and N ...

onic lands, the custom of ''pe'ot'' became accepted there. In 1845, the practice was banned in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

Crimean Karaites Crimean Karaites or simply Karaites (Crimean Karaim language, Karaim: Кърымкъарайлар, ''Qrımqaraylar'', singular къарай, ''qaray''; Trakai dialect: ''karajlar'', singular ''karaj''; ; ; ), also known more broadly as Eastern E ...

did not wear ''payot'', and the

Crimean Tatars Crimean Tatars (), or simply Crimeans (), are an Eastern European Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group and nation indigenous to Crimea. Their ethnogenesis lasted thousands of years in Crimea and the northern regions along the coast of the Blac ...

consequently referred to them as ''zulufsız çufutlar'' ("Jews without payot"), to distinguish them from the

Krymchaks Krymchaks ( Krymchak: , , , ) are Jewish ethno-religious communities of Crimea derived from Turkic-speaking adherents of Rabbinic Judaism.Why do some Chassidic Jews have long sidelocks
/ref> Many

and Yemenite ("Teimani") Jews let their sidelocks grow particularly long. Some

men grow sidelocks, but trim them or tuck them behind the ears. Even in some communities where ''peot'' are not customary among the men, young boys may grow them until the age of

bar mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Halakha, Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age ...

Styles

The lengths and maintenance of the ''pe'ot'' vary noticeably among Jewish groups.

Yemenite Jews

* Some traditional

Yemenite Jews Yemenite Jews, also known as Yemeni Jews or Teimanim (from ; ), are a Jewish diaspora group who live, or once lived, in Yemen, and their descendants maintaining their customs. After several waves of antisemitism, persecution, the vast majority ...

still wear distinctive long and thin twisted locks, often reaching to the upper arm. The actual area where the hair grows and where the ringlet begins is neat and tidy.

Hasidic groups

Satmar Satmar (; ) is a group in Hasidic Judaism founded in 1905 by Grand Rebbe Joel Teitelbaum (1887–1979), in the city of Szatmárnémeti (also called Szatmár in the 1890s), Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary (now Satu Mare in Romania). The group is a b ...

Jews have notably thicker sidelocks. They also tend to tuck their sidelocks behind their ears. *

Belz Belz (, ; ; ) is a small city in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine, located near the border with Poland between the Solokiya River (a tributary of the Bug River) and the Richytsia stream. Belz hosts the administration of Belz urban hromada, one of ...

Hasidim wrap their sidelocks around their ears as many times as necessary without trimming. * Many

Breslov Breslov (also Bratslav and Breslev) is a branch of Hasidic Judaism founded by Nachman of Breslov (1772–1810), a great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism. Its adherents strive to develop an intense, joyous relationship with ...

Hasidim wear long twisted locks as did their Rabbi,

Nachman of Breslov Nachman of Breslov ( ''Rabbī'' ''Naḥmān mīBreslev''), also known as Rabbi Nachman of Breslev, Rabbi Nachman miBreslev, Reb Nachman of Bratslav, Reb Nachman Breslover ( ''Rebe Nakhmen Breslover''), and Nachman from Uman (April 4, 1772 – O ...

. However, others wear different styles in line with the teaching of Rabbi Nachman that his followers do not have to have a uniform garb.(Sichot Haran?); The Master of Prayer (from Tales of Rabbi Nachman), where the Master is "not particular about garb at all; se

for a video showing a variety of styles among Breslevers. * The Chabad, Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidim's ''payot'' are not evident, but they exist. So long as there is hair around the ear and behind it that can be plucked out, that is considered ''payot''. * Some Gerer Hasidim raise their sidelocks from the temples and tuck them under their

yarmulke A (plural: ''kippot''), , or is a brimless Jewish skullcap, usually made of cloth, traditionally worn by Jewish men to fulfill the customary requirement that the head be covered. It is the most common type of head-covering worn by men in ...

. Others, especially in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, let them hang down. * The Skver Hasidim twist their sidelocks into a tight coil, and leave them protruding in front of the ear. Most other Hasidic groups wear their payot down and curled.

Lithuanian groups

The

Lithuanian Jews {{Jews and Judaism sidebar , Population Litvaks ({{Langx, yi, ליטװאַקעס) or Lita'im ({{Langx, he, לִיטָאִים) are Jews who historically resided in the territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania (covering present-day Lithuan ...

are less influenced by Kabbalistic practises, but still retain sidelocks to a degree, in a small number of variant styles: * Lithuanian Jews often cut their sidelocks, but leave a bunch of strands uncut, and place them behind the ear; this style is most commonly found among

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...

students, who sometimes remove the uncut strands when they have grown sideburns. * The Brisk movement's members brush their hair straight down, usually so that it reaches to the ear lobe; sometimes, some of the sidelock is not cut, and is curled back behind the ear.

Gallery

File:Boy wearing kippah.jpg, Pre-bar mitzvah age boy with payot File:Rabbi with beard and payot.jpg, Religious Jew with beard and payot tucked behind ear File:Yemen1.jpg, A Teimani (Yemenite) Jew with payot File:Black jew of cochin with peyots.jpg, A Jew with payot from

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

, India, 1900 File:Kotel payot1.jpg, A religious Jew with payot, Jerusalem, Israel

References and notes

;Notes ;References

External links

* * {{Italic title Orthodox Judaism Jewish law and rituals Hasidic Judaism Hairstyles Negative Mitzvoth