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[[File:Baba in Nepal.jpg|right|thumb|[[Hindu]] [[Sadhu]] with a full, untrimmed beard and [[moustache]].]]
[[File:Baba in Nepal.jpg|right|thumb|[[Hindu]] [[Sadhu]] with a full, untrimmed beard and [[moustache]].]]


A '''beard''' is the collection of [[hair]] that grows on the [[chin]], [[upper lip]], [[cheek]]s and [[neck]] of [[human being]]s and some non-human animals. In humans, usually only [[pubescent]] or adult males are able to grow beards. However, women with [[hirsutism]] may develop a beard. When differentiating between upper and lower facial hair, a beard specifically excludes the [[moustache]].
A '''beard''' is the collection of [[hair]] that grows on the [[chin]], [[cheek]]s, and [[neck]] of [[human being]]s and some non-human animals. In humans, usually only [[pubescent]] or adult males are able to grow beards. However, women with [[hirsutism]] may develop a beard. When differentiating between upper and lower facial hair, a beard specifically excludes the [[moustache]].


Over the course of history, men with facial hair have been ascribed various attributes such as wisdom, sexual virility, masculinity, or a higher status; however, beards may also be perceived to be associated with a lack of general cleanliness and a loss of refinement, particularly in modern times.
Over the course of history, men with facial hair have been ascribed various attributes such as wisdom, sexual virility, masculinity, or a higher status; however, beards may also be perceived to be associated with a lack of general cleanliness and a loss of refinement, particularly in modern times.

Revision as of 18:16, 17 September 2013

"Bearded" redirects here. For the British music magazine, see Bearded (magazine).
For other uses, see Beard (disambiguation).
Hindu Sadhu with a full, untrimmed beard and moustache.

A beard is the collection of hair that grows on the chin, cheeks, and neck of human beings and some non-human animals. In humans, usually only pubescent or adult males are able to grow beards. However, women with hirsutism may develop a beard. When differentiating between upper and lower facial hair, a beard specifically excludes the moustache.

Over the course of history, men with facial hair have been ascribed various attributes such as wisdom, sexual virility, masculinity, or a higher status; however, beards may also be perceived to be associated with a lack of general cleanliness and a loss of refinement, particularly in modern times.

Biology

The beard develops during puberty. Beard growth is linked to stimulation of hair follicles in the area by dihydrotestosterone, which continues to affect beard growth after puberty. Hair follicles from different areas vary in what hormones they are stimulated or inhibited by; dihydrotestostorone also promotes balding. Dihydrotestosterone is produced from testosterone, the levels of which vary with season; thus beards grow faster in summer.

Close up

Difficulties in measuring beard growth have led to controversies concerning the effects of hormonal activity on short-term pogonotrophy (i.e., the grooming of facial hair). For example, a physicist had to spend periods of several weeks on a remote island in comparative isolation. He noticed that his beard growth diminished, but the day before he was due to leave the island it increased again, to reach unusually high rates during the first day or two on the mainland. He studied the effect and concluded that the stimulus for increased beard growth was related to the resumption of sexual activity.[1] However, at that time professional pogonologists reacted vigorously and almost dismissively.[2]

How fast the beard grows is also genetic.[3]

Evolution

Biologists characterize beards as secondary sexual characteristics because they are unique to one sex, yet do not play a direct role in reproduction. Charles Darwin first noted a possible evolutionary explanation of beards in his work The Descent of Man, which hypothesized that the process of sexual selection may have led to beards.[4] Modern biologists have reaffirmed the role of sexual selection in the evolution of beards, concluding that there is evidence that a preponderance of females find men with beards more attractive than men without beards.[5][6][7]

Charles Darwin

Evolutionary psychology explanations for the existence of beards include signaling sexual maturity and signaling dominance by increasing perceived size of jaws, and clean-shaved faces are rated less dominant than bearded.[8] Some scholars assert that it is not yet established whether the sexual selection leading to beards is rooted in attractiveness (inter-sexual selection) or dominance (intra-sexual selection).[9] A beard can be explained as an indicator of a male's overall condition.[10] Amount of facial hairiness appears to influence male attractiveness.[11][12] Presence of a beard makes the owner vulnerable in fights, which is costly, so biologists have speculated that there must be other evolutionary benefits that outweigh that drawback.[13] Excess testosterone evidenced by the beard may indicate mild immunosuppression, which may support spermatogenesis.[14][15]

History

Ancient and classical world

Moche ceramic vessels representing bearded men. Larco Museum Collection. Lima, Peru.

The highest ranking Ancient Egyptians grew hair on their chins which was often dyed or hennaed (reddish brown) and sometimes plaited with interwoven gold thread. A metal false beard, or postiche, which was a sign of sovereignty, was worn by queens and kings. This was held in place by a ribbon tied over the head and attached to a gold chin strap, a fashion existing from about 3000 to 1580 BC.

Mesopotamian civilizations (Sumerian, Assyrians, Babylonians, Chaldeans and Medians) devoted great care to oiling and dressing their beards, using tongs and curling irons to create elaborate ringlets and tiered patterns.

Ancient Iran

The Iranians were fond of long beards, and almost all the Iranian kings had a beard. In Travels by Adam Olearius, a King of Iran commands his steward's head to be cut off, and on its being brought to him, remarks, "what a pity it was, that a man possessing such fine mustachios, should have been executed." In Achaemenid era men had long beards and the warriors had jewelry on their beards. In the Safavid era and Qajar era it was common for men wearing beards.

Ancient India

In ancient India, the beard was allowed to grow long, a symbol of dignity and of wisdom (cf. sadhu). The nations in the east generally treated their beards with great care and veneration, and the punishment for licentiousness and adultery was to have the beard of the offending parties publicly cut off. They had such a sacred regard for the preservation of their beards that a man might pledge it for the payment of a debt.

Ancient Greece

A coin depicting a cleanly shaven Alexander the Great.

The ancient Greeks regarded the beard as a badge or sign of virility; in the Homeric epics it had almost sanctified significance, so that a common form of entreaty was to touch the beard of the person addressed.[16] It was only shaven as a sign of mourning, though in this case it was instead often left untrimmed. A smooth face was regarded as a sign of effeminacy.[17] The Spartans punished cowards by shaving off a portion of their beards. From the earliest times, however, the shaving of the upper lip was not uncommon. Greek beards were also frequently curled with tongs.

Ancient Macedon

In the time of Alexander the Great the custom of smooth shaving was introduced.[18] Reportedly, Alexander ordered his soldiers to be clean shaven, fearing that their beards would serve as handles for their enemies to grab and to hold the soldier as he was killed. The practice of shaving spread from the Macedonians, whose kings are represented on coins, etc. with smooth faces, throughout the whole known world of the Macedonian Empire. Laws were passed against it, without effect, at Rhodes and Byzantium; and even Aristotle conformed to the new custom,[19] unlike the other philosophers, who retained the beard as a badge of their profession. A man with a beard after the Macedonian period implied a philosopher,[20] and there are many allusions to this custom of the later philosophers in such proverbs as: "The beard does not make the sage."[21]

Ancient Rome

Shaving seems to have not been known to the Romans during their early history (under the Kings of Rome and the early Republic). Pliny tells us that P. Ticinius was the first who brought a barber to Rome, which was in the 454th year from the founding of the city (that is, around 299 BC). Scipio Africanus was apparently the first among the Romans who shaved his beard. However, after that point, shaving seems to have caught on very quickly, and soon almost all Roman men were clean-shaven; being clean-shaven became a sign of being Roman and not Greek. Only in the later times of the Republic did the Roman youth begin shaving their beards only partially, trimming it into an ornamental form; prepubescent boys oiled their chins in hopes of forcing premature growth of a beard.[22]

Still, beards remained rare among the Romans throughout the Late Republic and the early Principate. In a general way, in Rome at this time, a long beard was considered a mark of slovenliness and squalor. The censors L. Veturius and P. Licinius compelled M. Livius, who had been banished, on his restoration to the city, to be shaved, and to lay aside his dirty appearance, and then, but not until then, to come into the Senate.[23] The first occasion of shaving was regarded as the beginning of manhood, and the day on which this took place was celebrated as a festival.[24] Usually, this was done when the young Roman assumed the toga virilis. Augustus did it in his twenty-fourth year, Caligula in his twentieth. The hair cut off on such occasions was consecrated to a god. Thus Nero put his into a golden box set with pearls, and dedicated it to Jupiter Capitolinus.[25] The Romans, unlike the Greeks, let their beards grow in time of mourning; so did Augustus for the death of Julius Caesar.[26] Other occasions of mourning on which the beard was allowed to grow were, appearance as a reus, condemnation, or some public calamity. On the other hand, men of the country areas around Rome in the time of Varro seem not to have shaved except when they came to market every eighth day, so that their usual appearance was most likely a short stubble.[27]

In the second century AD the Emperor Hadrian, according to Dion Cassius, was the first of all the Caesars to grow a beard; Plutarch says that he did it to hide scars on his face. This was a period in Rome of widespread imitation of Greek culture, and many other men grew beards in imitation of Hadrian and the Greek fashion. Until the time of Constantine the Great the emperors appear in busts and coins with beards; but Constantine and his successors until the reign of Phocas, with the exception of Julian the Apostate, are represented as beardless.

Celts and Germanic tribes

Late Hellenistic sculptures of Celts[28] portray them with long hair and mustaches but beardless.

Among the Gaelic Celts of Scotland and Ireland, men typically let their facial hair grow into a full beard, and it was often seen as dishonourable for a Gaelic man to have no facial hair.[29][30][31]

Tacitus states that among the Catti, a Germanic tribe (perhaps the Chatten), a young man was not allowed to shave or cut his hair until he had slain an enemy. The Lombards derived their fame from the great length of their beards (Longobards – Long Beards). When Otto the Great said anything serious, he swore by his beard, which covered his breast.

Middle ages

Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.

In the Middle Ages, a beard displayed a knight's virility and honour. The Castilian knight El Cid is described in The Lay of the Cid as "the one with the flowery beard". Holding somebody else's beard was a serious offence that had to be righted in a duel.

While most noblemen and knights were bearded, the Catholic clergy were generally required to be clean-shaven. This was understood as a symbol of their celibacy.

From the Renaissance to the present day

Friedrich Engels exhibiting a full moustache and beard that was a common style among Europeans of the nineteenth century.
Johann Strauss II with a large beard, moustache, and sideburns.
Maryland Governor Thomas Swann with a long goatee. Such beards were common around the time of the American Civil War.
Emperor Meiji of Japan wore a full beard and moustache during most of his reign.
Johannes Brahms with large beard and moustache.
French political Jean Jaurès with a full beard and moustache.
Cubans politicals Che Guevara (left) and Fidel Castro (right) with a full beard.

In the 15th century, most European men were clean-shaven. Sixteenth-century beards were allowed to grow to an amazing length (see the portraits of John Knox, Bishop Gardiner, Cardinal Pole and Thomas Cranmer). Some beards of this time were the Spanish spade beard, the English square cut beard, the forked beard, and the stiletto beard. In 1587 Francis Drake claimed, in a figure of speech, to have singed the King of Spain's beard.

In the beginning of the 17th century, the size of beards decreased in urban circles of Western Europe. In the second half of the century, being clean shaven gradually become more common again, so much so that in 1698, Peter the Great of Russia ordered men to shave off their beards, and in 1705 levied a tax on beards in order to bring Russian society more in line with contemporary Western Europe.[32]

During the early eighteenth century most men, particularly amongst the nobility and upper classes, went clean shaven. There was, however, a dramatic shift in the beard's popularity during the 1850s, with it becoming markedly more popular.[33] Consequently, beards were adopted by many leaders, such as Alexander III of Russia, Napoleon III of France and Frederick III of Germany, as well as many leading statesmen and cultural figures, such as Benjamin Disraeli, Charles Dickens, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Karl Marx, and Giuseppe Verdi. This trend can be recognised in the United States of America, where the shift can be seen amongst the post-Civil War presidents. Before Abraham Lincoln, no President had a beard; after Lincoln until William Howard Taft, every President except Andrew Johnson and William McKinley had either a beard or a moustache.

The beard became linked in this period with notions of masculinity and male courage.[33] The resulting popularity has contributed to the stereotypical Victorian male figure in the popular mind, the stern figure clothed in black whose gravitas is added to by a heavy beard.

By the early twentieth century beards began a slow decline in popularity. Although retained by some prominent figures who were young men in the Victorian period (like Sigmund Freud), most men who retained facial hair during the 1920s and 1930s limited themselves to a moustache or a goatee (such as with Marcel Proust, Albert Einstein, Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky, Adolf Hitler, and Joseph Stalin). In America, meanwhile, popular movies portrayed heroes with clean shaven faces and "crew cuts". Concurrently, the psychological mass marketing of Madison Avenue was becoming prevalent. The Gillette Safety Razor Company was one of these marketers' early clients. These events conspired to popularize short hair and clean shaven faces as the only acceptable style for decades to come. The few men who wore the beard or portions of the beard during this period were frequently either old, Central Europeans; members of a religious sect that required it; or in academia.

The beard was reintroduced to mainstream society by the counterculture, firstly with the "beatniks" in the 1950s, and then with the hippie movement of the mid-1960s. Following the Vietnam War, beards exploded in popularity. In the mid-late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, beards were worn by hippies and businessmen alike. Popular rock, soul and folk musicians like The Beatles, Barry White and the male members of Peter, Paul, and Mary wore full beards. The trend of seemingly ubiquitous beards in American culture subsided in the mid-1980s.

From the 1990s onward, the fashion in the United States has generally trended toward either a goatee, Van Dyke, or a closely cropped full beard undercut on the throat. By 2010, the fashionable length approached a "two-day shadow".[34] By the end of the 20th century, the closely clipped Verdi beard, often with a matching integrated moustache, had become relatively common.

One stratum of American society where facial hair is virtually nonexistent is in government and politics. The last President of the United States to wear any type of facial hair was William Howard Taft, who was in office from 1909 till 1913. The last Vice President of the United States to wear any facial hair was Charles Curtis, who was in office from 1929 till 1933.

Beards in religion

Beards also play an important role in some religions.

In Greek mythology and art, Zeus and Poseidon are always portrayed with beards, but Apollo never is. A bearded Hermes was replaced with the more familiar beardless youth in the 5th century BC. Zoroaster, the 11th/10th century BC era founder of Zoroastrianism is almost always depicted with a beard. In Norse mythology, Thor the god of thunder is portrayed wearing a red beard.

Christianity

Basilios Bessarion's beard contributed to his defeat in the papal conclave, 1455.

Jesus is almost always portrayed with a beard in iconography and art dating from the 4th century onward. In paintings and statues most of the Old Testament Biblical characters such as Moses and Abraham and Jesus' New Testament disciples such as St Peter are with beard, as was John the Baptist. John the Apostle is generally depicted as clean-shaven in Western European art, however, to emphasize his relative youth. Eight of the figures portrayed in the painting entitled The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci are bearded. Mainstream Christianity holds Isaiah Chapter 50: Verse 6 as a prophecy of Christ's crucifixion, and as so, as a description of Christ having his beard plucked by his tormentors.

In Eastern Christianity, beards are often worn by members of the priesthood and by monastics, and at times have been recommended for all believers. Amish and Hutterite men shave until they are married, then grow a beard and are never thereafter without one, although it is a particular form of a beard (see Visual markers of marital status). Many Syrian Christians[disambiguation needed] from Kerala in India wore long beards.

In the 1160s, Burchardus, abbot of the cistercien monastery of Bellevaux in the Franche-Comté, wrote a treatise on beards.[35] In his opinion beards were appropriate for lay brothers, but not for the priests among the monks.

Nowadays, members of many Catholic religious communities, mainly those of Franciscan origin, use a beard as a sign of their vocation. At various times in its history and depending on various circumstances the Catholic Church permitted and prohibited facial hair ("barbae nutritio") for clergy.[36] The vast majority of Roman or Latin-rite clergy are clean-shaven.

Although most Protestant Christians regard the beard as a matter of choice, some have taken the lead in fashion by openly encouraging its growth as "a habit most natural, scriptural, manly, and beneficial" (C. H. Spurgeon),[37] or by banning shaving altogether, as in the case of some Presbyterian Churches.[38] Some Messianic Jews also wear beards to show their observance of the Old Testament.

Diarmaid MacCulloch writes:[39] "There is no doubt that Cranmer mourned the dead king (Henry VIII)", and it was said that he showed his grief by growing a beard. But "it was a break from the past for a clergyman to abandon his clean-shaven appearance which was the norm for late medieval priesthood; with Luther providing a precedent [during his exile period], virtually all the continental reformers had deliberately grown beards as a mark of their rejection of the old church, and the significance of clerical beards as an aggressive anti-Catholic gesture was well recognised in mid-Tudor England."

Latter-day Saints

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, men are currently encouraged to be clean shaven,[40] particularly those that serve in ecclesiastical leadership positions. The Church's encouragement of men shaving has no theological basis, but stems from the general waning of facial hair's popularity in Western society during the twentieth century and its association with the hippie and drug culture aspects of the counterculture of the 1960s, and may change in the future.[40] Since David O. McKay became church president in 1951, most LDS Church leaders have been clean-shaven. The Latter-day Saint formal prohibitions against facial hair are currently given to young men entering their two-year missionary service.[41] Students and staff of the church-sponsored Brigham Young University are asked to adhere to the Church Educational System Honor Code, which states in part: "Men are expected to be clean-shaven; beards are not acceptable", although male BYU students are permitted to wear a neatly groomed moustache.[42]

Hinduism

The ancient text followed regarding beards depends on the Deva and other teachings, varying according to whom the devotee worships or follows. Many Sadhus, Yogis, or Yoga practitioners keep beards, and represent all situations of life. Shaivite ascetics generally have beards, as they are not permitted to own anything, which would include a razor. The beard is also a sign of a nomadic and ascetic lifestyle.

Vaishnava men, typically of the ISKCON sect, are often clean-shaven as a sign of cleanliness.

Islam

See also: Islamic hygienical jurisprudence
An example of an Ottoman-style beard (Sultan Selim III).

Keeping a beard is adhere practice according to the sunnah in Islam by consensus [43] and trimming the mustaches is one of the fitra.[44]

Ibn Hazm reported that there was scholarly consensus that it is an obligation (fard) to trim the moustache and let the beard grow. He quoted a number of ahaadeeth as evidence, including the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Umar quoted above, and the hadeeth of Zayd ibn Arqam in which the Prophet said: “Whoever does not remove any of his moustache is not one of us.”[45] Ibn Hazm said in al-Furoo’: “This is the way of our colleagues [i.e., group of scholars].”

In the Islamic tradition, God commanded Abraham to keep his beard, shorten his moustache, clip his nails, shave the hair around his genitals, and shave his armpit hair.[46] It is not permitted to remove any part of the beard because of the general meaning of the texts which forbid doing so.[47][48]

Judaism

Main article: Shaving in Judaism
Orthodox Jew in Jerusalem with an unshaved beard and peyos (sidelocks)

The Bible states in Leviticus 19:27 that "You shall not round off the corners of your heads nor mar the corners of your beard." Talmudic tradition explains this to mean that a man may not shave his beard with a razor with a single blade, since the cutting action of the blade against the skin "mars" the beard. Because scissors have two blades, some opinions in halakha (Jewish law) permit their use to trim the beard, as the cutting action comes from contact of the two blades and not the blade against the skin. For this reason, some poskim (Jewish legal deciders) rule that Orthodox Jews may use electric razors to remain cleanshaven, as such shavers cut by trapping the hair between the blades and the metal grating, halakhically a scissor-like action. Other poskim[49] maintain that electric shavers constitute a razor-like action and consequently prohibit their use.

The Zohar, one of the primary sources of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), attributes holiness to the beard, specifying that hairs of the beard symbolize channels of subconscious holy energy that flows from above to the human soul. Therefore, most Hasidic Jews, for whom Kabbalah plays an important role in their religious practice, traditionally do not remove or even trim their beards.

Traditional Jews refrain from shaving, trimming the beard, and haircuts during certain times of the year like Passover, Sukkot, the Counting of the Omer and the Three Weeks. Cutting the hair is also restricted during the 30-day mourning period after the death of a close relative, known in Hebrew as the Shloshim (thirty).

Sikhism

A Sikh man with full beard.

Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, commanded the Sikhs to maintain unshorn hair, recognizing it as a necessary adornment of the body by Almighty God as well as a mandatory Article of Faith. Sikhs consider the beard to be part of the nobility and dignity of their manhood. Sikhs also refrain from cutting their hair and beards out of respect for the God-given form. Kesh, uncut hair, is one of the Five Ks, five compulsory articles of faith for a baptized Sikh. As such, a Sikh man is easily identified by his turban and uncut hair and beard.

Rastafari Movement

Male Rastafarians wear beards in conformity with injunctions given in the Bible, such as Leviticus 21:5, which reads "They shall not make any baldness on their heads, nor shave off the edges of their beards, nor make any cuts in their flesh." The beard is a symbol of the covenant between God (Jah or Jehovah in Rastafari usage) and his people.

The "Philosopher's beard"

In Greco-Roman antiquity the beard was "seen as the defining characteristic of the philosopher; philosophers had to have beards, and anyone with a beard was assumed to be a philosopher."[50] While one may be tempted to think that Socrates and Plato sported "philosopher's beards", such is not the case. Shaving was not widespread in Athens during fifth & fourth-century BCE and so they would not be distinguished from the general populace for having a beard. The popularity of shaving did not rise in the region until the example of Alexander the Great near the end of the fourth century BCE. The popularity of shaving did not spread to Rome until the end of the third century BCE following its acceptance by Scipio Africanus. In Rome shaving's popularity grew to the point that for a respectable Roman citizen it was seen almost as compulsory.

The idea of the philosopher's beard gained traction when in 155 BCE three philosophers arrived in Rome as Greek diplomats: Carneades, head of the Platonic Academy; Critolaus of Aristotle's Lyceum; and the head of the Stoics Diogenes of Babylon. "In contrast to their beautifully clean-shaven Italian audience, these three intellectuals all sported magnificent beards."[51] Thus the connection of beards and philosophy caught hold of the Roman public imagination.

Epictetus stated he would embrace death before shaving.

The importance of the beard to Roman philosophers is best seen by the extreme value that the Stoic philosopher Epictetus placed on it. As historian John Sellars puts it, Epictetus "affirmed the philosopher's beard as something almost sacred...to express the idea that philosophy is no mere intellectual hobby but rather a way of life that, by definition, transforms every aspect of one's behavior, including one's shaving habits. If someone continues to shave in order to look the part of a respectable Roman citizen, it is clear that they have not yet embraced philosophy conceived as a way of life and have not yet escaped the social customs of the majority...the true philosopher will only act according to reason or according to nature, rejecting the arbitrary conventions that guide the behavior of everyone else."[51]

Epictetus saw his beard as an integral part of his identity and held that he would rather be executed than submit to any force demanding he remove it. In his Discourses 1.2.29, he puts forward such a hypothetical confrontation: "'Come now, Epictetus, shave your beard'. If I am a philosopher, I answer, I will not shave it off. 'Then I will have you beheaded'. If it will do you any good, behead me."[51] The act of shaving "would be to compromise his philosophical ideal of living in accordance with nature and it would be to submit to the unjustified authority of another."[51]

This was not a theoretical in the age of Epictetus, for the Emperor Domitian had the hair and beard forcibly shaven off of the philosopher Apollonius of Tyana "as punishment for anti-State activities."[51] This disgraced Apollonius while avoiding making him a martyr like Socrates. Well before his declaration of "death before shaving" Epictetus had been forced to flee Rome when Domitian banished all philosophers from Italy under threat of execution.

Roman philosophers sported different styles of beards to distinguish which school they belonged to. Cynics with long dirty beards to indicate their "strict indifference to all external goods and social customs";[51] Stoics occasionally trimming and washing their beards in accord with their view "that it is acceptable to prefer certain external goods so long as they are never valued above virtue";[51] Peripatetics took great care of their beards believing in accord with Aristotle that "external goods and social status were necessary for the good life together with virtue".[51] To a Roman philosopher in this era, having a beard and its condition indicated their commitment to live in accord with their philosophy.

Modern prohibition of beards

Civilian prohibitions

Professional airline pilots are required to be clean shaven to facilitate a tight seal with auxiliary oxygen masks[citation needed]. Similarly, firefighters may also be prohibited from full beards to obtain a proper seal with SCBA equipment.[citation needed] This restriction is also fairly common in the oil & gas industry for the same reason in locations where hydrogen sulfide gas is a common danger.[citation needed] Other jobs may prohibit beards as necessary to wear masks or respirators. [52]

Isezaki city in Gunma prefecture, Japan, decided to ban beards for male municipal employees on May 19, 2010.[53]

Brigham Young University generally requires its students and employees to be clean-shaven. However, Brigham Young himself was often seen with beard.[54]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has found requiring shaving to be discriminatory.[55][56]

Sports

The International Boxing Association prohibits the wearing of beards by amateur boxers, although the Amateur Boxing Association of England allows exceptions for Sikh men, on condition that the beard be covered with a fine net.[57] As a safety precaution, high school wrestlers must be clean-shaven before each match, though neatly trimmed moustaches are often allowed.[citation needed]

The Cincinnati Reds had a longstanding enforced policy where all players had to be completely clean shaven (no beards, long sideburns or moustaches). However, this policy was abolished following the sale of the team by Marge Schott in 1999.

Brian Wilson's beard in 2011

Under owner George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees baseball team had a strict dress code that prohibited long hair and facial hair below the lip; the regulation was continued under Hank and Hal Steinbrenner when control of the Yankees was transferred to them after the 2008 season. More recently, Willie Randolph and Joe Girardi, both former Yankee assistant coaches, adopted a similar clean-shaven policy for their ballclubs: the New York Mets and Florida Marlins, respectively. Fredi Gonzalez, who replaced Girardi as the Marlins' manager, dropped that policy when he took over after the 2006 season. Girardi is now the manager of the Yankees.

The Playoff beard is a tradition common with teams in the National Hockey League and now in other leagues where players allow their beards to grow from the beginning of the playoff season until the playoffs are over for their team.

In 2008, members of the Tyrone Gaelic football team vowed not to shave until the end of the season. They went on to win the All-Ireland football championship, some of them sporting impressive beards by that stage.

Canadian Rugby Union flanker Adam Kleeberger attracted much media attention before, during, and after the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. Kleeberger was known, alongside teammates Jebb Sinclair and Hubert Buydens as one of "the beardoes". Fans in the stands could often be seen wearing fake beards and "fear the beard" became a popular expression during the team's run in the competition. Kleeberger, who became one of Canada's star players in the tournament, later used the publicity surrounding his beard to raise money for two causes; Christchurch earthquake relief efforts and prostate cancer. As part of this fundraising, his beard was shaved off by television personality Rick Mercer and aired on national television. The "Fear the Beard" expression is also used by the NBA's Houston Rockets fans to support James Harden

San Francisco Giants closer Brian Wilson, who claims not to have shaved since the 2010 All-Star Game, has grown a big beard that has become popular in MLB and with its fans. MLB Fan Cave presented a "Journey Inside Brian Wilson's Beard", which was an interactive screenshot of Wilson's beard, where one can click on different sections to see various fictional activities performed by small "residents" of the beard. The hosts on sports shows sometimes wear replica beards, and the Giants gave them away to fans as a promo.[citation needed]

Armed forces

Main article: Facial hair in the military
See also: Religious symbolism in the United States military § Personal apparel and grooming

Depending on the country and period, facial hair was either prohibited in the army or an integral part of the uniform.

Styles

File:Silas Kitto Hocking.jpg
Silas Kitto Hocking, bearded

Beard hair is most commonly removed by shaving. If only the area above the upper lip is left unshaven, the resulting facial hairstyle is known as a moustache; if hair is left only on the chin, the style is a chin beard.

  • Full — downward flowing beard with either styled or integrated moustache
  • Garibaldi — wide, full beard with rounded bottom and integrated moustache
  • Old Dutch — A large, long beard, connected by sideburns, that flares outward in width at the bottom, without a mustache.[58]
  • Sideburns — hair grown from the temples down the cheeks toward the jawline. Worn by Isaac Asimov and Carlos Menem.
  • Jawline Beard — A beard that is grown from the chin along the jawline. Chinstrap, chin curtain and brett are all variations of a jawline beard with distinctions being chin coverage and sideburn length.[58]
  • Chinstrap — a beard with long sideburns that comes forward and ends under the chin.
  • Chin curtain — similar to the chinstrap beard but covers the entire chin. Also called a Lincoln, Shenandoah, or spade.
  • Brett — similar to the chin curtain beard, but does not connect to the sideburns.[58]
  • Neckbeard (a.k.a. Neard) — similar to the Chinstrap, but with the chin and jawline shaven, leaving hair to grow only on the neck. While never as popular as other beard styles, a few noted historical figures have worn this type of beard, such as Nero, Horace Greeley, William Empson, Moses Mendelssohn and Richard Wagner.
    Henry David Thoreau with neckbeard
  • Circle beard — Commonly mistaken for the goatee, the circle beard is a small chin beard that connects around the mouth to a moustache. Also called a doorknocker.[59]
  • Designer stubble—A short growth of the male beard that was popular in the West in the 1980s.[60]
  • Goatee — A tuft of hair grown on the chin, sometimes resembling a billy goat's.
  • Junco — A goatee that extends upward and connects to the corners of the mouth but does not include a mustache, like the circle beard.
  • Meg — A goatee that extends upward and connects to the mustache, this word is commonly used in the south east of Ireland.
  • Van Dyke — a goatee accompanied by a moustache.
  • Monkey Tail — a Van Dyke as viewed from one side, and a Lincoln plus moustache as viewed from the other, giving the impression that a monkey's tail stretches from an ear down to the chin and around one's mouth.
  • Hollywoodian — a beard with integrated mustache that is worn on the lower part of the chin and jaw area, without connecting sideburns.
  • Reed — a beard with integrated mustache that is worn on the lower part of the chin and jaw area that tapers towards the ears without connecting sideburns.
  • Royale — a narrow pointed beard extending from the chin. The style was popular in France during the period of the Second Empire, from which it gets its alternative name, the imperial or impériale.
  • Verdi — a short beard with rounded bottom and slightly shaven cheeks with prominent moustache
  • Soul patch — a small beard just below the lower lip and above the chin
  • Hulihee — clean-shaven chin with fat chops connected at the moustache.
  • Friendly Mutton Chops — long muttonchop type sideburns connected to a mustache, but with a shaved chin.
  • Stashburns or the Lemmy — sideburns that drop down the jaw but jut upwards across the mustache, leaving the chin exposed. Similar to friendly mutton chops. Often found in southern and southwestern American culture.

In animals

A bearded saki

The term 'beard' is also used for a collection of stiff, hair-like feathers on the centre of the breast of turkeys. Normally, the turkey's beard remains flat and may be hidden under other feathers, but when the bird is displaying, the beard become erect and protrudes several centimetres from the breast.

Many goats possess a beard. The male sometimes urinates on his own beard as a marking behaviour during rutting.

Several animals are termed 'bearded' as part of their common name. Sometimes a beard of hair on the chin or face is prominent but for some others, 'beard' may refer to a pattern or colouring of the pelage reminiscent of a beard.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Effects of sexual activity on beard growth in man". Nature. 226 (5248): 869–70. 1970. doi:10.1038/226869a0. PMID 5444635.
  2. ^ Hardisty, R. M. (1970). "Shaving to impress". Nature. 226 (5252): 1277. doi:10.1038/2261277a0.
  3. ^ Randall VA (2008). "Androgens and hair growth". Dermatol Ther. 21 (5): 314–28. doi:10.1111/j.1529-8019.2008.00214.x. PMID 18844710.
  4. ^ Darwin, Charles (2004). The Descent Of Man And Selection In Relation To Sex. Kessinger Publishing. p. 554.
  5. ^ Dixson, A.; Dixson, B; Anderson, M (2005). "Sexual selection and the evolution of visually conspicuous sexually dimorphic traits in male monkeys, apes, and human beings". Annu Rev Sex Res. 16: 1–19. PMID 16913285.
  6. ^ Miller, Geoffry F. (1998). "How Mate Choice Shaped Human Nature: A Review of Sexual Selection and Human Evolution". In Crawford, Charles B. (ed.). Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology: Ideas, Issues, and Applications. Psychology Press. pp. 106, 111, 113.
  7. ^ Skamel, Uta (2003). "Beauty and Sex Appeal: Sexual Selection of Aesthetic Preferences". In Voland, Eckhard (ed.). Evolutionary Aesthetics. New York: Springer. pp. 173–183. ISBN 3-540-43670-7.
  8. ^ Attention: This template ({{cite doi}}) is deprecated. To cite the publication identified by doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2010.02.005, please use {{cite journal}} (if it was published in a bona fide academic journal, otherwise {{cite report}} with |doi=10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2010.02.005 instead.
  9. ^ Dixson, A. F. (2009). Sexual selection and the origins of human mating systems. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-19-955943-5.
  10. ^ Thornhill, Randy; Gangestad, Steven W. (1993). "Human facial beauty: Averageness, symmetry, and parasite resistance". Human Nature. 4 (3): 237–269. doi:10.1007/BF02692201.
  11. ^ Barber, N. (1995). "The Evolutionary psychology of physical attractiveness: Sexual selection and human morphology". Ethol Sociobiol. 16 (5): 395–525. doi:10.1016/0162-3095(95)00068-2.
  12. ^ Etcoff, N. (1999). Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-47854-2.
  13. ^ Zehavi, A.; Zahavi, A. (1997). The Handicap Principle. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 213. ISBN 0-19-510035-2.
  14. ^ Folstad, I.; Skarstein, F. (1997). "Is male germ line control creating avenues for female choice?". Behavioral Ecology. 8 (1): 109–112. doi:10.1093/beheco/8.1.109.
  15. ^ Folstad and Skarsein cited by Skamel, Uta (2003). "Beauty and Sex Appeal: Sexual Selection of Aesthetic Preferences". In Voland, Eckhard (ed.). Evolutionary Aesthetics. Springer. pp. 173–183.
  16. ^ See, for example, Homer Iliad 1:500-1
  17. ^ Athen. xiii. 565 a (cited by Peck)
  18. ^ Chrysippus ap. Athen. xiii. 565 a (cited by Peck)
  19. ^ Diog. Laert.v. 1 (cited by Peck)
  20. ^ cf. Pers.iv. 1, magister barbatus of Socrates (cited by Peck)
  21. ^ Ancient Greek: πωγωνοτροφία φιλόσοφον οὐ ποιεῖ. De Is. et Osir. 3 (cited by Peck)
  22. ^ Petron. 75, 10 (cited by Peck)
  23. ^ Liv.xxvii. 34 (cited by Peck)
  24. ^ Juv.iii. 186 (cited by Peck)
  25. ^ Suet. Ner.12 (cited by Peck)
  26. ^ Dio Cass. xlviii. 34 (cited by Peck)
  27. ^ Varro asked rhetorically how often the tradesmen of the country shaved between market days, implying (in chronologist E. J. Bickerman's opinion) that this did not happen at all: "quoties priscus homo ac rusticus Romanus inter nundinum barbam radebat?",Varr. ap. Non. 214, 30; 32: see also E J Bickerman, Chronology of the Ancient World, London (Thames & Hudson) 1968, at p.59.
  28. ^ Examples (both in Roman copies): Dying Gaul, Ludovisi Gaul
  29. ^ Connolly, Sean J (2007). "Prologue". Contested island: Ireland 1460-1630. Oxford University Press. p. 7.
  30. ^ The Topography of Ireland by Giraldus Cambrensis (English translation)
  31. ^ Macleod, John, Highlanders: A History of the Gaels (Hodder and Stoughton, 1997) p43
  32. ^ Beard Tax: Information from. Answers.com. Retrieved on 2011-01-03.
  33. ^ a b Jacob Middleton, 'Bearded Patriarchs', History Today, Volume: 56 Issue: 2 (February 2006), 26–27.
  34. ^ Elejalde-Ruiz, Alexia (2010-03-28). "Latest in facial hair: The two-day shadow". The Los Angeles Times.
  35. ^ Corpus Christianorum, Continuatio Mediaevalis LXII, Apologiae duae: Gozechini epistola ad Walcherum; Burchardi, ut videtur, Abbatis Bellevallis Apologia de Barbis. Edited by R.B.C. Huygens, with an introduction on beards in the Middle Ages by Giles Constable. Turnholti 1985
  36. ^ "Catholic Encyclopedia entry". Newadvent.org. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  37. ^ Spurgeon, C. H., Lectures to My Students, First Series, Lecture 8 (Baker Book House, 1981) p134.
  38. ^ Minutes of Orange Presbytery, 1830, p45: Ante-Bellum North Carolina: A Social History by Guion Griffis Johnson
  39. ^ [Diarmaid MacCulloch (1996), Thomas Cranmer: A Life, Yale University Press, p. 361]
  40. ^ a b Oaks, Dallin H. (1971). "Standards of Dress and Grooming". New Era. LDS Church. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  41. ^ "FYI: For Your Information". New Era: 48–51. June 1989. Retrieved 2011-02-18.
  42. ^ "Church Educational System Honor Code". Undergraduate Catalog | publisher=[[Brigham Young University]] | url=http://saas.byu.edu/catalog/2010-2011ucat/GeneralInfo/HonorCode.php | accessdate=2011-02-18 | year=2010 | unused_data= - 2011. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  43. ^ "Ruling on shaving the beard". Islam QA. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  44. ^ Sahih Bukhari, Book 72, Hadith #780 Allah's Apostle said, "Cut the moustaches short and leave the beard (as it is)."
  45. ^ Classed as saheeh by al-Tirmidhi
  46. ^ Sahih Bukhari, Book 72, Hadith #779
  47. ^ Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 5/133
  48. ^ "Islam Question and Answer - Ruling on shaving the beard". Islam-qa.com. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  49. ^ See Zokon Yisrael KiHilchso, http://holmininternational613.com/books/BEARD_JEWISH_LAW-E.pdf
  50. ^ Citing Lucian's Demonax 13, Cynicus 1 - John Sellars (1988). The art of living: the Stoics on the nature and function of philosophy. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Limited.
  51. ^ a b c d e f g h John Sellars (1988). The art of living: the Stoics on the nature and function of philosophy. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Limited.
  52. ^ http://agency.governmentjobs.com/ebmud/job_bulletin.cfm?JobID=603612
  53. ^ "Gunma bureaucrats get beard ban | The Japan Times Online". Search.japantimes.co.jp. 2010-05-20. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  54. ^ "BYU Honor Code: Your Educational Institution's Stupidity in Action! (part 1 of 2) " Smarter Than Stupid". Smarterthanstupid.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  55. ^ "926 F2d 714 Bradley v. Pizzaco of Nebraska Inc Bradley". OpenJurist. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  56. ^ "7 F.3d 795 (8th Cir. 1993) 68 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas. (Bna) 245, 62 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 42,611 Langston Bradley, Plaintiff, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Intervenor-Appellant, v. Pizzaco of Nebraska, Inc., D.B.a Domino's Pizza; Domino's Pizza, Inc., Defendants-Appellees". United States Federal Circuit Courts Decisions Archive. vLex. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
  57. ^ "The Rules of Amateur Boxing". Amateur Boxing Association of England. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
  58. ^ a b c "Different Types of Beards". zimbio.com. Retrieved 2013-06-05.
  59. ^ "Circle Beard". Gillette.com. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  60. ^ "Designer stubble". Retrieved 14 July 2011.

References

Further reading

  • Reginald Reynolds: Beards: Their Social Standing, Religious Involvements, Decorative Possibilities, and Value in Offence and Defence Through the Ages (Doubleday, 1949) (ISBN 0-15-610845-3)
  • Helen Bunkin, Randall Williams: Beards, Beards, Beards (Hunter & Cyr, 2000) (ISBN 1-58838-001-7)
  • Allan Peterkin: One Thousand Beards. A Cultural History of Facial Hair (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2001) (ISBN 1-55152-107-5)
  • A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs, David W. Bercot, Editor, pg 66–67.
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