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Afro, sometimes shortened to 'fro and also known as a "natural", is a hairstyle worn naturally by people with lengthy kinky hair texture or specifically styled in such a fashion by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.[1][2] The hairstyle is created by combing the hair away from the scalp, allowing the hair to extend out from the head in a large, rounded shape, much like a halo, cloud or ball.[1][2][3][4][5]

In persons with naturally curly or straight hair, the hairstyle is typically created with the help of creams, gels or other solidifying liquids to hold the hair in place. Particularly popular in the African-American community of the late 1960s,[3][5] the hairstyle is often shaped and maintained with the assistance of a wide-toothed comb colloquially known as an afro pick.[2][3][4]

In the 1860s, a style similar to the Afro was worn by the Circassian beauties, sometimes known as "Moss-haired girls", a group of women exhibited in sideshow attractions in the United States by P. T. Barnum and others. These women were claimed to be from the Circassian people in the Northern Caucasus region, and were marketed to White audiences captivated by the "exotic East" as pure examples of the Caucasian race who were kept as sexual slaves in Turkish harems.[6][7] It has been argued that this portrayal of a Caucasian woman as a rescued slave during the American Civil War played on the racial connotations of slavery at the time so that the distinctive hairstyle affiliates the side-show white Circassian with black African-American identity, and thus:[6]

resonates oddly yet resoundingly with the rest of her identifying significations: her racial purity, her sexual enslavement, her position as colonial subject; her beauty. The Circassian blended elements of white Victorian True Womanhood with traits of the enslaved African American woman in one curiosity.

African-American hairstyles prior to the 1960s[edit]

During the history of slavery in the United States, most black African-Americans styled their hair in an attempt to mimic the styles of the predominantly white society in which they lived.[2][8] Afro-textured hair, characterized by its tight kinks, has been described as being kinky, coarse, cottony, nappy, or woolly.[8][9] These characteristics represented the antithesis of the European American standard of beauty, and led to a negative view of kinky hair. As a result, the practice of straightening gained popularity among black African-Americans.[8]

The process of straightening the hair often involved applying caustic substances, such as relaxers containing lye, which needed to be applied by an experienced hairstylist so as to avoid burning the scalp and ears.[3] In the late 1890s/early 1900s, Madam C. J. Walker also popularized the use of the hot comb in the United States.[8][9] Those who chose not to artificially treat their hair would often opt to style it into tight braids or cornrows.[8] With all of these hairstyling methods, if done improperly, one ran the risk of damaging the hair shaft, sometimes resulting in hair loss.[10]

1960s and '70s[edit]

An Ashanti Comb, an example of an Afro pick.

Angela Davis (center, no glasses) enters Royce Hall at UCLA for her first philosophy lecture in October 1969.

The effect of the African-American Civil Rights Movement brought a renewed sense of identity to the black African-American community which also resulted in a redefinition of personal style that included an appreciation of black beauty and aesthetics, as embodied by the "Black is beautiful" movement.[9][11] This cultural movement marked a return to more natural, untreated hairstyles. The Afro became a powerful political symbol which reflected black pride and a rejection of notions of assimilation and integration—not unlike the long and untreated hair sported by the mainly White hippies.[2][8][9]

To some black African-Americans, the Afro also represented a reconstitutive link to West Africa and Central Africa.[3] However, some critics have suggested that the Afro hairstyle is not particularly African:[3][12] In his book Welcome to the Jungle: New Positions in Black Cultural Studies, cultural critic Kobena Mercer argued that the contemporary African society of the mid-20th century did not consider either hairstyle to denote any particular "Africanness"; conversely, some Africans felt that these styles signified "First-worldness".[3]

Similarly, Brackette F. Williams stated in her book Stains on My Name, War in My Veins: Guyana and the Politics of Cultural Struggle that African nationalists were irritated by the Afro's adoption by African Americans as a symbol of their African heritage; they saw this trend as an example of Western arrogance.[13]

The Afro was adopted by both men and women and was a hairstyle that was easier to maintain by oneself, without requiring frequent and sometimes costly visits to the hairstylist as was often experienced by people who chose to braid, straighten or relax their hair. Due to the kinky pattern prominent in Afro-textured hair, as it grows longer it has a tendency to extend outward from the head, resulting in a domelike hairstyle which is easily molded and sculpted into the desired shape.[2][9] While the Afro was a much less invasive and time consuming hairstyle choice for many black African-Americans, some chose to achieve a bushier version of the Afro by backcombing or teasing the hair, a practice which can result in damage to the hair and scalp.[1][5]

In the mid-1960s, the Afro hairstyle began in a fairly tightly coiffed form, such as the hairstyle that became popular among members of the Black Panther Party. As the 1960s progressed towards the 1970s, popular hairstyles, both within and outside of the black African-American community, became longer and longer.[1] As a result, the late 60s/early 70s saw an expansion in the overall size of Afros.[1] Some of the entertainers and sociopolitical figures of the time known for wearing larger afros include political activist Angela Davis, actress Pam Grier, rock musician Jimi Hendrix, and the members of the musical groups The Jackson 5 and The Supremes.[4]

A little girl wearing a hairstyle of several sections of hair bound with elastics, a style called afro puffs

In contrast, the Afro's popularity among black African-Americans had already started to wane by the early 1970s;[1][5] the introduction of the Afro to the mainstream and its adoption by people of non-African descent caused the Afro to lose its radical, political edge.[2] The 1970s saw an increase in the popularity of braided hairstyles such as cornrows among both sexes of African-Americans.

1990s and 2000s[edit]

The Afro saw popular resurgences in both the 1990s and 2000s.[4][11] These Afros would take varied forms—some incorporating elements such as braids, beads or twists—as well as various sizes—from close-cropped natural hairstyles all the way to expansive Afro wigs.[11]

Some African-Americans who have been known for wearing Afros or Afro wigs during these two decades include NBA basketball players Ben Wallace, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Beasley, as well as musicians Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Macy Gray, Ludacris, Questlove, Cindy Blackman, Wiz Khalifa, and Lenny Kravitz. Beyoncé Knowles also donned a large Afro wig for her role as Foxxy Cleopatra in the 2002 film Austin Powers in Goldmember