Do You Believe In Hair Superstitions?

I just finished up a really good book: Hair Story: Untangling The Roots of Black Hair In America by Ayana D. Byrd and Lori L. Tharps. The history and culture in this book is so rich, and it is all about the evolution of black hair from bondage and politics to black hair becoming acceptable in the present day. When reading this book, I made a few marks to go back and re-read for clarity.

One of the marks I made in my book was next to the title, “A Helping of Good Old-Fashioned Black Hair Superstitions” and I thought, “Do people still believe in those?” I mean, my family does believe in certain superstitions like: on New Year’s Eve a man walks through the door first to ensure the man leads, opening an umbrella in the house will cause bad fortune to “rain on you,” we say “knock on wood” after a hopeful statement, and cross your fingers for good luck.

As for hair superstitions, I don’t believe in them, I knew and heard of a few. However, this list of superstitions from Hair Story gave me a range of emotions from “I can understand that” to “That is way too absurd and delusional to me.”

Check out this list:

1. Always burn the hair in your brush or someone could use it to put a hex on you.

2. Never comb, brush, or cut your hair outside because if a bird comes and collects a stray lock for its nest you will:

►Feel it pecking at your head.

►Get headaches.

►Lose your mind.

►Suffer the same fate as the bird’s babies.

3. Always wear your hair covered when menstruating.

4. If you allow more than one person to work on your hair at a time:

►Your hair will fall out.

►The youngest worker/helper will die.

5, Don’t let a pregnant woman do your hair, or you’ll become pregnant too.

6. After someone finishes working on your hair, it’s bad luck to say thank you. Instead say “More hair.”

7. Never cut a boy child’s hair before age one or:

►It won’t grow.

►It will be kinky* and nappy.

►It will make the child weak.

8. After you cut your hair, if you place a lock in the Bible; it will grow back faster.

9. It’s bad luck for a woman to cut a man’s hair, especially if she’s menstruating.

10. If you want your hair to grow back, only cut it when there is a full moon.

11. If you get gray hair when you’re young, it means you were a good baby.

12. If you get gray hair when you’re young, it means you will have a lot of money when you are old.

Like I said, some of these are “understandable” in terms of why people would do them, but others like numbers 1, 2, 6, and 10 are really wild! Now I have heard number 4 from older folks saying that if your stylist is busy, just wait until he/she has an opening.

I definitely feel this one, but I’m not superstitious about it. Sure, I have a bond with my current stylist because she knows my hair and how to effectively do it. But going to someone new, because their chair is open, can be a real problem if she has not done your hair nor your type of hair before.

I have heard number 7 saying that cutting a boy’s hair before the age of 1 would cause his hair to be kinky* and nappy. Heard this one as well but cutting a boy’s hair before the age of 1 does not create the effect that his hair will be nappy.

From birth to one, a baby’s hair texture changes from thin and wispy to thick and full. The baby’s hair will change whether you cut it or not, to take on its true texture.

When going through this list of hair superstitions of Hair Story,  there were others I began to remember personally. I can remember a few that I have heard elderly people say, or that I have heard at my former salon. Check out my list:

After you cut your hair, place a strand in the Bible for good luck and protection.

Now for number 8 in Hair Story, I have not heard that when you cut your hair and put it in the Bible it will grow back faster. However, I have seen an older woman at my church that actually had her locks in the Bible, so I asked her about it. She told me: “God will grant me protection as long as I keep my hair in this here Bible…” I was speechless, so I left it alone.

The “Growing Hand” is given to the stylist that can cause her clients’ hair to grow.

My former stylist I use to go to when I had a relaxer was considered the stylist with the “Growing Hand.” All the women would carry on about how their hair grew so much, or that their hair became thicker and fuller since going to that stylist.

My question is: why did my hair fall out when she gave me color and a relaxer? Not trying to rain on her parade, but just stating the facts on what happened to me. This is definitely just  a superstition.

If a you let a person who is jealous of you touch your hair, your hair will fall out.

I have heard this one, but I doubt your hair will fall out because someone touched it. I am not sure how this one even came about, but it is clearly not logical.

If you let a pregnant woman cut your hair, it will grow back long and faster.

Back to my former salon, there was another stylist who was seven or eight months pregnant at the time, and was still doing hair. I distinctly remember a little girl saying, “My mommy said that if I get my hair cut by her (pointing to the pregnant stylist), my hair will grow faster and longer this time…” Sigh, bless that little girl’s heart. I just didn’t have the heart to tell her that her mother was a meanie for telling her that.

Weave* glue will make black people’s hair grow.

Sadly, I have heard this statement which is ultimately not true. In what world does weave* glue make your hair grow?! But hey, if you tell enough women who wear weave glue and they let others know of this superstition, “word of mouth” will have a lot of women and their edges in trouble.

There may be some hair superstitions that you believe in, others that are fun to read, and a few that are just plain crazy! But if you believe in hair superstitions, then that’s just what you believe.

Have you heard of any of these hair superstitions? Do you have any to add?