Beards are a phenomenal bit of human anatomy on the right person. A big, burly guy with a beard is seen as a macho man. He carries with him the lumberjack persona which, in Michigan, is a sign of masculinity and virility. Now a big burly woman with a beard is quite the opposite. No offense to big, burly, bearded women who read my blog but honestly, you should really consider your options - laser hair removal is quite affordable these days (link).
The history of the beard dates back as far as human history goes. The ancient egyptians took great pride in their beards. The royalty and high ranking members of society wore hair on their chins that was often dyed or braided with gold. Even women of royalty wore false beards of gold tied to their heads with ribbon. The tradition spanned almost 1500 years from 3000 BCE to 1580 BCE. In Mesopotamia beard were oiled and dressed with tongs and curlers to create elaborate ringlets. Throughout history, beards have been highly regarded as signs of dignity, wisdom, and virility. Then, during the time of Alexander the Great, shaving started to come into fashion. Old Alex feared that the beard would serve as a handle to grab and hold the solider while he was killed. While he made a valid argument, he forgot how awesome and scary a soldier looks with a beard. Men of the Germanic tribes were not allowed to shave or cut their hair until they had slain their first enemy.
From the renaissance to the present day beards have gone in and out of fashion. 18th century Russians with beards were taxed in an attempt to bring Russia in line with Western Europe. In America, the beard was largely unpopular until the Civil War. For some reason war and manliness brings out the beard-lover in all of us. During that time many war heros and generals sported significant beards. It is interesting to note that up until the time of Abraham Lincoln, no president wore a beard. After Abe, every president except Jackson and McKinley wore facial hair in some form or another. Ambrose Burnsides, a soldier in the Union army, was made famous for his unusual facial hair. He joined strips of hair from in front of his ears to his mustache, while leaving his chin clean shaven. His unusual sense of style became so fashionable that the term "Burnsides" was coined for the look. The syllables were later reversed giving us "sideburns."
Beards have long been an important part of many major religions. Prominent greek gods such as Zeus and Posiden are always portrayed wearing a beard. Almost all middle eastern religions consider the beard to be an integral part of a man's body and that it should be preserved, maintained, and respected. In Islam, there are many scholars who believe the beard is mandatory, though shaving for ritualistic purposes is equally respected. Orthodox Jews prohibit the use of single blade razors to cut their beards as the single blade against the skin "mars" the beard. Only scissors are permitted as they have two blades and therefore do not come in contact with the skin. Hasidic jews, however, do not remove or even trim their beards. In Christianity Jesus is always portrayed wearing a beard. Beards in Catholicism are worn to show vocation and in Eastern Orthodox Christianity all members of the clergy wear a beard and at various times it was required that all members wear a beard.
With such a long and rich history, there have been countless styles of beard worn throughout the world. Every year there are beard and mustache competitions that showcase the finest examples of facial hair growth throughout the world. Here are just a few examples of some truly awe inspiring beards:
The freestyle competition (the second and forth from the left are excellent examples of this style) are by far the strangest beard styles but the rest are true masterpieces of facial hair growth.
My reason for writing this article, aside from giving you a bit of useless knowledge, is my way of mourning the loss of my beard. Barely two hours ago I ended the life of my glorious beard. We had a great winter together and that beard always kept my face toasty warm. My beard got lots of compliments and decreased the number of times I was carded buying beer (which is both good and bad because they are supposed to card me if I look younger than 35... did my beard really make me look close to 40?). But the cold season has ended and spring is just moment away. It is always sad to see the remains of a 5 month project laying there, lifeless, at the bottom of the sink. My new razor cut each hair down like trees in a rainforest. It all went so quickly I didn't even have to time to savor the humorous parts of the process (seeing myself with a goatee, fu-manchu, mustache, and hitlerstache). So goodbye old friend. You will be missed. Not by Sarah, but you will be missed.
For more information on beards please visit http://www.beards.org/
Cheers!
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