Revolutionary Hair

Hair has often been seen as a symbol of revolution. In China's several thousand years of imperial rule, rebellions and revolution continuously occurred, replacing dynasties and pushing history onwards. When the old sovereignty was overturned and the new dynasty set up, the new ruler would set out a series of social regulations and on many occasions hair-style alterations were involved.

When the Manchus overthrew the Ming Dynasty and established the authority of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the first emperor was worried that the Hans wouldn't be obedient to the rule of the Manchus. He asked all the Hans to follow Manchu traditions, shaving their hair from the front of the head and wearing a thick plait at the back. Anybody who dared to defy the order and retain their old hair was to be killed.

Many Han people lost their lives because they were unwilling to cut the hair bestowed upon them by their parents.

Many Chinese films adapting stories from that time were seen in the United State and Europe. As a result, in the imagination of many foreigners, Chinese people - even today - are envisaged with the front of the head shaved and a thick plait hanging at the back, wearing a long robe.

In 1911, revolutionaries with Sun Yat-sen as their representative launched the Xinhai Revolution. Students introduced democratic ideals from the West and called on the masses to cut their long plaits and fight imperial domination.

Lu Xun, the famous writer and thinker, wrote a novel titled "Legend of Ah Q", revealing that ordinary people had little understanding of the revolution and blindly identified plait-cutters as revolutionaries. In his story Lu Xun humorously call non-revolutionists "Ah Q". Q is a pictographic letter, mimicking the Manchu hair-style.

With Chinese people's gradual ideological emancipation during the 1920s and 30s, Chinese men totally gave up their long plaits and adopted the short hair style. Today, Chinese hair-styles are gradually revealing their potential diversity.