History of Barbering
The word “barber” comes from the Latin word “barba”, meaning
beard. It may surprise you to know that the earliest records of
barbers show that they were the foremost men of their tribe. They
were the medicine men and the priests. B
ut primitive man was very
superstitious and the early tribes believed that both good and bad
spirits, which entered the body through the hairs on the head,
inhabited every individual. The bad spirits could only be driven out of
the individual by cutting t
he hair, so various fashions of hair cutting
were practiced by the different tribes and this made the barber the most important
man in the community. In fact, the barbers in these tribal days arranged all marriages
and baptized all children. They were t
he chief figures in the religious ceremonies.
During these ceremonies, the hair was allowed to hang loosely over the shoulders so
that the evil spirits could come out. After the dancing, the long hair was cut in the
prevailing fashion by the barbers and
combed back tightly so the evil spirits could not
get in or the good spirits get out.
This rule by barbers was a common thing in ancient Asia. In fact, wherever there were
legends and superstitions about the hair, the barbers flourished. To this day in
India, the
veneration of the hair continues and those who cut and dress the hair are important
characters.