From Rihanna, Miley Cyrus to Jennifer Lawrence, every starlet seems to be wearing her hair short nowadays, but this wasn’t always the case. In fact, cutting a woman’s hair short used to be a punishment.
 
Aside from religious reasons –where orthodox Judaic women chop their hair once they get married and often wear wigs, or nuns, who shave their head to show their commitment to the church– from as far back as we know, most women have always kept their hair long, whether bound or simply loose, depending on the subject’s status.
 
It is only since the First World War that some women have begun to choose this hairstyle; and the twenties saw the beginning of curled and short hair, often decorated with headpieces.
 
Before then, unfaithful wives used to be forced to cut their hair to publically display their infamy. After the Second World War, this sentence somehow stuck, and women in Europe who had had any sort of relationship with occupying Nazis were forced to shave their head, to be easily recognized and therefore persecuted. It goes without saying that having short hair in Western Europe back then wasn’t fashionable nor recommended.
 
The sixties witnessed a breaking point for this hairdo, as the pixie cut occupied the scene. Over the years, short hair remained hip, and even became a trending haircut for mature women with greying hair, as it is easier to dye than when worn long.
 
Nowadays, a woman with short hair can exhibit confidence, poise and sensuality –as seen with half of Hollywood. Evidently, current fashion faux pas could very much become the next “it” thing in the future, so don’t throw anything out just yet!