Neck Shaves

Edwardian undercuts? Yep, it was indeed popular. The St. Louis Dispatch reported in 1907 that women and girls in Pennsylvania were beginning to visit barbershops to have their necks shaved. These adventurous women would sit in the barber’s chair, have a cape thrown around them, and sit still while the barber used a straight razor to reduce the hair below their ears to bare skin. This may come as a surprise to most readers as an anachronism, but it is indeed the case.

Newspaper article describing the recent trend of neck shaves for girls. The River Press, Fort Benton, MT October 16, 1907.

The word “undercut” often conjures images of radical modern hairstyles with daring contrast in length. But undercuts have been fairly common in different cultures around the world for hundreds of years. One traditional Ukrainian hairstyle, the osedelets, involved shaving all of the hair around the head except for a single lock at the top of the scalp. Indigenous Americans of such tribes as the Lenape and Haudenosaunee people shaved the sides of their heads, leaving locks of hair to be styled into roaches and scalp locks. The women of the Dutch village of Marken traditionally shave the backs of their necks and wear straight-cut bangs .

Girl from Marken, Netherlands, with the traditional hairstyle, ca. 1930.

It is difficult to tell where exactly fashion trends come from. The neck shave style in the early 20th century was certainly not the first short style for women, merely the latest up until that point. In studying the history of hair, one finds patterns and precedents in almost all eras, regions, and circumstances. Misconceptions about hair are very prevalent, especially in regards to women’s hair. One must keep an open mind when studying the history of hair and the ways it may challenge preconceived notions.