Later in history, in Ancient Greece and Rome, it was considered uncivilized to have pubic hair, so men and women used tools to pluck the hairs individually or singed them off with fire. Other forms of hair removal included razors, sharpened stones, and even forms of depilatory cream.
Women in ancient Egyptian, Roman, and Indian cultures were subjected to hair removal practices similar to today's. Dating back to 3,000 BCE (!), the first razors made from seashells were used by women to shave off head and pubic hairs. Egyptians also removed hair with sugar-based waxes like modern-day waxing practices.
The practice of removing female body hair is not new, it can be traced back to ancient Rome and Egypt. Some of the first razors, made of copper, were used in Egypt and India around 3000 BCE. Egyptian women removed their head hair and considered pubic hair uncivilized.
Roman Empire
Early Romans viewed lack of body hair as a symbol of high class citizens. Many paintings and sculptures of ancient Roman women reveal that even pubic hair was removed. Hair removal was done via flint razors, tweezers, creams and stones.
In both Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, the removal of body and pubic hair may have been practiced among both men and women.
In Ancient Egypt, some women removed their public hair through copper razors, flintstones, and a process called “sugaring” in which you heat up water and sugar into a paste-like substance, which was used to remove hair with strips of cloth.
“…in the West and in non-western societies the most common reason for removal is hygienic. But in Western culture they talk about feeling cleaner if they remove their pubic hair.
Ancient Greece
They would only cut their beards during mourning periods, and if you lost your beard, it was considered shameful. That all changed when Alexander the Great came along, though. He encouraged his soldiers to cut their beards so that they couldn't be grabbed by the enemy if it came to hand-to-hand combat.
Cavemen and women most likely removed the hair from their bodies and heads in an effort to keep anyone from grabbing onto it during battle and to help prevent frostbite. But starting in ancient Egypt, being hairless was less about survival and more a symbol of cleanliness and status.
Greece and Rome – 400 CE
Later in history, in Ancient Greece and Rome, it was considered uncivilized to have pubic hair, so men and women used tools to pluck the hairs individually or singed them off with fire. Other forms of hair removal included razors, sharpened stones, and even forms of depilatory cream.
Stats show that men are split right down the middle when it comes to pube grooming, so it's really all about personal preference. Some men go completely pube-less, while others just keep it trimmed. Some men don't pay any attention to it beyond keeping it clean — and either way, it's totally okay!
Removing pubic hair may therefore make a person more susceptible to common infections, such as UTIs, vaginitis, and yeast infections. Hair removal can also irritate your skin, leading to skin infections such as cellulitis and folliculitis. In other cases, grooming-related injuries, such as cuts, could become infected.
Women began shaving their hair in 1915. This was the period between World War I and II. Before then, women removed unpleasant hair just in the neck and face. These parts were the only women body parts not expected to be covered by clothes, as the clothes they wore at the time were much less revealing.
Weiss speculates that one of the main reasons that human beings uniquely evolved a “thick bush of wiry hair” around their genital regions is its visual signaling of sexual maturation. (It also likely serves as a primitive odor trap and aids in the wafting of human pheromones.)
They did not just cut hair and shave beards, but also trimmed finger and toe nails, removed unwanted body hair and made wigs.
Sikhs. The Sikh religion forbids cutting or shaving any bodily hair. Orthodox Sikhs always carry a dagger with them, lest someone try to force them to do something against their religion.
Over time in Europe, a clean-shaven face became the preferred style. By the 15th Century, clean-shaven men were still in, but beards would come back in the 17th Century. Varying brands of facial hair have rolled in and out of style and importance since these times.
In ancient Egypt, every adult shaved off all body hair. Archeologists have found many “razors” made of solid gold. This health practice eliminated the most favored dwelling places of body lice. Both men and women wore makeup.
Women in Classical Greece would remove their hair through various painful measures. In addition to singeing their hair with ashes17 and lamps, as depicted in this krater and another kylix (Pl. 27), they could also pluck and shave their genitalia to yield the desired pruned result.
The first-ever bra most likely dates back to ancient Greece, when women wrapped a band of wool or linen across their breasts, pinning or tying them in the back. Corsets didn't show up until around 1500 and quickly became mandatory for middle- and upper-class women in Western society.
Ancient Egyptians removed all of their body hair, from head to toe. In May of 1915, Harper's Bazaar ran an ad featuring a women in a sleeveless dress and bare armpits, perhaps sparking the trend of women shaving their armpits. Ancient cave paintings showed men using seashells as tweezers to pluck out unwanted hairs.
The main role of pubic hair is to reduce friction during sex and other forms of exercise, protecting the delicate skin around the genital area. Just like eyelashes and nose hair, pubic hair helps prevent the transmission of bacteria, trapping any dirt, debris, and microorganisms that could be harmful to the body.
Answer From Mary Marnach, M.D. There's no medical or hygienic reason for removing some or all of your pubic hair. But the removal process can be painful and cause many side effects, including: Genital itching, sometimes severe.
The term “manscaping” may have only been around since the 21st century thanks to the popular Bravo TV show, “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” but the activity of body grooming for men dates back to ancient times.
Culturally, the Chinese consider it bad luck to alter their physical appearance in any way. Women in the U.S. have been on quite a roller coaster ride when it comes to their armpit hair, or lack thereof, over the past century.