Human hair is generally categorized into three major groups according to ethnic origins, ie, Asian, African, and Caucasian.
Human Hair Classifications
Human hairs can be classified by racial origin such as Caucasian (European origin), Negroid (African origin), and Mongoloid (Asian origin).
Hair has its origins in the common ancestor of mammals, the synapsids, about 300 million years ago. It is currently unknown at what stage the synapsids acquired mammalian characteristics such as body hair and mammary glands, as the fossils only rarely provide direct evidence for soft tissues.
African American hair is typically coarser and has a thicker texture than Caucasian hair. It also tends to have a higher density, giving it a fuller appearance. In contrast, Caucasian hair is typically finer, straighter, and has a lower density.
Not only is African hair often coiled, it also has a unique texture. So why is this? African hair produces plenty of protective oils, called sebum, which keeps our hair healthy. In fact, African hair actually produces more oils than Caucasian and Asian hair.
The story of human migration and evolution is written in hair DNA. In sub-Saharan Africa, genes favour tight, curly hair. But in east Asia, mutations have led to straighter, thicker hair. In Europe, other mutations brought wavy and straw-coloured hair.
Black hair is known to be the most common in the continents of Asia and Africa. Though this characteristic can also be seen throughout Europe as well, it is a bit less common. People of Celtic heritage in Ireland with such traits are sometimes known as the "Black Irish".
There are three main classifications of hair type based on race – Asian hair, Afro hair and Caucasian hair (or European hair).
However, we have three main classifications of hair type based on ethnicity/race. These are Afro hair, Caucasian hair (also known as European hair), and Asian hair.
While no two heads of hair are the same, there are three main classifications of hair type based on race Asian hair, Afro hair and Caucasian hair (which can also be referred to as European hair).
Initially, hair is white. It gets its natural color from a type of pigment called melanin. The formation of melanin begins before birth. The natural color of our hair depends upon the distribution, type and amount of melanin in the middle layer of the hair shaft or cortex.
Human DNA has millions of on and off switches along networks that control how genes function. Genes responsible for hair color come from both parents. Although the genes passed down from a child's parents determine hair color, variations can result in a child having a different hair color than both parents.
One popular myth is that hair loss in men is passed down from the mother's side of the family while hair loss in women is passed down from the father's side; however, the truth is that the genes for hair loss and hair loss itself are actually passed down from both sides of the family.
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“The ethnicity with the least amount of terminal hair is Asian, whereas people of Hispanic and Middle Eastern descent typically have the most. Other ethnicities fall somewhere in between. So what's normal, hair-wise, for you might not be normal for someone of a different ethnic background.”
It has been reported that Asian hair is generally straight and is the thickest, while its cross-section is the most round-shaped among these three. Caucasian hair is generally straight or wavy and is the thinnest, while its cross-section is relatively elliptic.
Caucasian hair can be smooth, wavy or curly. Its colorimetry can vary from blond to dark brown. It grows obliquely, and grows about 1.2 centimeters per month.
Types 1 to 3 are common in white populations, though there are some white people with type 4 hair. Types 3 and 4 are common in black people, though there are some Africans and people of African ancestry with type 1 and 2 hair.
Racial Determination
Head hairs are generally considered best for determining race, although hairs from other body areas can be useful.
Caucasoid hair ranges from straight to wavy to helical, with a round or oval shape and thinnest cross-sectional area. Negroid hair is generally commonly helical or spiral with different variations. It has the flattest and most elliptically shaped fibre and is intermediate in size between Mongoloid and Caucasoid.
Regardless of race, the larger the diameter of the hair fiber, the faster the rate of hair growth. Although there are no differences in the hair-growth cycle among Asian, African, and Caucasian hair subgroups, African hair has been found to grow at a slower rate, likely due to its smaller-diameter fibers.
Similarly to blond hair, brown hair occurs commonly among Australian Aboriginal and Melanesian populations. Dark brown hair is predominant in the Mediterranean parts of Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and South Asia.
The rarest natural hair colour is red, which makes up only one to two percent of the global population.
It's almost possible that 100% natural black human hair doesn't exist. The human brain's visualisation of as black hair actually is dark brown hair. It's clearer if we view the hair in natural light. We can see some red highlights since red is the underlying colour of hair which appears like black.
Individuals of African ancestry, for example, are more likely to have curly hair due to the oval shape of their hair follicles. Additionally, the Keratin Associated Protein (KAP) cluster genes, responsible for the structure of keratin fibers, have been found to have variations in many African populations.