Barbarians and Braids

I really wanted to write a post detailing how hairstyles mattered a hell of a lot to warriors in most cultures, so I started doing some research.  Turns out most of that is just people's stereotypes, and either we don't know enough about the culture to say what certain hairstyles meant, or they had more to do with identifying each other by clan, social status, or marital status than martial prowess.  There are a few exceptions- the Ukrainian Cossacks would wear mohawks to battle, the samurai would shave the fronts of their heads, a few tribes had specific hairstyles for warriors (i.e. the Aztec) etc... (hair ornamentation is a different thing) but the trope of braids being "for warriors" doesn't really have a lot of documentation to support it.  Fair enough.

Which is fine with me, really.  Vikings especially are stereotyped for their braids and beards, but it turns out they mostly wore whatever hairstyle was practical or looked cool.  (Beards are well documented, though being female I have yet to grow out a proper Viking beard.  Every once in a while my upper lip decides to start a mustache, but then quits halfway through because it's a lot of work growing a decent beard and mustache combo as a woman, leaving to me the task of getting rid of that pathetically tiny excuse for facial hair.)

(Bearded, braided barbarians.  Try saying that three times fast.)

So, basically, Vikings and a lot of other ancient warriors mostly wore their hair however the fuck they wanted to.  It's exactly that type of mentality that a barbarian can appreciate.

I decide to wear a braid, specifically a small braid on the right side, because it keeps my hellishly thick and long hair from flying in my face when I'm doing shit, like decapitating my enemies, or wrestling a feisty 5 year old into her socks.  Plus it looks fairly cool.  Not a lot of other people walk around with a small braid in their hair, so it's something that makes me stand out.  And, if I put it in right after a shower, it's quick and easy to do and stays in, unlike pony tails that are constantly falling apart and need re-adjusting throughout the day.

(Although to be fair my unkempt eyebrows also make me stand out in a crowd.)

Barbarians are usually shown with long hair, but I tend to grow my hair out, then get irritated with it, cut it, forget to keep it cut, let it grow out, and then repeat the process.  Right now I'm fairly irritated with my long hair, as it gets in the way when I'm doing groundwork in Jujitsu, but I can't cut it yet because I need it long for a role in a B movie horror flick that my friend is shooting.  I'm one of the main characters, so I still have a few scenes to shoot before I can cut it.  Until then, I'll be rocking the "warrior braid".

(When it's dry it looks like this.)