Detangling The Roots Of Locs: Who Really Invented Them?
“During the entire period of their Nazirite vow, no razor may be used on their head. They must be holy until the period of their dedication to the Lord is over; they must let their hair grow long.” – Numbers 6:5. Is this the true origin of dreadlocks?
Locs have a complicated history in our culture, and though they’ve garnered their fair share of hate, they have endured. Could this be because of their sacred origins?
Historians have traced locs all the way back to 2500 B.C. in Hindu holy books and the Hebrew Bible’s story of Samson. Egyptians also wore the hairstyle – there are even mummies that exist today with their locs still in place!
Rastafarians, however, perhaps have the most well-recognized loc culture in the world. As followers await the return of the “Lion of Judah,” they wear their hair in locs to symbolize a lion’s mane and to honor the second coming of a powerful leader. But still, a bigger issue remains.
White people often get a pass for wearing locs, while our people are ostracized, deemed dirty, and criminalized for doing the same. So it’s worth asking ... do white people have any historical ties to this sacred hairstyle?
Historians say yes – everyone can technically claim SOME connection to locs. But locs are far more than just fashion to us. They represent a connection to a past forcibly ripped from our people.
We must continue to fight on to maintain this connection while paving a better way for the future. What role can you play in our quest for a better future?
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