Crowned In Meaning: A Love Letter To The Language Of Hair And Headwear
What we wear on our heads isn’t always just about looking good, it can also be about faith, culture, identity, and freedom.
If you read our last log, you’ll know this piece was inspired by the 2025 Met Gala, themed Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, where Black Dandyism took center stage. The hairstyles on the carpet told powerful stories, from Tems’ swirled edges and Megan Thee Stallion’s copper ponytail to Doechii and Lauryn Hill’s afros. The buns, pixie cuts, bobs, curls, finger waves, locs, durags, ichafus, crowns, and hats were all a nod to cultural continuity and creative expression. It got me thinking about how trends today come and go quickly, often losing their meaning. But hair and headwear have endured across ages, cultures, and geographies, communicating our identity, belief, and origin before we say anything.
Hair carries weight, literally and figuratively. In Nigeria, the conversation around hair shifts depending on where you are: natural textures are celebrated in some circles and critiqued in others; relaxed hair, wigs, and weaves span all ages; braids are a national treasure; and locs, though gaining respect, are still misunderstood in some situations.
Across the country’s cultures, hairstyles mark rites of passage, fertility, mourning, and spiritual protection. Children’s heads are shaved to signal new phases or to sever misfortune. In Eastern Nigeria, widows traditionally shave their heads to mourn dead husbands, a practice sparking debate amid evolving views on bodily autonomy, gender roles, and tradition. Priestesses and masquerade performers wear elaborate braids or shaven scalps to reflect sacred duties, as the head is seen as a gateway to the spiritual realm, a belief that makes touching someone’s hair or head without permission deeply disrespectful.
The resurgence of natural hair among Black communities worldwide is a joyful vision after centuries of domination by chemical relaxers and Eurocentric standards that deemed kinky textures “untidy.” Wearing an afro or braids isn’t just aesthetic; it’s a reclaiming of belonging and a protest against lingering colonial influences. Yet, biases persist, as employees still get told braids are “unprofessional.” These are not mere grooming disputes; rather about who defines acceptability. So, we push back, with popular figures like Lupita Nyong’o, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Yemi Alade, and Yara Shahidi showcasing braids, fros, and curls on global stages, from the Met Gala to TV shows.
From hair itself, we turn to its transformations. The narrative that wigs are “just covering up your real self” misses the point: sometimes, the power is in the choice. The power to decide how you wear your hair without shame, justification, or repercussions. Lace frontals, braided wigs, and afro-textured units have all become everyday staples. What used to be written off as vanity is now an extension of creativity and survival. Wigs protect natural hair while navigating work, weather, or beauty politics, allowing shifts in length, color, or texture without altering what’s beneath. It is not concealment; it is about adding, transforming, and becoming, again and again.
The story of hair also extends to how we cover it. The hijab, often misread in the West as a symbol of oppression, is worn with pride from Abuja to Cairo, and from Istanbul to Jakarta. For many Muslim women, it is a testament to faith, modesty, and style. On and offline, you’ll see young Muslimahs select fabrics and colors with care, and curating outfits that are, frankly, a sight for sore eyes.
Still, many hijab-wearing women face scrutiny even within their own communities. Some are told they are “doing too much” when pairing their scarf with a designer bag. Others are accused of “not doing enough” if one strand of hair slips out. This fragile equilibrium underscores how personal the hijab truly is, a journey of individuality within modesty’s bounds. Beyond the hijab, men’s headwear, like the dastār, also carries spiritual weight, tying faith to identity in a shared act of devotion.
Headwear, too, is a cultural powerhouse. In Nigeria, geles (Yoruba), ichafus (Igbo), etinghes (Efik), and okukus (Edo) adorn heads at weddings, festivals, and services. Across Africa and its diaspora, doeks (South Africa), dukus (Ghana), shashes (Ethiopia), and turbans tell stories of heritage. Historically, these pieces signaled marital status or region; today, they combine tradition with modernity as younger generations tie them unconventionally or pair them with Western outfits.
Globally, headwear speaks similarly. In South Asia, women adorn their hair with jasmine flowers or jeweled pins for weddings, while Indigenous communities in the Americas use feathered headdresses in sacred ceremonies. Men, too, participate, with the Maasai’s beaded headgear or the kufi caps worn across Muslim and African diasporas. Each piece is a fusion of past and present, worn with purpose.
The richness of this conversation comes from its complexity, and what ties the traditions together is their undeniable meaning. Hair and headwear carry history, spirituality, and pride, even when chosen purely for style. Sometimes, hair is just hair, a bright red wig one day, a silk bonnet the next, both equally valid forms of self-expression. The beauty lies in holding these multiple truths: that a gele in Lagos or a turban in London is a story, a decision, a person crowning themselves in what feels right, real, and beautiful.
Some find freedom in covering their hair, others in baring it. No single narrative fits all, and that is the point, as choice is radical. As I braid my own hair or tie a scarf, I am joining countless others around the world to sing choruses of who we are, and who we choose to be. Fashion is what we see, but identity runs deeper and evolves as we live.
 | A guest post by
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I loved this so much! I have been thinking and writing a lot more critically about my hair and what I do with it. You captured so many of my thoughts in this, beautifully 🤎
That was a good read !! I love how we have so many types of headwear & we can rock different styles of hairstyles! It’s that freedom to express ourselves in so many ways !!