Afro Hair: 5,000 years of History, Fashion and Styles

Written By Kandace Chimbiri

WHY AFRO hair is the way it is and why we wear the hair styles we do was the motive for Kandace Chimbiri’s new book, The Story of Afro Hair: 5,000 years of History, Fashion and Styles.

The British born author connected with Congolese and Angolan illustrator Joelle Avelino to pull the children’s book together having grown aware of the narrative where black hair was concerned focusing on self-acceptance.

Chimbiri enthused: “The idea for this book grew out of my 2013 self-published children’s book, Secrets of the Afro Comb, 6,000 Years of Art and Culture.

“That book, which is about African combs rather than hair, was nonetheless enjoyed by many people who are interested in Afro hair type.

“Since then, there have been some wonderful books encouraging children to accept the beauty of their Afro hair.

“However, I felt that there was still a need for a book for children about the characteristics of Afro hair and the history behind some of the hair styles. I hope this little book will help to fill that gap.”

From plaits to the Gibson Girl, cornrows to locks, the hi-top fade to funki dreds, The Story of Afro Hair is the ultimate book of Afro hair stories.

Kicking off with an explanation of how Afro hair type grows and why, the book then takes readers right back to the politics and fashion of Ancient Egypt.

Speeding forwards to modern times stories from the Kingdom of Benin, Henry VIII’s court, the enslavement of African peoples, the Harlem Renaissance, the beginnings of Rastafarianism, Britain in the 1980s – and much more are covered.

Chimbiri said: “I wrote The Story of Afro Hair: 5,000 Years of History, Fashion and Styles for the same reason I wrote previous books like The Story of the Windrush. I wanted to help fill the gaps in Black history books we offer children.

“Crucially though, I also wanted to offer children books that offer new, fresh, and original information that creates real understanding – not just list of dry facts and dates, but context behind those facts.”

There’s no one stop shop for all things on afro hair but Chimbiri was clear on her focus of her book.

“Many resources cover the ‘history of Black hair’ actually only tell the story of Afro hair in the USA.

“In reality though, there are differences in the experiences of (English-speaking) Black people in Africa, the Caribbean, Britain and elsewhere.

“This book has got some big concepts, and it covers a lot of history in huge swathes. Even so, there are still some gaps. I freely admit that I have not included enough about Africa, for example. I also focused more on women’s hairstyles.

“I believe this book can be a valuable resource to help answer children’s questions about the way they (or their friends) look, inspire understanding and engender pride in the amazing story of Afro hair.”