Untitled Document

Since the beginning of time, the hair and hair texture of people of African descent has been well documented. Revelations 1:14 and 1:15 describe Jesus’ features as: [His head and [His] hairs [were] white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes [were] as a flame of fire; And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters.]

The first time the word locks appears in the bible is in the book of Numbers 6:5 (King James Version) which reveals the vow of Nazirite to never cut his hair. [All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth [himself] unto the LORD, he shall be holy, [and] shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.] The Hebrew word pera (another word for locks) signifies the uncut and disheveled locks of the Nazirite (Numbers 6:5) or of the priests, the sons of Zadok (Ezekiel 44:20).

The first known visual examples of locks date back to ancient dynastic Egypt, where Egyptian royalty and commoners who wore locked hairstyles and wigs appeared on bas-reliefs, statuary and other artifacts. Mummified remains of ancient Egyptians with locks, as well as locked wigs, have also been recovered from archaeological sites.

The word locks is also mentioned in the Book of Judges, the Songs of Solomon, Isa, and Ezekiel. Not once, however, is the word “dread” used to describe locks. Following is the definition of dread, according to the Merriam Webster’s dictionary: 1. dread ['dred]
1 a: to fear greatly; b archaic: to regard with awe; 2: to feel extreme reluctance to meet or face. Intransitive senses: to be apprehensive or fearful. The term “dreadlocks” first appeared in Jamaica during post emancipation. It was a means of defiance for ex-slaves to rebel against the Euro centrism that was forced on them. The hairstyle was originally referred to as a "dreadful" hairstyle by the Eurocentric Jamaican society. It later evolved to the term “dreadlocks.” Today locks are a hairstyle choice worn by individuals for many different meaningful and symbolic purposes; no longer are they worn to incite fear.

Rastafarians grow their hair into dreadlocks as part of the Nazirite vow. All Rastafarians take this vow, believing it is commanded by the Bible [Leviticus 21:5 "They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard nor make any cuttings in their flesh".] Samson, from the bible, is believed to have been a Nazirite with locks. Many Rastafarians believe that like Samson, their hair is their strength and also their weakness if it is cut away.

The Origin of Bantu
The term Bantu knots originated from the Bantu peoples of southern Africa who were characterized by their hair texture. The Somali Bantu, descendents of tribes from Tanzania and Mozambique, who fled the once forested Juba River valley, are referred to as “Jareer,” a term used to describe Africans with hard or kinky hair. The Somali Bantu people's predominant Negroid physical features are distinct from those of the Somali nomads and give them a unique identity. Among the physical features used to differentiate the nomads from the Bantu is hair texture—jareer (kinky hair) for the Bantu people, and jilec (soft hair) for the non-Bantu.