Haircuts also occur in the International Space Station. During the various expeditions astronauts use hair clippers attached to vacuum devices for grooming their colleagues so that the cut hair will not drift inside the weightless environment of the space station and become a nuisance to the astronauts or a hazard to the sensitive equipment installations inside the station.
Haircutting in space was also used for charitable purposes in the case of astronaut Sunita Williams who obtained such a haircut by fellow astronaut Joan Higginbotham inside the International Space Station. Sunita's ponytail was brought back to earth with the STS-116 crew and was donated to Locks of Love.
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Throughout history, hair has been a signifier of social class.
Upper-class people have always used their hairstyles to signal wealth and status. Wealthy Roman women wore complex hairstyles that needed the labours of several people to maintain them, and rich people have also often chosen hairstyles that restricted or burdened their movement, making it obvious that they did not need to work. Wealthy people's hairstyles used to be at the cutting edge of fashion, setting the styles for the less wealthy. But today, the wealthy are generally observed to wear their hair in conservative styles that date back decades prior.
Middle-class hairstyles tend to be understated and professional. Middle-class people aspire to have their hair look healthy and natural, implying that they have the resources to live a healthy lifestyle and take good care of themselves.
Historically, working-class people's haircuts have tended to be practical and simple. Working-class men have often shaved their heads or worn their hair close-cropped, and working-class women have typically pulled their hair up and off their faces in simple styles. However, today, working-class people often have more elaborate and fashion-conscious hairstyles than other social classes. Many working-class Mexican men in American cities wear their hair in styles like the Mongolian (shaved except for a tuft of hair at the nape of the neck) or the rat tail (crewcut on top, tuft at the nape), and African-Americans often wear their hair in complex patterns of box braids and cornrows, fastened with barrettes and beads, and sometimes including shaved sections or bright colour. Sociologists say these styles are an attempt to express individuality and presence in the face of social denigration and invisibility.
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In many cultures, including Hindu culture and among the Wayana people of the Guiana highlands, young people have historically shaved off their hair to denote coming-of-age. Women in India historically have signified adulthood by switching from wearing two braids to one. Among the Rendille of north-eastern Kenya and the Tchikrin people of the Brazilian rainforest, both men and women shave their heads after the death of a close family member. When a man died in ancient Greece, his wife cut off her hair and buried it with him, and in Hindu families, the chief mourner is expected to shave his or her head 3 days after the death.
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In the 1800s, American women started wearing their hair up when they became ready to get married. Among the Fulani people of west Africa, unmarried women wear their hair ornamented with small amber beads and coins, while married women wear large amber ornaments. Marriage is signified among the Toposa women of South Sudan by wearing the hair in many small pigtails. Unmarried Hopi women have traditionally worn a "butterfly" hairstyle characterized by a twist or whorl of hair at each side of the face. Hindu widows in India used to shave their heads as part of their mourning, although this practice has mostly disappeared now.
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