Hair typing by naani.com a fifth category!

[Melissa-jane]

Check this out

This article is too long to post but in short it says that there should be a fifth hair type which is nappy, and type four should be kinky, type three curly, type two wavy and type 1 straight.

Obviously I am interested to see that is dismisses the whole 4a, 4b, debate and creates a further category. I always say that I am 3c but I think by this article I am more a type 4 with fine, dense hair with shine and sheen.

It has been hard for me to determine my hair type as its short at the moment and when I wore it natural 14 years ago I always blow dried it. Its 4a with 3c.......bah type four, we will see as it grows.

 

[Muse]

Well since I don't like the word nappy, I say no. Perhaps if they had another name for that category....

 

[Melissa-jane]

Well since I don't like the word nappy, I say no. Perhaps if they had another name for that category....

Same here that is why I said fifth category, I am British and this word was unfamiliar to me until I joined this and other forums.

 

[MizzBrit]

eh. to each and their own.hair typing is confusing as it is. i dont care what people call my hair. i wish the system would be classified by the thickness/texture of hair..not the curl size...because a fine haired 4a will difinately act different from a coarse thick 4a type hair person.

 

[Melissa-jane]

Here is the "money shot" if you can't be bothered to read this essay (bookmark it for a slow day at work lol) then click on this link.

 

[Melissa-jane]

eh. to each and their own.hair typing is confusing as it is. i dont care what people call my hair. i wish the system would be classified by the thickness/texture of hair..not the curl size...because a fine haired 4a will difinately act different from a coarse thick 4a type hair person.

I agree but this is the argument of this article, it talks about thickness, texture, density it really is quite thorough.

 

[Chevelure618]

Kinky and Nappy are not accurate descriptions that can "type" or standardize a hairshaft's shape. For instance, carpet comes in different "naps" and what does that actually mean. Kinky has often been frowned on because the word actually means abnormal or perverted...it is not descriptive of hair.

I would add something more descriptive for hair that does not form even a very tight circular curl. I think the most accurate has been the "Z" pattern or perhaps Type 5 being Z pattern and then a,b,c, under that being how close together the folds of the Z are. Type 4 should really be S pattern. My thoughts anyway.

 

[Melissa-jane]

I saw this article a while ago, before I chopped and I have only just shared, reading your comments clarifies why I felt slightly uncomfortable, kinky, nappy its all just jargon, not an accurate description.

My hair is not tightly coiled neither is it completely defined, I am 1/4 indian so I have many textures on my head, this is the only reason why I am interested in the hair type debate.

 

[tocktick]

I'm confused about the difference between nappy and kinky. Over here, "nappy" hair is sometimes called kinky hair. Even if a 5th category were introduced, people would still be objecting about the system not including their hair type and they would be labelling themselves "type 5xyz".

 

[Angel of the North]

My hair is not tightly coiled neither is it completely defined, I am 1/4 indian so I have many textures on my head, this is the only reason why I am interested in the hair type debate.

I have noticed three different hair types on my head, curly, wavy and straight (this is when natural/unrelaxed), I also noticed the longer my hair got the looser my curls became. My hair is very fine I just have a lot of it but I do not think my hair is any of the types that have been classified so far. If I pull a strand of my hair out and ask a friend to inspect it, they usually claim they can't see it (i've had white friends say this to me as well as black friends lol). I used to think I was a cross between a 3c and 4a but if we're talking textures, then that changes everything! I definately think they should have a better system of classifying hair types but I don't agree with the term nappy as an official type. Personally I think they could do with adding a least another 6 hair types to the equation, when you take into consideration all the different textures people have

 

[isabella09]

I don’t like the word nappy and I’ve totally given up on hair typing it confuses me and I find it somewhat unnecessary to an extent. For the purposes of the discussion, I’m varying degrees of 4 something depending upon which section of my hair you look at (type 4 something is good enough for me); Not knowing my specific type in each section of my hair hasn’t hindered my regimen in anyway.

 

[Melissa-jane]

I have noticed three different hair types on my head, curly, wavy and straight (this is when natural/unrelaxed), I also noticed the longer my hair got the looser my curls became. My hair is very fine I just have a lot of it but I do not think my hair is any of the types that have been classified so far. If I pull a strand of my hair out and ask a friend to inspect it, they usually claim they can't see it (i've had white friends say this to me as well as black friends lol). I used to think I was a cross between a 3c and 4a but if we're talking textures, then that changes everything! I definately think they should have a better system of classifying hair types but I don't agree with the term nappy as an official type. Personally I think they could do with adding a least another 6 hair types to the equation, when you take into consideration all the different textures people have

Yes, true dat, ladies I even have type one hairs on my head, from the root! I use no heat so its not damage, its just my texture!

 

[FindingMe]

I'm confused about the difference between nappy and kinky. Over here, "nappy" hair is sometimes called kinky hair. Even if a 5th category were introduced, people would still be objecting about the system not including their hair type and they would be labelling themselves "type 5xyz".

I think I'm just confused in general

According to her typing system, I have kinky hair bc it looks just like the model's in the picture dry with no product... 'cause i couldn't figure out how to manuever through the site to read the article erplexed
hair typing (and that website) confuses me...

 

[Neith]

Has everyone who is commenting actually read the article?

If not, please do. It's very good and makes a lot of sense if you are open to it. It actually helped me to figure out my hair. It's a good read

Don't let the words kinky and nappy deter you. It's the information and explanations in the article that are the main part.

It even says in the article... what else would you call our hair?

Kinky and nappy aren't the nicest of words for some... but say that you were describing my hair to someone. Good luck effectively describing it without using the words kinky, nappy, wooly, etc... what other words in the English language describe our hair specifically?

Anyways... give the article a chance. It gives a bit more explanations than other hair typing systems and really does take many factors into account.

Someone should just make up a new, more acceptable adjective then.

 

[Neith]

eh. to each and their own.hair typing is confusing as it is. i dont care what people call my hair. i wish the system would be classified by the thickness/texture of hair..not the curl size...because a fine haired 4a will difinately act different from a coarse thick 4a type hair person.

Exactly. That IS all taken into account. It's pretty well thought out imo

 

[Sounique]

Has anyone noticed that hair typing only gets confusing when describing type 4 hair. Trying to break down all the different textures of type 4 hair is like trying to classify all shades of "black" people into just 3 categories. It can't be done. There are simply too many different shades and no two are exactly the same.

I know an Asian woman whose complexion is identical to mine, however her undertone is different, so our color looks different. I use to know a Caucasian woman who would tan and appear very brown, but would still be lighter than I am when we were side by side, and I am considered very light. Just as hair typing goes. There may be a 4b that looks like a 4a depending on how another 4 a, b, or c hair appears.

It's much too complex to give a blanket definition.

 

[isabella09]

Has everyone who is commenting actually read the article?

If not, please do. It's very good and makes a lot of sense if you are open to it. It actually helped me to figure out my hair. It's a good read

Don't let the words kinky and nappy deter you. It's the information and explanations in the article that are the main part.

It even says in the article... what else would you call our hair?

Kinky and nappy aren't the nicest of words for some... but say that you were describing my hair to someone. Good luck effectively describing it without using the words kinky, nappy, wooly, etc... what other words in the English language describe our hair specifically?

Anyways... give the article a chance. It gives a bit more explanations than other hair typing systems and really does take many factors into account.

Someone should just make up a new, more acceptable adjective then.

I confess I haven’t looked at the article the typing system just confuses me too much And honestly prior to joining the forum I’ve never heard of the term nappy hair. I think the only term I’ve heard of is afro-textured hair with a further description of either tightly curled or loosely curled.

 

[PerplexingComplex]

Has everyone who is commenting actually read the article?

If not, please do. It's very good and makes a lot of sense if you are open to it. It actually helped me to figure out my hair. It's a good read

Don't let the words kinky and nappy deter you. It's the information and explanations in the article that are the main part.

It even says in the article... what else would you call our hair?

Kinky and nappy aren't the nicest of words for some... but say that you were describing my hair to someone. Good luck effectively describing it without using the words kinky, nappy, wooly, etc... what other words in the English language describe our hair specifically?

Anyways... give the article a chance. It gives a bit more explanations than other hair typing systems and really does take many factors into account.

Someone should just make up a new, more acceptable adjective then.

Where did you find that at? It seems just like other systems to me (excluding LOIS, I think it's the best), the only difference is she changed 4a to kinky and 4b to nappy. Also with the images kinky hair seems to just be nappy hair that has been stretched. erplexed

 

[Neith]

Where did you find that at? It seems just like other systems to me (excluding LOIS, I think it's the best), the only difference is she changed 4a to kinky and 4b to nappy. Also with the images kinky hair seems to just be nappy hair that has been stretched. erplexed

Actually, upon closer insepction... that's not the same article Im talking about.

Like 2 days ago I ran into an article that had the 5 hairtypes, but it was much longer and really went in depth.

Hmm... I'll try to find it.

ETA:
It IS the same article, but it's missing A LOT of info. Weird. That's like... not even half of it. It's not the full arricle.

 

[Neith]

I found it!

http://fromgrandmaskitchen.com/Natural-Hair-Beauty/articles/3881/1/What-Hair-Type-and-Texture-do-You-Have-Straight-Wavy-Curly-Kinky-or-Nappy/Page1.html


The full 9 page article.

My other posts should make more sense now

 

[Celestial]

Kinky and Nappy are not accurate descriptions that can "type" or standardize a hairshaft's shape. For instance, carpet comes in different "naps" and what does that actually mean. Kinky has often been frowned on because the word actually means abnormal or perverted...it is not descriptive of hair.

The word Kinky is descriptive of hair. It means tightly curled or wiry and it can be related to hair. Kinky also means sexually perversion. In essence, the meaning is governed by its context just like the word Will can have different meanings and the Word bill.

 

[PerplexingComplex]

I found it!

http://fromgrandmaskitchen.com/Natural-Hair-Beauty/articles/3881/1/What-Hair-Type-and-Texture-do-You-Have-Straight-Wavy-Curly-Kinky-or-Nappy/Page1.html


The full 9 page article.

My other posts should make more sense now

I see the difference she has between kinky & nappy hair now. Seems like nappy hair is c-napp hair. I still don't see why she considers hey typing to be so different. I still think LOIS is the best. All you have to do is include density and it describes each individuals hair perfectly, imo.

 

[Celestial]

Has everyone who is commenting actually read the article?

If not, please do. It's very good and makes a lot of sense if you are open to it. It actually helped me to figure out my hair. It's a good read

Don't let the words kinky and nappy deter you. It's the information and explanations in the article that are the main part.

It even says in the article... what else would you call our hair?

Kinky and nappy aren't the nicest of words for some... but say that you were describing my hair to someone. Good luck effectively describing it without using the words kinky, nappy, wooly, etc... what other words in the English language describe our hair specifically?

Anyways... give the article a chance. It gives a bit more explanations than other hair typing systems and really does take many factors into account.

Someone should just make up a new, more acceptable adjective then.

Thank you. People act like Nappy and Kinky aren't real words with real meanings that you can't find in the real English dictionary. I read the article and I find it informative.

 

[Neith]

I see the difference she has between kinky & nappy hair now. Seems like nappy hair is c-napp hair. I still don't see why she considers hey typing to be so different. I still think LOIS is the best. All you have to do is include density and it describes each individuals hair perfectly, imo.

It's basically a variation of LOIS I think that's even in the article. The person who wrote this incorporates LOIS and Andre's systems.

I like how it explains the difference between "kinky" and "nappy"... and it actually is logical. While they are closely related, they DO act a little different. Which is why we even have the term "c-napp"

I dunno if it will catch on. I don't use it to type my own hair, but I like the article. It makes a good attempt to type hair... especially our kind of hair.

 

[Mercie]

any hair type can be 'nappy'
I don't think the 5th category should be called nappy.

 

[Neith]

I think the article would be better recieved if type 4 was called coily and type 5 was called crinkly for example.

It's ironic that in the real world you are most likely going to hear people refer to hair beyond type 3 as kinky or nappy. Those are real terms that real people use to describe the hair type... people don't use other terms as widely.

 

[GreenD]

I'm not even 100% sure of the type of hair I have on my head now with the 4 types already established. I think we need to move away for categories, as all it does is divide people up more. We don't need more division, we need more unity. There's only one hair type and it's call HAIR.

 

[PerplexingComplex]

It's basically a variation of LOIS I think that's even in the article. The person who wrote this incorporates LOIS and Andre's systems.

I like how it explains the difference between "kinky" and "nappy"... and it actually is logical. While they are closely related, they DO act a little different. Which is why we even have the term "c-napp"

I dunno if it will catch on. I don't use it to type my own hair, but I like the article. It makes a good attempt to type hair... especially our kind of hair.

I can see the mixture, I guess that's why it doesn't seem that special to me. I thought most people combined the systems like that. Anywho, by her system I guess I can say I'm officially a 4b

 

[Lita]

I'am 3b,c fine-med.But,sometimes it has a mind of its own.Happy Hair Growing!

 

[Muse]

Has everyone who is commenting actually read the article?

I sure did