Why the desire to use the word "curls" in reference to kinky natural hair?

[nappi]

i always say my hair is nappy or kinky because that is the texture

to describe 4a/b as curly is wrong in my opinion

 

[Harina]

I love the fact that our hair is so diverse, that even we don't know what the hay-ul is going on. This has been probably been stated, but Curls, coils, naps, and kinks, even waves to a certain degree, are somewhat interchangeable. If you look up close at my hair there are bundles of tiny curls or coils, it's just the fact of the matter. From far away, it looks like cotton, nappy, kinky, whatever. I like the word nappy or kinky. I'm always referring to my hair as nappy. WARNING LAME ANALOGY AHEAD: It's like saying a walk or a stroll. A stroll is just a variation of a walk. It's all I got.

ETA: Now that I think of it, I guess coily would be more appropriate. But like someone else said coily, at least for me, is not on the tip of my tongue like curly. I use nappy before I use coily. I don't think I even knew people used that word until I got on this board. But I don't think people who use the word curly have some sort of self-hate going on.

 

[Harina]

I was actually really interested to see what curl actually meant so I merriam-webstered it and...

Main Entry:1curl
Pronunciation:\ˈkər(-ə)l\
Function:verb
Etymology:Middle English, from crul curly, probably from Middle Dutch; akin to Old High German krol curly
Date:14th century
transitive verb
1: to form (as the hair) into coils or ringlets
2: to form into a curved shape : twist <curled his lip in a sneer>

 

[BonBon]

Can I say "something out of nothing"

At the end of the day if a Black woman 4a/b is natural and looks in the mirror and says "I love my my hair, I love these little curls", is it really any different than saying little kinks, coils, napps??
The pont is this person loves their natural hair full stop. Regardless of what they call it they are natural and choose to remain naturals against BW beauty norms.

As people have said, coils are curls anyway

 

[shocol]

I am actually insulted by the fact that many people do not consider kinky/nappy/natural hair to be curly as if it is not good enough to be included in this category.

I agree.

This is a good point. The image of curly as we know it is very Eurocentric. Historically it is viewed as a very loose coil or wave. Yet that is not the true definition. We have created our own definitions to describe our hair which is definitely distinct from European. What's wrong with expanding the definition to include the description of our hair as curly (as by definition it already does) vs. rejecting the definition altogether. Is it because no one else accepts it? Why do Europeans have to have a lock on curly?

ETA: While still embracing all if the other unique terms to describe our hair.

Not only is there a rejection of the definition, but there is a continuing questioning/explaining of why we don't embrace/reclaim/re-purpose the negative and deragatory terms used to refer to African textured hair.

 

[UGQueen]

'cause it is a curl. just different degrees. that's what i've learned

agreed .........

 

[Morenita]

Before anybody gets thoughts in their heads, I just wanted to add that Teri's hair was NOT merely "uncared for" in that photo. It was not natural either. It had chemical damage:

No one should assess texture based on chemically altered hair, even if it looks natural.

I didn't realize that the first picture I posted was of the jeri curl over a relaxer, so, for clarity's sake then, here is her natural hair.

It is still the same point that I made before however... This is not the kind of hair that you would readily run your fingers through. Neither is my hair. I can 'fro my hair out too:

But guess what, my texture is still the same.... My siggy pic is my wet, naked hair. It dries looking very similar to that.

Teri obviously uses a different method now, but that doesn't change her hair texture and I have no doubt in my mind that some people would consider both pictures above to fall into the kinky et. al category. My point was that it is always going to be a matter of perspective.

 

[Cherokee-n-Black]

Really? I don't consider either one of those pics to show "kinky" hair, and would be surprised by someone who did (well, someone who was of African descent). In response to the original post, however, "kinky" and "nappy" have gained acceptance in recent years. I'm sure there are plenty of us who remember a time when calling someone's hair nappy or kinky would be an insult. And more to the point, in most cases, they are curls, tightly coiled or curled, but curls nonetheless. I have no problem referring to "kinky or nappy" hair as curly, but since "curly" has so many variations, if people are o.k. with saying "kinky" and "nappy" then it gets closer to the point. But after seeing this post as an example of "kinky," I have to say, maybe the perception's not as universal as I thought. LOL

I didn't realize that the first picture I posted was of the jeri curl over a relaxer, so, for clarity's sake then, here is her natural hair.

It is still the same point that I made before however... This is not the kind of hair that you would readily run your fingers through. Neither is my hair. I can 'fro my hair out too:

But guess what, my texture is still the same.... My siggy pic is my wet, naked hair. It dries looking very similar to that.

Teri obviously uses a different method now, but that doesn't change her hair texture and I have no doubt in my mind that some people would consider both pictures above to fall into the kinky et. al category. My point was that it is always going to be a matter of perspective.

 

[AllieCat0817]

I was natural from 2004 until June 2009. I like the words kinky, coily, curly, textured, all that. I hate the word Nappy. Always did, still do.

 

[Morenita]

@ Cherokee: Yeah, you'd be surprised. My hubby is from PR, and he used to call my hair nappy/kinky before I schooled him.

 

[Oasis]

Me calling my hair nappy is not me trying to take back or reclaim the word or make it positive.

My hair is nappy.*shrugs* There is just no other way to describe it.

 

[Cherokee-n-Black]

@ Cherokee: Yeah, you'd be surprised. My hubby is from PR, and he used to call my hair nappy/kinky before I schooled him.

Oh yeah...well, that's a whole 'nother discussion re: The perception of some Black Spanish speakers! LOL. I guess I should have said I'd be surprised if someone AA thought that was "kinky" or "nappy." It's funny though, I always thought growing up, "nappy" meant "uncombed."

 

[Nonie]

I say nappy or kinky because that precisely describes my hair, but I have no problem with the word curly either, because kinks and naps are nothing more than tight curls.

In other words, all kinky/nappy hair is curly but not all curly hair is kinky/nappy. What makes hair kinky/nappy is how tight/small the curls are.

My kinky/nappy hair: Behold the tiny curls that look like coils and behave like springs when stretched:

 

[Nonie]

Oh yeah...well, that's a whole 'nother discussion re: The perception of some Black Spanish speakers! LOL. I guess I should have said I'd be surprised if someone AA thought that was "kinky" or "nappy." It's funny though, I always thought growing up, "nappy" meant "uncombed."

Did you see the movie "400 Hundred Years Without a Comb"? It sort of explains where that misconception came from. 4B hair used to be uncombed because there was nothing appropriate for grooming it. So having 4B meant you had uncombed/messy hair. And 4B hair is nappy hair, so yes, nappy/coily/4b was unkempt. But not anymore. We can now groom it just as well as our sistahs with looser hair.

 

[chebaby]

my hair is curly. it can get frizzy and just look like a ball of frizz if i keep plucking at it but it is curly.

i refer to it as curly, coily and sometimes kinky. none of those words bother me and most times nappy doesnt even bother me.

 

[melodies815]

I went downstairs to the activity desk at our hotel this morning, and the manager asked, Do you texturize your curly hair?"

I gave her the LHCF website and some educational info if she wants to BC her relaxer and go natural...and then I headed back to our room. I laughed in the elevator because today is a day I used no product to make my hair look extra moisturized and therefore what I would consider "curly."

I give up.

I have ethnic hair.
I like it.

The end.

AJoyfulJoy.... think I am through my "process" now. I don't have to want until APL to get clear.

My hair is kinky, afro-textured, curly, coily, 4a/b/d/c/e/f/g/h/i/j/k/l/m/n/o/p and it's all good to me.

I rhymed.

Nite all!


HHG to everyone - kinky, curly and everything in between!!

cj

 

[discodumpling]

Nappy..with na'an curl or coil to be seen!

 

[Poohbear]

I've noticed a lot on various hairboards that a lot of people say they love their "curls" when their hair is really kinky. My natural hair is really kinky and coily, but I will never refer to it as curly b/c it just isn't there.

I've noticed that not a lot of people seem to say or embrace the words "kinky" or even "nappy." All I hear is curly. What do you think about this? Do you say curly, nappy, kinky...what is your word that you use to describe your natural hair and why?

Some kinky hair is curly. It's just not a loose curl. A coil is a form or type of curl. When someone says their hair is curly, it does not always mean loosely curled like a type 3 or type 2. If it's not straight, it's curled. Even a wave can be considered a curl.

 

[Nonie]

Some kinky hair is curly. It's just not a loose curl. A coil is a form or type of curl. When someone says their hair is curly, it does not always mean loosely curled like a type 3 or type 2. If it's not straight, it's curled. Even a wave can be considered a curl.

Thank you!

I think the word kinky confuses people because when they first learned it, the hair that was being described as kinky didn't appear curly to them so it's hard for them to shake that "deduced definition" off. But if you look up the definition of the word, you will see that kinky is definitely curly with one condition: the curls must be tight and not loose.

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Tightly twisted or curled: kinky hair.
Encarta Dictionary: full of tight coils
Meriam Webster: closely twisted or curled
Wordsmyth: having tight twists or curls, as hair.

 

[BostonMaria]

My hair is pretty curly. I always feel "weird" saying curly. Almost like I'm saying something inappropriate LOL Sounds stupid I'm sure. But there's almost something weird about being black and saying curly hair. Almost like we're not supposed to say it.

But to heck with it, I say it anyway!

 

[Poohbear]

My hair is pretty curly. I always feel "weird" saying curly. Almost like I'm saying something inappropriate LOL Sounds stupid I'm sure. But there's almost something weird about being black and saying curly hair. Almost like we're not supposed to say it.

But to heck with it, I say it anyway!

You shouldn't feel weird or that it's inappropriate to say that your hair is curly if it in fact is curly. It would only be inappropriate to say, "My hair is curly" if your hair is naturally straight type 1 hair. Black people have curly hair, either very tight (kink), tight (coil), loose (loose curl), or very loose (wave).

 

[BostonMaria]

You shouldn't feel weird or that it's inappropriate to say that your hair is curly if it in fact is curly. It would only be inappropriate to say, "My hair is curly" if your hair is naturally straight type 1 hair. Black people have curly hair, either very tight (kink), tight (coil), loose (loose curl), or very loose (wave).

Hey Poohbear, haven't seen you in a while

I know its stupid. Its all in my head of course and I imagine it comes from the fact that I've only been natural less than 2 years. Didn't even know them suckers existed LOL

 

[Naturel]

It probably has to do with those terms having negative quonotations. You don't want to sound like you're negative about your hair toward others or even yourself.

 

[LadyRaider]

I hope I wouldn't care too much about the terms nappy or kinky, but... when I look at my natural hair I see curly and wavy and frizzy.

I am not sure what I would call kinky. I think of nappy when my hair is messy. So I guess I have always used that one as a derogatory term.

 

[LadyRaider]

Thanks for the definitions posted earlier. I didn't see one for nappy yet.

So the definition of curls = ringlets
And the definition of kinky = tight curls

Here's what I came up with for nappy:

nap·py 1 (n

p

)adj. nap·pi·er, nap·pi·est 1. Having a nap; fuzzy: a nappy carpet
2. Often Offensive Tightly curled or coiled. Used of hair.

And here is "nap."
nap 2 (n

p)n. A soft or fuzzy surface on fabric or leather.




My hair definitely has a "fuzziness" to it. But again, I have always used that when I think of my hair as unkempt. Like I braided my hair in small braids 2 nights ago, and pinned them up. (I'm not working this summer) Tonight when I put my cap on, I noticed my hair was nappy (fuzzy) along the edges of my pinned up braids.

 

[Janet']

My hair is pretty curly. I always feel "weird" saying curly. Almost like I'm saying something inappropriate LOL Sounds stupid I'm sure. But there's almost something weird about being black and saying curly hair. Almost like we're not supposed to say it.

But to heck with it, I say it anyway!

I totally agree with you!

 

[silenttullip]

I'm still not comfy yet with nappy but my SO uses fuzzy which I think it's cute and it does describe parts of my hair. As for kinky it's cute too but my hair doesn't really have much of a kink unless I'm not treating it right, curly is normal and sounds nicer but my hair isn't totally curly so... I guess I should say furly = fuzzy curls. Many of us with 3c/4a/4b do have curls but we don't give it the right amount of moisture so it's fuzzy but yea I don't get not calling it what is it

 

[AvaSpeaks]

I believe that for some, the words "kinky" and "nappy" have negative connotations and the fact that these words have been used derogatorily to describe various black hair textures. Admittedly, I don't like the words "kinky" and "nappy" because I don't believe they accurately describe hair texture erplexed Also, as a child I never heard those two words used in an endearing fashion

Exactly! It's just the new PC term for Afro-textured hair. There are coils, just like you got big spirals that are also curls but spirals are spirals and coils are coils.

Same family but they are just different variations of "curls" but it's just more PC to say that.

 

[NaturalRed]

I always refer to my hair as Nappy and Kinky around close friends and family. I always feel weird saying Nappy in public. I think I offended someone a while back when I referred to my hair as Nappy. Since then, I only say Curly or Kinky when I'm around people I don't know too well.

 

[Dragon_Of_Vaeros]

Well, I say curls, or spirals, myself. It's what they look like to me.

I never heard the word kinky or nappy in reference to hair when I was growing up so I really never got into using those terms.

(although I do read the terms online frequently, I rarely hear them irl.)