When is hair considered “long”?

[ruthieannie98]

This thought crossed my mind today and I thought I would ask you all on here... when is hair considered LONG to you? Is it MBL? Waist length? Knee length??

[jane_marie]

I made a poll with that subject no too long ago. you can check it out here: https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=151102

Interesting results... waist length seems to have the highest number of votes. :)

[akurah]

This thought crossed my mind today and I thought I would ask you all on here... when is hair considered LONG to you? Is it MBL? Waist length? Knee length??

I personally consider long to be past APL (past the folds of your armpits, it stands for armpit length)

For contextual reference of my point of view, I'm almost knee length.

[MusicalSpoons]

There have been a few polls over the years, though I don't have the brain power to go looking for the ones prior to jane_marie's.

[The-Young-Maid]

I guess when the hairdresser decides to charge you a "long hair rate" lol

[unheardletters]

I guess when the hairdresser decides to charge you a "long hair rate" lol

My local hairdresser charges the long hair fee for anything longer than pixie.

I generally consider hair to be long at waist length though.

[cjk]

Depends on who's defining it, and the context as well.

Used to think that touching my ears, or even worse covering them, was long. Running on my collar, and so forth.

And it was! By guy standards.

As my braids approach BSL, my own definition has changed. Evolved if you wish.

[gustavonut]

I always say APL because I’ve only been past that length once or twice in my life. That’s just me though

[shutterpillar]

My husband says APL+ is long. I won't personally take notice and think to myself *wow, long hair!* until I see someone with waist+ but that could be because of my bias from being on LHC. lol.

[Volchitsa]

It depends on the culture & the time. These days I commonly see BSL length, waist is a little more uncommon so I think waist.

[Dark40]

I would say BSL+ is considered long in this society. Now, even though I'm pass WL that is definitely considered long.

[leafygreens18]

I think there are different kinds of long, there's truly long, and then there's just sort of "gender standard" long. I think you have long hair when you get into the mid-back range, but you don't have "woah it's LONG" hair until waist.

[CopperButterfly]

When I look at someone, I'll think they have long hair at about BSL. Waist is when I start to think unusually long.

[Sparkles122]

To me, anything past waist is starting to get “long”

[0xalis]

When you consider it long! It's inherently up to personal judgement.

I consider my hair long at APL, and it's actually quite long at that length for me, as I have a long neck and torso.
I feel my hair is medium at collarbone length. Very long is waist and beyond.
Hair that long isn't very common here anyway, most women have BSL or shorter.
Some teenagers and Pacific islander women have hip length or longer. I've only met a handful of people with hair classic or beyond.

I also consider factors such as my gender and sexuality.
I'm a gay nonbinary person, it seems that the overwhelming majority of gay nonbinary people have very short hair. Very often also dyed!
I maintained very short hair for 2 years straight, so even at the length my hair is now (hovering right above mouth length) it feels long to me.

[Bri-Chan]

I agree with someone who said that it is related to the culture and the country, but also the time. I remember that when I was 12/13 BSL was already considered very long here. But today, a lot of girl here have BSL/MBL..
To me long is at least at the belly button, but it also depends by the hair cut

[Alexandrina]

Personally, I would say

above the shoulders, short
top of shoulder to bra strap level, medium/average
waist+, long

[*Wednesday*]

When you are *known* for having long hair.

[littlestarface]

When it hits the ground.

[desisparkles]

When it hits the ground.

lol, so your hair isn't long yet? :bigeyes:

[littlestarface]

lol, so your hair isn't long yet? :bigeyes:

Heck no, its so short.

[akurah]

When you are *known* for having long hair.

Ha, yeah, definitely this. At least a few of my coworkers will be devastated once I get around to my planned cut back to... I'm thinking between waist or BSL. Probably BSL.

[desisparkles]

Heck no, its so short.

well call me baldy then.

[The-Young-Maid]

Ha, yeah, definitely this. At least a few of my coworkers will be devastated once I get around to my planned cut back to... I'm thinking between waist or BSL. Probably BSL.

I don't have the heart to tell them even if it's just a trim lol I hope they don't notice!

[0xalis]

When you are *known* for having long hair.

Good answer!

[MusicalSpoons]

When you are *known* for having long hair.

Well, darn. Most people I know now don't have a clue how long my hair is because they've only ever seen it in a bun :p

[Jaeie]

I recently called my hair “long” because it’s finally grazing shoulders... :D

But realistically I didn’t consider my hair long until it was BSL.

[Natalia_A00]

For me it's considered REALLY long, like "actual long" since hip/tailbone length
And as your hair grows, your notion of long hair changes.

Of course waist and lengths like that are long too, it's long hair. But for me not *long long*

[Volchitsa]

Thinking about this question always raises the fact that there are tall people and short people. So what's long on a short person won't be as long on a tall person if we go by body measurements instead of number measurements.

[MoonRabbit]

For me it's tailbone and beyond. That's when I started getting double looks and comments in public.

[MamaLou]

Your hair is long when it is long to you (that can be very different for a lot of people).

For me hair is long at around APL.

[Simpscone]

It's definitely dependant on where you live and what your norm is.

For me, BSL is long but waist length is where I actually notice someone as having long hair.

Whereas, since I'm APL+ and this is the longest I've had my hair since I was young, people keep telling me "omg your hair is getting so long!" which I can't see, but I can see to them it looks long because I've never had it longer than APL before. If that makes sense.

[luzimerka]

I'm at MBL, and I'm just starting to feel like it's "long". I can see how most people would think waist, but I really do think it depends on the height of the person too.

[lottiealice]

I consider waist length to be mid-length, classic to be long.

[Dark40]

Ha, yeah, definitely this. At least a few of my coworkers will be devastated once I get around to my planned cut back to... I'm thinking between waist or BSL. Probably BSL.

Ahhh, you're cutting back to BSL? You're at the goal length I want to be at now! I would love to be at classic length now. Or, around in that area.

[akurah]

Ahhh, you're cutting back to BSL? You're at the goal length I want to be at now! I would love to be at classic length now. Or, around in that area.

I'm actually at, or just an inch or two shy, of knee. I just haven't updated my profile lately.

[desisparkles]

I'm actually at, or just an inch or two shy, of knee. I just haven't updated my profile lately.

wow! .......

[MeAndTheMaz]

For me it's tailbone and beyond. That's when I started getting double looks and comments in public.

I'd say combine this with your local norms. When people start to notice/comment, then you've probably got long hair.

For me, I'd say waist, or so, is when I start to notice that someone's got long hair.

[Dark40]

I'm actually at, or just an inch or two shy, of knee. I just haven't updated my profile lately.

Wow! I would never cut my hair at that length. Yes, I've noticed you haven't updated your profile lately.

[akurah]

Wow! I would never cut my hair at that length. Yes, I've noticed you haven't updated your profile lately.

Different strokes for different folks, but for me, my hair is really more a nuisance than something I enjoy anymore. It gets in the way, it's always pulling, I can't really wash it as often as i want unless I want it permanently damp, and it's a general hassle. The primary reason I haven't cut it yet is that I want to hit floor if I can, and as soon as I do, several feet are coming off. I will say this, though, and kind of goes for anyone who seeks long lengths: if you want the more extreme lengths, you really have to leave it alone, and you have to wear it up. Otherwise, environmental damage (from wearing it down) and chemical damage can result in a false terminal length.

[Todd]

Depends on who's defining it, and the context as well.

Used to think that touching my ears, or even worse covering them, was long. Running on my collar, and so forth.

And it was! By guy standards.



Indeed!

I am always amused when someone describes a guy as having "long hair" when its not even to his shoulders....

On the other hand, if I trimmed mine to anything less than waist length, I'd be devastated it would no longer be "long". Definately an evolving standard.

[Hexen]

For me, I suppose it would be chronologically subjective. I guess it depends on what decade you were asking me. There was a time in "eons" past when I thought that just beyond shoulder length was "long". It makes me feel like I was living 1950 or something. Even though I was born about 25 years later. Then came the mullets. Which I did have as part of the process of growing my hair even further. And then I considered around APL to be long. You can probably see where this is going. :)

But little did I know in my younger years, that despite in the 1950's, there were some folk like this fella doing their thing back in the 1800's. :D

https://i.ibb.co/y4D9zL1/owens.jpg

[Kalamazoo]

Hexen, who is that? My first thought was Buffalo Bill, but he had a different face shape...

[Dutchbraids]

I consider any hair longer than my own (BCL), long. On the other hand, on guys its anything past their shoulders. It also depends on the person though, because about 2 inches of hair on my boyfriend warrants a trip to the barber for him because he thinks it's too long.

[jane_marie]

Hexen, who is that? My first thought was Buffalo Bill, but he had a different face shape...

It looks like it's Perry Owens. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perry_Owens)

[Mlarmour]

Growing up, long hair for me was hair that could be tied up. Both my mum and Nanna have short cropped styles and always have done. In my German family, short hair is common so for me seeing long hair on family was rare.
Now I would says BSL/waist or longer.

[Ylva]

I come from a family where men had longer hair than women (apart from myself) nor has Christianity or any other Abrahamic religion played a part in my life, so guys and girls don't have different requirements for "long" hair in my books. I think hair is long around BSL/waist regardless of gender. I am a bit stricter with myself and require my own hair to be around TBL in order for it to feel long.

[Kalamazoo]

It looks like it's Perry Owens. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perry_Owens)

Thanks jane_marie!

[demonamay]

Hair is long at the shoulders. I know many here would disagree and say bsl, but to be honest short hair is neck length and above long is shoulders and beyond. IMO

[Siv]

Norms around here, for women, is probably:

Neck and shorter = short
SL to APL = medium
BSL and longer = long

But then, after growing for quite a few years, I don't think BSL is much of an accomplishment and think WL and longer (on me, that is) is "long"

[GoldenRussian]

Belly button length.

[cjk]

When the clipper guards are all too short.

[SnowSpot]

Intuitively, when I see a BSL hair, I think ”long”. But I’ve only been here in LHC for a couple of months - it’s likely my answer will change at some point when I get used to seeing long hair pictures :D

[Stray_mind]

I personally consider BSL and longer to be "long", as at that point you can do all of the "basic styles" with your hair without too much trouble..Well, unless your hair is extremely thick.

[Aerya]

I agree on BSL, at least I think that's when people would describe you as having long hair if they were to describe how you look. Like I don't feel like my hair is particularly long now but if I were to tell someone how I look I would say I have long, dark hair.

For people to actually notice you for having long hair it's probably more like BCL and beyond, here at least.

[Dark40]

Well, when I was a young child the longest my hair was MBL, nnd I've always considered that to be long but anything pass MBL and waist is long.

[dyna]

As others have said, it depends on context/culture/subculture/country/calendar. For now in the USA, and from a male perspective, I'd say BSL for women, shoulder for men. But in the early 1960s (Beatles era), if it covered a male's ears it was long. Probably still is in some subcultures, like cops, certainly military. Over the years, it's gone in and out of fashion for both sexes.

[MorganleFay]

Longer than apl, I rarely see anyone with hair longer than that.

[victor_tinyduck]

I would generally say MBL to waist, although my hair is in that range and it doesn't really seem long to me

[Haziel]

"Long" also has to do with how your hair is doing health wise. Personally I get alternately told I have "such long beautiful hair" and "your hair isn't that long" and the only thing that differs is wether or not I did approit hair care things. Example; when I have dry frizzy hair nobody even looks, but if I use leave in conditioner and say where to trim my split ends people will say I have nice long hair even though it may be an inch shorter.

[Bat]

I consider between lower shoulder blades to waist long on men, and Hip/Classic+ on woman long