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Facial hair
 
 
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Facial hair is a secondary sex characteristic
Secondary sex characteristic

Secondary sex characteristics are traits that distinguish the two sexes of a species, but that are not directly part of the reproductive system....
 in human male
Malé

Mal? , population 104,403 , is the Capital , the largest city in terms of population, and the name of an island in the Maldives. It is located at the southern edge of North Male' Atoll Kaafu Atoll....
s. Many men
MEN

The abbreviation MEN can refer to:* Multiple endocrine neoplasia* Manchester Evening News* Manchester Evening News Arena* Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Poland - Ministerstwo Edukaji Narodowej...
 start developing facial hair in the later years of puberty
Puberty

Puberty refers to the process of physical changes by which a child's body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. Puberty is initiated by hormone signals from the brain to the gonads ....
, approximately between 18-20 years old and most men don't finish developing a fully adult beard until their early 20s or even later. This can vary, however, and males as young as 11 have been known to develop facial hair that require routine shaving. Further, many women
Woman

File:Duval La Naissance de Venus.jpgA woman is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent....
 also have some facial hair, especially after menopause
Menopause

The Menopause is the permanent cessation of menstruation which occurs a considerable length of time before the end of the lifespan.The word was first applied to humans, and because of this it literally means the cessation of monthly cycles or menstrual cycles, from the Greek roots meno and pausis ....
, though typically much less than men.

Male pogonotrophy (the growing of facial hair; i.e, beardedness) is often culturally associated with wisdom and virility
Virility

Virility refers to any of a wide range of masculinity characteristics viewed positively. It is not applicable to woman or to negative characteristics....
.






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Facial hair is a secondary sex characteristic
Secondary sex characteristic

Secondary sex characteristics are traits that distinguish the two sexes of a species, but that are not directly part of the reproductive system....
 in human male
Malé

Mal? , population 104,403 , is the Capital , the largest city in terms of population, and the name of an island in the Maldives. It is located at the southern edge of North Male' Atoll Kaafu Atoll....
s. Many men
MEN

The abbreviation MEN can refer to:* Multiple endocrine neoplasia* Manchester Evening News* Manchester Evening News Arena* Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Poland - Ministerstwo Edukaji Narodowej...
 start developing facial hair in the later years of puberty
Puberty

Puberty refers to the process of physical changes by which a child's body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. Puberty is initiated by hormone signals from the brain to the gonads ....
, approximately between 18-20 years old and most men don't finish developing a fully adult beard until their early 20s or even later. This can vary, however, and males as young as 11 have been known to develop facial hair that require routine shaving. Further, many women
Woman

File:Duval La Naissance de Venus.jpgA woman is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent....
 also have some facial hair, especially after menopause
Menopause

The Menopause is the permanent cessation of menstruation which occurs a considerable length of time before the end of the lifespan.The word was first applied to humans, and because of this it literally means the cessation of monthly cycles or menstrual cycles, from the Greek roots meno and pausis ....
, though typically much less than men.

Male pogonotrophy (the growing of facial hair; i.e, beardedness) is often culturally associated with wisdom and virility
Virility

Virility refers to any of a wide range of masculinity characteristics viewed positively. It is not applicable to woman or to negative characteristics....
. Many men style their facial hair into beard
Beard

A beard is the hair that grows on a person's chin, cheeks, neck, and the area above the upper lip. Typically, only males going through puberty, or post-pubescent males are able to grow beards....
s, moustache
Moustache

A moustache is facial hair grown on the upper lip. Often the term implies that the wearer grows only upper-lip hair while shaving the hair on his chin and cheeks....
s, goatee
Goatee

In the traditional taxonomy of facial hair, a goatee is a beard formed by a tuft of hair on the chin. The word probably comes from the tuft of hair seen on an adult goat....
s or sideburns
Sideburns

Sideburns are patches of facial hair grown on the sides of a Male face, extending from the hairline to below the ears and worn with an unbearded chin....
. However, many others completely shave
Shaving

Shaving is the removal of hair, by using razor or any other kind of bladed implement, to slice it down to the level of the skin. Shaving is most commonly practiced by men to remove their facial hair and by women to remove their leg, and underarm hair....
 their facial hair
Hair

Hair is a protein filament that epidermal growth from hair follicle deep within the dermis. The fine, soft hair found on many nonhuman mammals is typically called fur; wool is the characteristically curly hair found on sheep and goats....
. The term whiskers used when referring to human facial hair indicates the hair on the chin and cheeks.

In male adolescence

The moustache forms its own stage in the development of facial hair
Facial hair

Facial hair is a secondary sex characteristic in human males. Many men start developing facial hair in the later years of puberty, approximately between 18-20 years old and most men don't finish developing a fully adult beard until their early 20s or even later....
 in adolescent
Adolescence

Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental Human development that occurs between childhood and adulthood. This transition involves biological , social, and psychological changes, though the biological or physiological ones are the easiest to measure objectively....
 males. Facial hair in males normally appears in a specific order during puberty
Puberty

Puberty refers to the process of physical changes by which a child's body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. Puberty is initiated by hormone signals from the brain to the gonads ....
:
  • The first facial hair to appear tends to grow at the corners of the upper lip,
  • It then spreads to form a moustache over the entire upper lip,
  • This is followed by the appearance of hair on the upper part of the cheeks, and the area under the lower lip,
  • It eventually spreads to the sides and lower border of the chin, and the rest of the lower face to form a full beard.


As with most human biological processes, this specific order may vary among some individuals.

In women

Women typically have little hair on their faces, apart from eyebrows and the vellus hair that covers most of their bodies. However, in some cases women have noticeable facial hair growth. Excessive hairiness (especially facially) is known as hirsutism
Hirsutism

Hirsutism or Frazonism or is defined as excessive and increased hair growth in women in locations where the occurrence of terminal hair normally is minimal or absent....
, and is usually an indication of abnormal hormonal variation. In contemporary western culture, many women shave
Shaving

Shaving is the removal of hair, by using razor or any other kind of bladed implement, to slice it down to the level of the skin. Shaving is most commonly practiced by men to remove their facial hair and by women to remove their leg, and underarm hair....
, tweeze or otherwise depilate facial hair which does appear, as there is considerable social stigma
Social stigma

Social stigma is severe social disapproval of personal characteristics or beliefs that are against Norm . Social stigma often leads to marginalization....
 associated with facial hair in women. Freak show
Freak show

A freak show is an exhibition of rarities, "freaks of nature" ? such as unusually tall or short humans, and people with intersexuality ? and performances that are expected to be shocking to the viewers....
s and circus
Circus

File:Faroe stamp 416 circus.jpgA circus is commonly a traveling company of performers that may include acrobatics, clowns, trained animals, trapeze acts, hoopers, tightrope walkers, juggling, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists....
es once displayed (usually fake) bearded women.

See also

  • Beard
    Beard

    A beard is the hair that grows on a person's chin, cheeks, neck, and the area above the upper lip. Typically, only males going through puberty, or post-pubescent males are able to grow beards....
  • Moustache
    Moustache

    A moustache is facial hair grown on the upper lip. Often the term implies that the wearer grows only upper-lip hair while shaving the hair on his chin and cheeks....
  • Hair
    Hair

    Hair is a protein filament that epidermal growth from hair follicle deep within the dermis. The fine, soft hair found on many nonhuman mammals is typically called fur; wool is the characteristically curly hair found on sheep and goats....
  • Axillary (arm-pit) hair
  • Eyebrow
    Eyebrow

    The eyebrow is an area of thick, delicate hairs above the eye that follows the shape of the lower margin of the Supraorbital ridge. Their main function is to protect the eye, but they are also important to human communication and facial expression....
  • Leg hair
  • Foot hair
  • Pubic hair
    Pubic hair

    Although fine Vellus is present in the area in childhood, the term pubic hair is generally restricted to the heavier, longer and coarser hair that develops with puberty as an effect of rising levels of androgens....
  • Whisker
    Whisker

    There are several kinds of whisker :* An element of box plot.* vibrissa: a hair on the face of a mammal, used for sensing the surroundings* facial hair: hair on the face of a human...
    s
  • Native Americans with facial hair


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