What is nappy hair?

[Bublnbrnsuga]

Is nappy hair a general term for describing black hair? Does nappy hair encompass curls and waves? If your hair isn't naturally straight, should you classify your hair as nappy?

I've described my hair as nappy before and several people have insisted on correcting me.

Also, are their any curly/wavy heads here who sometimes hold back from describing their hair as curly/wavy? Are you more inclined to say coily or kinky to not seem like you are describing a hair heirachy?

 

[Keen]

I think naps are the people with edges of 4B, coily Z-pattern curls. I don't think all black people's hair are nappy. I would not classify you as having naps.

 

[jevetta]

I have 4 b hair, it is nappy. No lovely waves or curls form when wet. Before coming to these hair sites I had no concept of this typing system. My personal system was divided into two. Straight or Nappy. This was based on the individual hair strand. My daughter has straight curly hair. Her hair strand forms a round cylinder that when pulled taught is even over its course. My hair is nappy. When pulled straight the strand has an undulating pattern with narrow spots, it is not uniformly round. I can straighten my nappy hair but the strand will never be uniform. My daughter can straighten her curly hair and the strand is uniform. That is my personal example of what nappy is. In your fokti you have what I would have considered straight curly hair. Jeve

 

[Poohbear]

To me, nappy means curly and/or kinky.

 

[silvergirl]

now i consider nappy to be very tight curls. and coils.. like you, i once used to call my hair nappy but other ppl insisted that it wasnt, that i was just curly or moreso wavy, thats the term i use now for myself

 

[KiniKakes]

I prefer the term "kinky" myself, over nappy.... and that, generally speaking, is 4a-b hair. Anything other than that is not "kinky" (or nappy) to me. THus, I call 3c and below "naturally curly."

 

[Divine Inspiration]

IMO, nappy is the kinky hair that's tough to get a comb through, even when wet.

I don't consider wavy/curly hair nappy because it's usually very manageable and has a consistent pattern throughout.

I just discovered that my hair is not what I consider nappy. I had been told that it was for a long time, but I've been getting acquainted with my natural hair, and I it.

 

[Cheleigh]

Good question.

I've never really thought about it relative to other people. I know that I call my hair nappy/kinky. I also call it curly/coily, so I consider my hair both nappy and curly.

I call it nappy because the strands are kinked and the texture is like thick, soft, and inviting like a Berber carpet. I call it curly because my strands and my pattern is curly. I think you can be both wavy/curly and nappy.

I don't tend to call people whose curly strands straighten when wet kinky/nappy though.

 

[senimoni]

I wouldn't refer to someone with 3b/c hair as nappy, so I guess my definition is 4a/4b is "nappy"

 

[Cichelle]

In the past I have used it and I was corrected. erplexed At this point, I don't use the word to describe my hair or anyone else's. I can't answer the question as to what it is because I think it means something different to different people. I know some view the word negatively, which is one reason I don't use it to refer to anyone else's hair. Some have embraced it and it is a very positive thing. But I don't know exactly what kind of hair qualifies as "nappy" and to avoid the confusion, I simply don't use the word. I use the word "curly" instead when referring to my own hair, even though that doesn't describe the whole of what is going on on my head.

 

[Nightingale]

I don't like the word nappy either, just because people tend to use it in a negative sense. I wouldn't describe anyones hair as such, but I will use the word kinky. Other black people do not consider my hair kinky or nappy, but its a matter of opinion. Some straight haired girls would call Cree Summers nappy/kinky. One of my roommates has 3b hair she calls nappy all the time. It's just a difference in perspective.

 

[Radianthealth]

I prefer the term "kinky" myself, over nappy.... and that, generally speaking, is 4a-b hair. Anything other than that is not "kinky" (or nappy) to me. THus, I call 3c and below "naturally curly."

Ditto

Nappy has always been reserved for 4a and 4b hair...at least that is how it was when & where I grew up

Everything else was "good hair" or "that mixed hair" or "that Indian hair"

SMHerplexed

 

[chica_canella]

I am a mix of 3c/4a and I would say it can be defined as nappy. On the other hand my mom is a 3B/3c mix and defines her hair as nappy also. Then you have some white people or even people of color who say anything other than 1 a or b is course or kinky.

So, I think it depends on the person.

 

[B_Phlyy]

I usually think of type 4 hair as nappy. It is very tightly coiled feels kind of dry when touched. I call curls curls and waves waves though. However, I have seen people with curly or wavy hair damage there hair to the point where it felt nappy to me.

 

[Poobity]

Hair that doesn't have a uniform curl or wave pattern is what I consider nappy. Like my puff in the avatar.

 

[MissMarie]

I use the term 'nappy' to refer to my hair on hairboards. IRL I avoid the term because many people find it offensive, or only use it to denigrate type 4 hair. Also, I've had people argue with me when I refer to my hair as nappy. Since I greatly dislike convos about degrees of 'good hair', the whole 'well if your hair is nappy what does that make mine' (said with horror and disgust),or people listing negative attributes of nappy hair to prove that my hair isn't truly nappy I don't generally refer to my hair as nappy IRL.

Though, IMO, it is nappy
I guess its a relative term and depends on an individual's perspective.

 

[LocksOfLuV]

My experiences outside of the hair board was that nappy was referred to dry/uncombed hair. Hell, we used to call white girls with tangled/uncombed hair nappy. Nappy was referred to a look, not the type.

The only time I saw that nappy was referring to hairtypes was from hair boards.

I want to ask a question but I don't want the naturals to get offended, but I really want to know:

Do naturals get offended when relaxed heads or type 3s use the word "nappy?"

 

[navsegda]

IMO, nappy is the kinky hair that's tough to get a comb through, even when wet.

I don't consider wavy/curly hair nappy because it's usually very manageable and has a consistent pattern throughout.

What she said.

 

[B_Phlyy]

My experiences outside of the hair board was that nappy was referred to dry/uncombed hair. Hell, we used to call white girls with tangled/uncombed hair nappy. Nappy was referred to a look, not the type.

The only time I saw that nappy was referring to hairtypes was from hair boards.

I want to ask a question but I don't want the naturals to get offended, but I really want to know:

Do naturals get offended when relaxed heads or type 3s use the word "nappy?"

Are you talking about on boards or IRL? On boards, I probably wouldn't mind, but depending on the context and the way it was said IRL, I would.

 

[jtsupanova]

That's a tough one.... Nappy hair is really hard to define for me because nappy hair can be straight yet kinky, coily, curly, zig zag, undefined whateva
I guess it could be best described as highly textured hair

 

[StrawberryQueen]

To me, nappy means curly and/or kinky.

Yea this is what I think. It's curly kinky hair. White people can be nappy too-and proud!

 

[RoseGolden]

I also wouldn't consider anything type 3 and above "nappy." Imo it refers more to type 4's.

 

[StrawberryQueen]

My experiences outside of the hair board was that nappy was referred to dry/uncombed hair. Hell, we used to call white girls with tangled/uncombed hair nappy. Nappy was referred to a look, not the type.

The only time I saw that nappy was referring to hairtypes was from hair boards.

I want to ask a question but I don't want the naturals to get offended, but I really want to know:

Do naturals get offended when relaxed heads or type 3s use the word "nappy?"

No I would not be offended if someone who didn't have 4-? hair or wasn't natural said they were nappy. I've heard white girls say their hair was nappy, etc, so on. It was interesting.

 

[Cheleigh]

I want to ask a question but I don't want the naturals to get offended, but I really want to know:

Do naturals get offended when relaxed heads or type 3s use the word "nappy?"

I don't really know. On the one hand, I know that as a relaxed head, my new growth felt HORRIBLE. Worse than any fully natural head I've felt. So I would probably have said that my new growth felt so nappy and felt comfortable about that. I used to equate nappy=unmanagable and dry. I've never heard a type 3 (excluding 3c, which is still nappy in my book) describe their hair as nappy. Frizzy, tangled, matted, etc., but not nappy.

Now, my definition of the word nappy is different than how I used it as a relaxed head. I use it to describe this warm and amazing texture of clouds and cotton. I don't use it outside of hair boards though unless someone says to me that their hair is "too nappy" to go natural, and I respond that my hair is nappy too.

 

[Britt]

I think naps are the people with edges of 4B, coily Z-pattern curls. I don't think all black people's hair are nappy. I would not classify you as having naps.

Pretty much summed up what I think of as when I hear the word "nappy".
Bubblin, your hair is farrrrrrrrrr from "nappy".

 

[Sweet_Ambrosia]

Everyone has their own definition of what "nappy hair" is obviously, one definition alone cant truly describe it. I prefer the term kinky over nappy too. Kinky hair doesnt have much of a curl/wave pattern it's extremely tightly coiled, and it's very hard to comb whether wet or dry. I describe my hair as it is in my siggy, wavy~curly~coily, because that's exactly how it is.

 

[Ariana4000]

Its funny because I know white girls who say their hair is "nappy." To us it would just be curly or wavy, but they describe it as nappy. But I consider kinks and coils nappy hair.

 

[dynamic1]

I sometimes use the word nappy to describe my hair, depending on the audience. I use nappy to describe kinky, curly, coily, or highly textured hair. I happen to have all of the above sitting on my head. I never describe anyone else's hair as nappy, because they may not like or use the term.

Some people use the term nappy to describe hair they consider unkempt or "not done". Unfortunately, many have been taught that if you wear certain styles, you hair is not "done". If they see a natural head of highly textured loose hair, they may think it is not "done".

Also, some type 3s can not comb through their head easily. Heck, you could comb through it but you really would not be happy that you did!

I also know of other ethnicites that describe their hair as kinky or nappy even if it is 3a.

 

[hotshot]

nappy is non-glossy type 4 hair with some frizz factor, maybe.

ever buy a paint roller? Ever notice how you can buy then according to the "naps?" Or refurbish furniture and consider if the fabric has "naps?" This is the texture of nappy hair.

I've heard white girls and curly girls refer to their hair being nappy when they find it difficult to comb, unkempt, or a general mess. They are usually using it to be derogatory.

 

[LynnieB]

Is nappy hair a general term for describing black hair? Does nappy hair encompass curls and waves? If your hair isn't naturally straight, should you classify your hair as nappy?

I've described my hair as nappy before and several people have insisted on correcting me.

Also, are their any curly/wavy heads here who sometimes hold back from describing their hair as curly/wavy? Are you more inclined to say coily or kinky to not seem like you are describing a hair heirachy?

well my hair isn't "Becky" hair. no comb is gonna go right through root to tip. that comb gets caught in.............SUPRRISE!, naps.

not as nappy as some but naps just the same.

i consider my hair to be wavy/curly/nappy.