A Guide to Men’s Haircuts

When visiting a hairstylist, we often have to explain what exactly we want to be done to our hair —
shorter here, longer there, and somewhere in between here. But it would be so much easier to get by with just one word, no long explanations necessary. This applies equally to both men and women.

5-Minute Crafts decided to make a guide for some of the most popular men’s haircuts.

Undercut

This haircut is distinguished by the sharp contrast between shaved sides and long hair on top. The undercut style originated in Edwardian Britain. At that time, this haircut was common among working-class men due to its simplicity (not everyone could afford to visit a good barber).

Side part

Roughly speaking, this is a style in which there is a parting on the side. This haircut is easy to maintain because it doesn’t require complex styling. It’s enough to divide the hair into 2 parts on the side of the head, and you can use a hair dryer to add volume.

Fade

This hairstyle is a bit like an undercut because there is also a contrast between short hair on the sides and long hair on top. However, it will be difficult to confuse them, as a fade haircut implies a very smooth transition from one section to another. The transition can start either closer to the top of the head or from the very bottom at the neck — it depends on your personal preferences.

Caesar

The hairstyle is named after the Roman emperor, Tiberius (full name: Tiberius Caesar Augustus), as he was often depicted with this hairstyle. This style features short hair on the sides and the top of the head, and straight bangs that cover a part of the forehead in the front.

Pompadour

This haircut is named after Madame de Pompadour, the mistress of King Louis XV of France. This haircut requires the hair to be shortened on the sides but long on top, having a large volume of hair swept upward from the face. If you don’t know how this hairstyle looks in modern times, just think of the “king of rock and roll,” Elvis Presley — he is one of the celebrities who made this haircut a trademark of his style.

Buzz cut

As a rule, this is a short haircut where the length of hair is the same on all parts of the head. This haircut became very popular in the late nineteenth century, when the Serbian inventor, Nikola Bizumić, introduced a manual hair clipper. This haircut is very easy to maintain.

Twisted dreads

This popular hairstyle has short locks of hair twisted together into dreadlocks. They can be thinner or thicker depending on your personal preference. If the length allows, dreadlocks can even be braided to give the hair more texture and volume.

Top knot

This hairstyle looks exactly how it sounds: it has short hair on the sides, and on the top of the head the hair is long enough to be tied in a bun.

Mop top

If you don’t know what the mop-top hairstyle looks like, just think of The Beatles. In this hairstyle, the hair is of medium length, covers the ears, and falls on the forehead with vertical bangs. It’s good for straight and wavy hair.

Shag

This hairstyle has several layers of hair of different lengths. These layers make the hair look fuller and more voluminous around the crown and thinner around the edges. It is a unisex haircut and was once worn by celebrities like David Bowie, Mick Jagger, and Jane Fonda.