From the Wikipedia article
Tonsure is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word tonsura and referred to a specific practice in medieval Catholicism, abandoned by papal order in 1972. Tonsure, in its earliest Greek and Roman origin, was used as a sign or signifier for slavery. Tonsure can also refer to the secular practice of shaving all or part of the scalp to show support or sympathy, or to designate mourning. Current usage more generally refers to cutting or shaving for monks, devotees, or mystics of any religion as a symbol of their renunciation of worldly fashion and esteem.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, taken from the style's article on Wikipedia.
Source
- Source: Wikipedia, 'List of hairstyles' (en.wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA 4.0) + each linked article's lead summary via the Wikimedia REST API; image files from Wikimedia Commons with their own licence per file
- List row: 39 of 99, from List of hairstyles (list revision 1376698486, fetched 2026-10-02T20:43:21Z).
- Article: Tonsure
- Text licence: CC BY-SA 4.0; adapted text stays under the same licence.
- Photograph: the Commons file Tonsure_fx_tr.png exists but records no licence value, so no photograph is shown here.
Words of quoted Wikipedia text on this page: 133.