Sorry if this is the wrong sub to post this in, but I remember reading somewhere that it had to do with the right of kings in Europe to sleep with a bride on their wedding night, so the women would shave their heads in order to look ugly and perhaps get out of having to sleep with the king/ruler etc. Is this true?
Thanks!
The vast majority of them don't shave their heads, only the most hardcore Haredi sects do. Most married women within the Orthodox umbrella would still cover their heads though. They have a standard of modesty called tznius, part of it include married women must cover their hair in front of strangers. More liberal Modern Orthodox women are allowed to wear only a tichel, which is basically a bandana or they might wear a normal hat and a lot of their hair would show. Women from more conservative communities would cover all of their hair with a wig or some other larger head covering like a turban. The most hardcore sects would shave their heads so no hair would ever show, even if their head covering got lifted somehow.
I have no idea why Orthodox Jewish women might shave their head, or even if they do (I live near a strong Orthodox community and have never seen it). However, as the king's (or any lord's) right to the bride on her wedding night is completely fictional, that is not the reason for the practice.
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