I was recently talking to a Muslim friend of mine about the use of modern Islamic headwear, and she made the point that the situation used to be just the same in Norway back in the day, as she'd seen loads of old photos of women wearing what we call a "skaut" - an old traditional headscarf that looks like this. (ignore the bride)
I'd of course seen these kind of headscarves before, (old-timey museum hosts will always be wearing them, and I can count quite a few of them if I look at photos from when my grandparents grew up), but for some reason I'd never really associated them with anything religious.
Were they? Was there anything positive/negative associated with the use or non-use of the these headscarves? Can anyone tell me why and when they first were used, and how they eventually "fell out of fashion"?
The question should be about the situation in Norway/Scandinavia specifically, but I understand it could be a bit difficult to get a response for that, so I include the rest of the western (think broad) Europe as well if anyone happens to sit on something relevant.
hi! there's lots of room for more information here, but you may be interested in these posts, which may provide a start and a few usernames that you can ask follow-up questions of
Why are the Abrahamic religions so adamant about covering the head? Was there some basic, practical reason for it? - featuring /u/yodatsracist
Were Christian women in Europe expected to wear veils for religious reasons? If so, when did the custom decline? - featuring /u/cecikierk and several others
I often see old pictures of Eastern European women wearing headscarves. I think it had something to do with religion, but what's it all about? - doesn't go into reasons, but has a few more examples
Why did the Tudors love hats so much? Was there a religious element or was it primarily fashion? - a quick comment from /u/chocolatepot
Why did medieval women wear headscarves? Was it simply fashion, or were they worn for reasons of modesty/morality? - featuring /u/itsallfolklore
St Paul made a comment in his letters (1 Corinthians 11:4) that women should cover their heads when they pray, preach, or prophesize. Paul was from a very strict Jewish family and in Judaic law, women always covered their heads. However, having said that, you have no idea, pre-running hot water and bathing facilities how hard cleaning long hair is. The common way to keep you long hair clean was to keep it covered. Just as a woman might throw on a kerchief today to do a very dirty job, women throughout history and in almost every culture have covered their hair to keep it clean. It's not the oils in their hair that make your hair dirty (you can deal with the oil by brushing it regularly and thoroughly), it's the dirt that gets stuck into the oil. So, in almost every culture, until hair washing becomes easy, most women covered their hair. And then it becomes just the way it is done.
I worked in living history for many years. We were given encouragement to grow our hair quite long to simulate how people lived. After a bit of time, the whole, cover your hair to keep it clean became obvious. Covering your hair kept it from getting dirty and stinking at the end of the day.