

Satmar Jews have notably thicker sidelocks.The actual area where the hair grows and where the ringlet begins is neat and tidy. Some traditional Yemenite Jews still wear distinctive long and thin twisted locks, often reaching to the upper arm.The lengths and maintenance of the pe'ot vary noticeably among Jewish groups. Įven in some communities where peot are not customary among the men, young boys may grow them until the age of bar mitzvah. Some Haredi men grow sidelocks, but trim them or tuck them behind the ears. Many Hasidic and Yemenite ("Teimani") Jews let their sidelocks grow particularly long. Ĭrimean Karaites did not wear payot, and the Crimean Tatars consequently referred to them as zulufsız çufutlar ("Jews without payot"), to distinguish them from the Krymchaks, referred to as zuluflı çufutlar ("Jews with payot"). In 1845, the practice was banned in the Russian Empire. Jewish haircut (1657) Specifics by communitiesĪs kabbalistic teachings spread into Slavonic lands, the custom of pe'ot became accepted there.

There is considerable discussion in the halachic literature as to the precise location of the payot and of the ways in which their removal is prohibited. Thus it became the custom in certain circles to allow the hair over the ears to grow, and hang down in curls or ringlets. The Mishnah interpreted the regulation as applying only to men. The word pe'a was taken to mean the hair in front of the ears extending to beneath the cheekbone, on a level with the nose ( Talmud – Makkot 20a). The Torah says, "you shall not round off the pe'a of your head ( פְּאַת רֹאשְׁכֶם)". Yemenite Jews call their sidelocks simanim ( סִימָנִים), literally, "signs", because their long-curled sidelocks served as a distinguishing feature in the Yemenite society (differentiating them from their non-Jewish neighbors).Īccording to Maimonides, shaving the sidelocks was a heathen practice. There are different styles of payot among Haredi or Hasidic, Yemenite, and Chardal Jews. Literally, pe'a means "corner, side, edge". Payot are worn by some men and boys in the Orthodox Jewish community based on an interpretation of the Tanakh's injunction against shaving the "sides" of one's head. Pe'ot, anglicized as payot ( Hebrew: פֵּאוֹת, romanized: pēʾōt, "corners") or payes ( Yiddish pronunciation: ), is the Hebrew term for sidelocks or sideburns. Hebrew term for sidelocks or sideburns Peot
