Editing Ponytail (section)

== Ponytails on women and girls ==
[[File:Girl with ponytail-Women at the Quern.jpg|thumb|Detail from an 18th-century engraving showing a girl (left) with a ponytail]]

[[File:Ladies in Blue fresco.jpg|thumb|Image of the fresco, "Ladies in Blue", from the Palace of Knossos on the island of Crete, with women wearing what seems like a ponytail hairstyle.]]

[[File:Backstage with AVEDA at Osklen Spring Summer 2014.jpg|thumb|right|A blonde fashion model with a ponytail]]

The ponytail can be traced back to [[Ancient Greece]], from records of images depicting women with ponytails in ancient Greek [[Artifact (archaeology)|artefacts]] and [[artworks]], such as the [[frescoes]] painted millennia ago in [[Cretes]] (2000–1500 BC).<ref name="Sherrow">Sherrow, V., (2019). "[https://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Hair-Cultural-Victoria-Sherrow/dp/0313331456 ''Encyclopedia Of Hair: a Cultural History'']." Santa Barbara: Greenwood Publishing Group.</ref> Hence, it is likely that the ponytail hairstyle emerged in Ancient Greece before spreading to different cultures and regions, for [[Ancient Egypt|Egyptian]] and [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] art also depict women wearing hair in a style that we now call the ponytail.<ref name="Sherrow" />

In European and Western culture, it was unusual for women (as opposed to girls) to wear their hair in public in a ponytail until the mid-20th century.
The expansion in the ponytail hairstyle was in large part due to the arrival of the first [[Barbie]] doll by [[Mattel]], which popularized the hairstyle, and movie stars like [[Sandra Dee]] who wore it in movies such as ''[[Gidget (film)|Gidget]]''.<ref>Whitaker, H. (7 December 2018). "[https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/361f113b-7edd-4589-8d2f-f1292537e1ba A cultural history of the ponytail]."</ref>

In the mid-1980s and through the mid-1990s it was common to see women of all ages from girls, tweens, teens, college and beyond wearing high ponytails or high side ponytails held with a [[scrunchie]].

Today, both women and girls commonly wear their hair in ponytails in informal and office settings or when exercising with a scrunchie or tie; they are likely to choose more elaborate styles (such as braids and those involving accessories) for formal occasions. High and low ponytails are both common. Ponytails with a scrunchie are back in style and practicality as they are seen as better on the hair then traditional hair ties. The ponytail is popular with school-aged girls, partly because flowing hair is often associated with youth and because of its simplicity; a young girl is likely to be able to redo her own hair after a sports class, for example. Wearing a scrunchie with your ponytail is popular with school aged girls especially those with school uniforms as it is one piece of stylish item girls can wear as long as they conform to school colors or requirements. A ponytail can also be a fashion statement; sometimes meaning athletic; other times a low ponytail sends signals of a chic personality.

A ponytail is a practical choice as it keeps hair out of the eyes when doing many jobs or hobbies. It is not uncommon to require long hair to be tied up for safety reasons in an environment like wood shops, laboratories, sporting activities, hospitals etc., even where hair nets are not mandatory. The ponytail, particularly a low ponytail, is often the most practical way to secure the hair.