Huli+Wigmen

Huli Wigmen



The Huli of the Tari Highlands in Papua New Guinea are a group of indigenous people in which tradition is a key component of their society. The way in which the Huli practice these traditions is through the exquisite and intricately designed wigs in which the men don for spiritual dances and performances, and initiation ceremonies. In Huli society the men and women live separately because the men believe that the women are a harmful influence and a “source of danger”. Thus the society is very split between the men and the women, each of whom have their own specific initiation ceremonies that the youth must undergo in order to become adults within the tribe. The male initiation ceremony is known as the Haroli bachelor cult. The initiation is led by a cult leader known as a daloali who is looked up to because of his celibacy through ability to resist women’s evil tactics. The young men of the tribe join the cult for two to three years, a time in which they are segregated from the rest of the village in order to not communicate with women and married men. It is through the Haroli cult that the Huli Wigmen gains their notoriety. Possibly the most recognizable part of Huli culture are the extremely tediously constructed wigs and facial decoration in which the men of the Haroli don during celebrations. The wig making process is an extremely important process for the males of the Huli. Each member of the cult must construct their own wig and it is part of the culture to individualize and create an identity through ones appearance of ostentatious wigs and face paint. “Freedom of expression is an essential part of Huli culture, and accounts for the wide variety of decoration that is to be found.” The Huli men are the fiercest most aggressive wars on all of Papua New Guinea yet they take great pride in their appearance and decorative skills. They build their wigs with human hair, sometimes over the span of years. These time consuming projects are a major part of a young huli boys life, enough so that there are actually wig schools in which the young boys learn the ways of their wig wearing society. In this school they learn such things such as spiritually cleansing themselves of their mothers blood in order to achieve the best hair, as well as sprinkling magic water on their wigs to keep the hair pristine. The men of the Haroli bachelor cult wear their wigs at all time during their time at wig school and during the years of their initiation. There is an addition to the wig society once the boys come of age, there is another type of wig, and even more intricately designed for large ceremonies. These wigs are used for dancing instead of the regular wigs, which are worn in everyday life. It is through the celebratory wigs in which the Huli become very creative and attempt to form an identity through their wig construction. These wigs are constructed of human hair, feathers of birds such as the bird of paradise and parrots, snake skin, opossum fur, and are often colored with dyes and clay. The Huli culture is one of great history and tradition, and the men of the society express this tradition through the construction and care of wigs. They use these wigs in every day life as well as ceremonial purposes. The Huli Wigmen are internationally known because of the cultural phenomenon that is the key stone to the male dominant culture.



Sources: http://www.gabelomas.org/huli/htms/huli1c.htm

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This is a video of the Huli Wigmen tribal warriors purifying their hair: http://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/368776/huli-wigmen.html