10 of the world's BIGGEST hair records

Guinness World Records 2020 features a whole chapter about those people who have record-breaking characteristics, whether that's down to their height, age or a particular body part.

Included in this is a section dedicated to those who have set records with their hair 💇, so let's take a look at their achievements! 😵

Longest hair (female)

Xie Qiuping (China) achieved the longest hair in the world on a female with a length of 5.62 m (18 ft 5 in), as verified on 8 May 2004. That's almost as tall as an adult male 🦒! She started growing her hair in 1973, when she was just 13 years old. "It's no trouble at all, I’m used to it," she told GWR. "But you need patience and you need to hold yourself straight when you have hair like this."

Tallest Mohawk spike

Do your friends ever get this haircut in school? Fashion designer Kazuhiro Watanabe (Japan) spent more than 15 years growing his Mohawk spike to a length of 1.23 m (4 ft), as verified at Dwango Hanzomon Studio in Tokyo, Japan, on 23 April 2014. Sculpting the magnificent Mohican took a team of stylists two hours and required three cans of hairspray and a jar of gel. WOW! 😯

Most wins at the World Beard and Moustache Championships

Karl-Heinz Hille (Germany) won nine titles at the World Beard and Moustache Championships between 1999 and 2013. 👨 He was a victor in the Imperial Partial Beard category seven times and was crowned overall champion in 1999 and 2003. To qualify for the Imperial Partial Beard title, hair must be grown only on the cheeks and upper lip.

Longest hair on a teenager

If you start this early enough, you can try to be the record holder! The hair of 16-year-old Nilanshi Patel (India, b. 16 August 2002) had achieved a length of 1.75 m (5 ft 8 in) by 21 November 2018. She has been growing her hair since the age of six, and calls it her "lucky charm". It is washed once a week – drying takes half an hour, combing twice that. Nilanshi usually wears her hair in a braid, but ties it in a bun to play table tennis. 👱‍♀️💇

Nilanshi, who has the nickname Rapunzel, has been growing her hair since she was six years old. "I got my hair cut, a really bad haircut. So, then I decided that I won’t cut my hair. I decided that when I was six and have not cut it since," she explained.ld

Widest wig

On 27 January 2017, Hollywood star Drew Barrymore (USA) appeared on the set of The Tonight Show in New York City, USA, wearing a humongous hairpiece measuring 2.23 m (7 ft 4 in) wide. The wig was made by Kelly Hanson and Randy Carfagno Productions (both USA). It took four people to place it on the actress.

Youngest female with a full beard

Harnaam Kaur (UK, b. 29 November 1990) was 24 years 282 days old when her full beard 🧔 – facial hair covering sideburns, the chin, part of the cheeks and hair above the upper lip – was confirmed on 7 September 2015. Her facial hair is caused by a hormonal imbalance owing to polycystic ovary syndrome. Now a freelance model and motivational speaker, Harnaam says she is driven "to show the world what true beauty is and how we can all be our own selves".

Longest moustache ever

A HUGE ‘tache belonging to Ram Singh Chauhan (India) was measured at 4.29 m (14 ft) on the set of Lo Show dei Record in Rome, Italy, on 4 March 2010. Ram started growing his facial hair in 1970 and groomed his whiskers daily with coconut and mustard oils. His moustache even won him a cameo role in the James Bond film Octopussy (UK/USA, 1983).

Highest hairstyle

This hair is SOOO tall! A tower of real and fake hair reaching 2.66 m (8 ft 8 in) was created at an event organized by KLIPP unser Frisör (Austria) in Wels, Austria, on 21 June 2009. Two stylists needed two days – and 22 m (72 ft 2 in) of artificial hair – to beat the record.

Largest hairy family

Jesús "Chuy" Fajardo Aceves and Luisa Lilia De Lira Aceves (both Mexico) are two members of a family of 19, spanning five generations, who all have congenital generalized hypertrichosis. This rare condition is characterized by excessive facial and torso hair. The women are covered with a light-to-medium coat of hair while the men have thick hair on approximately 98% of their body, apart from their palms and soles.

Largest afro (female)

On 31 March 2012, the afro belonging to Aevin Dugas (USA) was measured at 16 cm (6.3 in) high from the crown of the head, with a total circumference of 1.39 m (4 ft 7 in). Aevin trimmed her afro two or three times a year, and used up to five conditioners at once when washing it.

The largest afro was 25.4 cm (10 in) high and had a circumference of 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in). Its owner, Tyler Wright (USA), was just 12 years old when his hair was measured on 19 Jun 2015.

Longest beard on a living male

As of 8 Sep 2011, the beard of Sarwan Singh (Canada) reached a length of 2.49 m (8 ft 2 in). Sarwan is the leader of a congregation of the Guru Nanak Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.

The longest beard ever was 5.33 m (17 ft 6 in) and belonged to Hans N Langseth (Norway). It was measured upon his death in 1927.