Taiwan Hairstyles: A Social Ruler from Hair Bans to Memes

30-second overview: In 1969, the Republic of China's Ministry of Education stipulated that male secondary school students should "principally keep buzz cuts." In 2005, Minister Du Zhengsheng announced the complete lifting of the hair ban after protests by four hundred students — in less than two decades, the crowns of Taiwanese men went from uniform discipline to a meme battlefield. The A-Zhi Cut went viral on social media, the "8+9" label is everywhere, and hairstyles have never been just hairstyles — they are the most visible ruler of social change.

In Taiwan, hairstyles are an expression of personal style and, more importantly, a mirror reflecting social change and cultural flows. From traditional barbershops to modern design salons, the landscape atop Taiwanese heads has undergone a journey from authoritarian discipline to pluralistic freedom¹.

The Buzz-Cut Era: Hair Ban Memory from Japanese Rule to Lifting of Martial Law

Before the Japanese colonial period, Taiwanese men mostly relied on street-side "剃頭擔子" (portable barber stands) for haircuts. The Japanese colonial period introduced modern barbering concepts and equipment, and the Western-style slicked-back hair (油頭) became a symbol of the gentry and fashion at the time².

But what truly shaped the hairstyles of generations of Taiwanese was the martial law period after the Nationalist government's arrival in Taiwan. In the 1950s, the Ministry of Education required male secondary school students to shave buzz cuts and female students to keep short hair to "promote cleanliness and austerity." On June 28, 1969, this regulation was formally codified into law: male students were to "principally keep buzz cuts," and female students were not permitted to perm their hair, with length not exceeding the hairline at the back of the neck³. After a 1978 revision, the maximum hair length for male students was set at three centimeters — thinner than a ten-dollar coin.

This bodily discipline continued until after the lifting of martial law in 1987. On January 20 of that year, the Ministry of Education announced the nationwide lifting of the hair ban, delegating the matter to individual schools⁴. However, most schools continued to enforce restrictive regulations. The true turning point would not arrive for another twenty-four years.

In July 2005, more than four hundred students protested in front of the Ministry of Education over school regulations governing hair. Minister Du Zhengsheng, in his response, uttered a line that would be widely quoted:

"Schools really shouldn't have to manage students' hair! Hairstyle doesn't necessarily represent academic performance." He went further: "Can hairstyle represent whether someone is a good person or a bad person?"⁵

On August 9 of the same year, the Ministry of Education issued Letter No. 0940108865, explicitly stating that "students' personal hairstyles fall within the scope of basic human rights, and school regulations may not incorporate hairstyle management into student guidance and discipline"⁶.

📝 Curator's Note

The common narrative is that "the hair ban was lifted in 2005, and students won." But this account overlooks a deeper context: it was how a state used the smallest measure — three centimeters of hair length — to reach the crown of every teenager, teaching them the word "discipline" before they ever learned to question. What truly changed in 2005 was the underlying logic: from "the state can govern what's on your head" to "hairstyle is a basic human right."

However, even after the Ministry of Education announced the complete lifting of the hair ban in 2005, implementation fell short. A 2019 survey by the Humanistic Education Foundation found that 77.5% of junior high school students still reported school-imposed hairstyle restrictions⁷. The shadow of the hair ban, like the outline of certain hairstyles, did not disappear so easily.

The A-Zhi Cut: A Social Portrait of a Meme Hairstyle

If the buzz cut was a product of the hair-ban era, then the "A-Zhi Cut" (阿志頭), which went viral on the internet in recent years, is proof of the power of memes in the age of freedom.

Visual Characteristics: From Edgar Cut to the Bowl Cut

The A-Zhi Cut is technically a variant of the "Edgar cut" — a hairstyle popular in American Latino communities, sharing similar characteristics with the Taiwanese A-Zhi Cut⁸. Its core visual markers are unmistakable:

• High fade on sides and back: Clippers shave the sides and back of the head down to nearly skin level, creating a clean, angular silhouette
• Extremely neat horizontal bangs: The top retains a thick layer of hair; the bangs are grown long and deliberately swept forward, trimmed into a perfectly straight horizontal line or slight arc, resembling a precise bowl placed over the head from a distance
• Upward flip at the front: The very front of the bangs is styled to flip upward, forming a highly recognizable visual anchor

Some Japanese residents in Taiwan, upon seeing this hairstyle, were surprised by how much it resembled an anime character; others thought it looked like Takenori Akagi's hairstyle from Slam Dunk⁹.

"A-Zhi from the Next Class": How a Meme Image Named a Hairstyle

The name "A-Zhi Cut" originated from a widely circulated meme image on the Taiwanese internet — "隔壁班的阿志" (A-Zhi from the Next Class).

The story began when a sixteen-year-old high school girl shared on social media her crush on a boy from the next class, describing him as "super handsome." The image was then transformed into a Chihuahua with a slightly disdainful expression, photoshopped with thick, straight bangs. The stark contrast sent the internet into hysterics, and this type of hairstyle gradually became known as the "A-Zhi Cut"¹⁰.

The meme went viral on platforms such as PTT and Dcard. Netizens began jokingly referring to any hairstyle with similar features as the "A-Zhi Cut" — whether it was genuinely an Edgar cut, a Caesar cut, or simply a bad haircut.

The 8+9 Hairstyle: Labels, Bias, and Backlash

In Taiwanese social perception, the A-Zhi Cut is almost automatically linked to "8+9."

The term "8+9" derives from the Taiwanese Hokkien pronunciation of "八家將" (pat-ka-chiòng), a traditional temple procession troupe. As some 八家將 organizations became associated with gangster elements, the term gradually shifted from a traditional temple parade formation to a derogatory label for young men of lower educational attainment and lower socioeconomic status¹¹.

Online communities have distilled the three external markers of 8+9 into: the A-Zhi Cut, tight-fitting clothing (mostly in black), and large gold chains or prominent-logo accessories. Some plainclothes police officers, upon seeing young men with A-Zhi Cuts, instinctively assume them to be fraud ring couriers¹².

But the power of this labeling is double-edged. For some young people, the A-Zhi Cut is easy to maintain, affordable (achievable at a budget barbershop for around NT$100), and carries a sense of "brotherhood" as an in-group identifier. In the eyes of most netizens, it is treated more as a joke or an aesthetic tease, becoming a meme language that transcends social class.

✦ "Isn't getting this hairstyle basically broadcasting that you're a +9?" — A question that sparked over a hundred replies on PTT's Gossiping board, to which the near-definitive self-deprecating answer was: "Because it's cheap, easy to maintain, and comfortable under a helmet."¹³

The popularity of the A-Zhi Cut proves that in the internet age, a hairstyle can transcend the purely aesthetic and evolve into a complex vessel carrying social class, subcultural identity, and internet humor.

The Paradox of Ugly vs. Practical: Why Does It Persist?

Taiwanese netizens are sharply divided on the A-Zhi Cut. Critics call it ugly, tacky, and an aesthetic regression; supporters emphasize its practicality — easy to manage, no blow-dryer needed, and well-suited for helmet-wearing workers (such as food delivery riders)¹⁴.

This contradiction is precisely a microcosm of Taiwanese hairstyle culture: after the hair ban was lifted and choices opened up, "ugly but practical" and "pretty but impractical" both earned the right to exist. Everyone gets to decide how their hair looks — including deciding that it looks bad.

Perhaps this is the true significance of the 2005 lifting of the hair ban: giving imperfect hair the right to exist.

From Postwar to the Present: Pluralistic Development After the Ban

After the hair ban was fully lifted in 2005, Taiwanese hairstyles entered an era of pluralistic development. Influenced by Hong Kong dramas, Japanese dramas, and the Korean Wave, styles such as the undercut (sides faded high, length retained on top) and the Korean-style parted look entered the mainstream¹⁵.

Popular hairstyles among Taiwanese men today include:

• Undercut (high fade): The sides and back are shaved short while the top retains length — clean, sharp, and easy to maintain
• Korean-style parted look: Influenced by Korean idols, emphasizing the flow and volume of the bangs
• A-Zhi Cut (Edgar cut variant): Born from the viral "A-Zhi from the Next Class" meme, carrying the 8+9 social label

What these hairstyles reflect is a society that has moved from discipline to freedom — everyone has the right to decide how their hair looks, including deciding that it looks bad.

The Evolution of Barbering Spaces: From Portable Stands to Design Salons

In Taiwan, barbering options are highly diverse, reflecting a market that serves different demographics and needs:

• Traditional barbershops: Commonly found in older neighborhoods, offering full-service haircuts, shaving, and ear cleaning. These are important social and grooming spaces for many middle-aged and older men¹⁶. The early street-side "剃頭擔子" (portable barber stands) — where the barber carried a pole with a stove and wash water on one end and tools and a small stool on the other, ready to set up anywhere — is a shared memory of old-school barbering among the older generation¹⁷.

• Budget quick-cut shops: Modeled after Japan's QB House, these are characterized by high efficiency, transparent pricing (typically NT$100–150), and convenient locations (such as shopping malls and train stations), appealing to those who value practicality and speed¹⁸. QB HOUSE, the global quick-cut leader, charges NT$300 in Taiwan (adjusted to NT$400 starting January 2026), with red-yellow-green lights outside indicating wait time, and offers no washing, no perming, no appointments¹⁹.

• Hair design salons: Emphasizing design sensibility and personal style, stylists (designers) tailor cuts to the customer's face shape and needs, and offer advanced services such as coloring and perming. The price gap between high-end designers and budget quick-cuts has widened, and efficient mid-range models have become a new choice for busy consumers²⁰.

The variety of barbering spaces is itself a social microcosm: from the traditional barber roaming the streets with a pole, to the automated quick-cut kiosk beside an MRT station, to the appointment-only hair salon — three models coexist, each serving different generations and needs.

Further Reading

• Taiwanese Motorcycle Culture — The A-Zhi Cut paired with tight clothing and a Yamaha BWS is a classic three-piece combo on Taiwanese streets
• Taiwanese Convenience Store Culture — The site-selection logic of budget quick-cut shops follows the same logic as the dense convenience store network

References