henna

Etymology

The word henna comes from the Arabic حِنَّاء (ALA-LC: ḥinnāʾ; pronounced [ħɪnˈnæːʔ]).

History

The origins of the initial human uses of henna are uncertain; however, there are records that the plant was marketed in Babylonia, and was used in Ancient Egypt on some mummies to dye their hair, skin, nails, or funeral wrappings. It arrived in the Maghreb region during the Punic civilization through Phoenician Diasporas where it was used as a beautification tool. Pliny the Elder wrote about its use in the Roman Empire as a medicine, a perfume, and a dye.

Preparation and application

Body art

Whole, unbroken henna leaves will not stain the skin because the active chemical agent, lawsone, is bound within the plant. However, dried henna leaves will stain the skin if they are mashed into a paste. The lawsone will gradually migrate from the henna paste into the outer layer of the skin and bind to the proteins in it, creating a stain.

Since it is difficult to form intricate patterns from coarsely crushed leaves, henna is commonly traded as a powder made by drying, milling and sifting the leaves. The dry powder is mixed with one of a number of liquids, including water, lemon juice, strong tea, and other ingredients, depending on the tradition. Many artists use sugar or molasses in the paste to improve consistency to keep it stuck to the skin better. The henna mix must rest between one and 48 hours before use in order to release the lawsone from the leaf matter. The timing depends on the crop of henna being used. Essential oils with high levels of monoterpene alcohols, such as tea tree, cajuput, or lavender, will improve skin stain characteristics. Other essential oils, such as eucalyptus and clove, are not used because they can irritate the skin.

The paste can be applied with many traditional and innovative tools, starting with a basic stick or twig. In Morocco, a syringe is common. A plastic cone similar to those used to pipe icing onto cakes is used in India. A light stain may be achieved within minutes, but the longer the paste is left on the skin, the darker and longer lasting the stain will be, so it needs to be left on as long as possible. To prevent it from drying or falling off the skin, the paste is often sealed down by dabbing a sugar/lemon mix over the dried paste or adding some form of sugar to the paste. After some time, the dry paste is simply brushed or scraped away. The paste should be kept on the skin for a minimum of four to six hours, but longer times and even wearing the paste overnight is a common practice. Removal should not be done with water, as water interferes with the oxidation process of stain development. Cooking oil may be used to loosen dry paste.

Henna stains are orange when the paste is first removed but darken over the following three days to a deep reddish brown due to oxidation. Soles and palms have the thickest layer of skin and so take up the most lawsone, and take it to the greatest depth, so that hands and feet will have the darkest and most long-lasting stains. Some also believe that steaming or warming the henna pattern will darken the stain, either during the time the paste is still on the skin or after the paste has been removed. It is debatable whether this adds to the color of the result as well. After the stain reaches its peak color, it holds for a few days, then gradually wears off by way of exfoliation, typically within one to three weeks.

Hair/eyebrow dye

In Ancient Egypt, Ahmose-Henuttamehu (17th Dynasty, 1574 BC) was probably a daughter of Seqenenre Tao and Ahmose Inhapy. Smith reports that the mummy of Henuttamehu's own hair had been dyed a bright red at the sides, probably with henna. In Europe, henna was popular among women connected to the aesthetic movement and the Pre-Raphaelite artists of England in the 1800s. Dante Gabriel Rossetti's wife and muse, Elizabeth Siddal, had naturally bright red hair. Contrary to the cultural tradition in Britain that considered red hair unattractive, the Pre-Raphaelites fetishized red hair. Siddal was portrayed by Rossetti in many paintings that emphasized her flowing red hair. The other Pre-Raphaelites, including Evelyn De Morgan and Frederick Sandys, academic classicists such as Frederic Leighton, and French painters such as Gaston Bussière and the Impressionists, further popularized the association of henna-dyed hair and young bohemian women.

Opera singer Adelina Patti is sometimes credited with popularizing the use of henna in Europe in the late nineteenth century. Parisian courtesan Cora Pearl was often referred to as La Lune Rousse (the red-haired moon) for dyeing her hair red. In her memoirs, she relates an incident when she dyed her pet dog's fur to match her own hair. By the 1950s, Lucille Ball popularized "henna rinse" as her character, Lucy Ricardo, called it on the television show I Love Lucy. It gained popularity among young people in the 1960s through a growing interest in Eastern cultures.

Commercially packaged henna, intended for use as a cosmetic hair dye, originated in ancient Egypt and the ancient Near East and is now popular in many countries in South Asia, Europe, Australia, and North America. The color that results from dyeing with henna depends on the original color of the hair, as well as the quality of the henna, and can range from orange to auburn to burgundy. Henna can be mixed with other natural hair dyes, including Cassia obovata for lighter shades of red or even blond and indigo to achieve brown and black shades. Some products sold as "henna" include these other natural dyes. Others may include metal salts that can interact with other chemical treatments, oils and waxes that may inhibit the dye, or dyes which may be allergens.

Apart from its use as a hair dye, henna has recently been used as a temporal substitute to eyebrow pencil or even as eyebrow embroidery.

Body art

Henna has been used to adorn young women's bodies as part of social and holiday celebrations since the late Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean. The earliest text mentioning henna in the context of marriage and fertility celebrations comes from the Ugaritic legend of Baal and Anath, which has references to women marking themselves with henna in preparation to meet their husbands, and Anath adorning herself with henna to celebrate a victory over the enemies of Baal.

Wall paintings excavated at Akrotiri (dating before the eruption of Thera in 1680 BC) show women with markings consistent with henna on their nails, palms and soles, in a tableau consistent with the henna bridal description from Ugarit. Many statuettes of young women dating between 1500 and 500 BC along the Mediterranean coastline have raised hands with markings consistent with henna. This early connection between young, fertile women and henna seems to be the origin of the Night of the Henna, which is now celebrated in all the Middle East.

The Night of the Henna was celebrated by most groups in the areas where henna grew naturally: Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus among others, all celebrated marriages and weddings by adorning the bride, and often the groom, with henna.

Across the henna-growing region, Purim, Eid, Diwali, Karva Chauth, Passover, Mawlid, and most saints' days were celebrated with some henna. Favourite horses, donkeys, and salukis had their hooves, paws, and tails hennaed. Battle victories, births, circumcision, birthdays, Zār, as well as weddings, usually included some henna as part of the celebration. Bridal henna nights remain an important custom in many of these areas, particularly among traditional families.

Henna was regarded as having Barakah ("blessings"), and was applied for luck as well as joy and beauty. Brides typically had the most henna and the most complex patterns to support their greatest joy and wishes for luck. Some bridal traditions were very complex, such as those in Yemen, where the Jewish bridal henna process took four or five days to complete, with multiple applications and resist work. Specific henna designs may also vary by region. For example, geometric shapes such as triangles and diamonds characteristic of traditional Moroccan beading are represented in Moroccan henna designs.

Regions

In Algeria, brides receive gifts of jewellery and have henna painted on their hands before their weddings. The bride and the groom seal their vows in front of their guests by getting a circle-shaped henna applied on the palm of their hands. Usually, the grandmothers or mothers of the groom and bride apply this henna, and a small decorative pillow with a satin ribbon is attached to their hands for a few hours.

In Afghanistan, henna is also known as "kheena". Afghan tradition holds that henna brings good luck and happiness. It is used by both men and women on many occasions such as wedding nights, Nawroz, Eidul fitr, Eidul Adha, Shabe-e Barat, and circumcision celebrations.

Henna traditions were widespread in both eastern and western Armenia, however, the customs differ based on region. The henna night, called hina gisher or khennagedje in Armenian, has always been deemed an essential part of Armenian marriage traditions. In Kesaria, henna parties were organized by the bride’s female friends and family on the Friday before her wedding. Traditional Armenian henna was usually applied on the fingertips, however young women also received designs on their hands. In Nirzeh, elderly women applied henna to young girls and boys. Furthermore, in the Armenian communities of Sis, both the groom and the bride had henna nights, where the groom would get his hair cut and his friends bid for the honor of drawing the cross with henna on the hands of the groom and godfather. The tradition of hinadreq, painting the palms of a bride-to-be, is still practiced in parts of Armenia today as a sign of fertility and happiness in married life.

In Bangladesh, women use mehndi on hands on occasions like weddings and engagements as well as during Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha and other events. In wedding ceremonies, the Mehndi ceremony has traditionally been separated into two events: one organized by the bride's family and one by the groom's family. These two events are solely dedicated for adorning the bride and groom in Mehndi and is known as a 'Mehndi Shondha' meaning the Evening of Mehndi.

Some brides tend to go for Alta. Sometimes, Hindu women also apply Mehendi instead (or along with) Alta on their feet during the Bodhu Boron ceremony.

In an attempt to ritually clean a bride before her wedding day, Bulgarian Romani decorate the bride with a blot of henna. This blot symbolizes the drop of blood on the couples' sheets after consummating the marriage and breaking the female's hymen. The tradition also holds that the longer the henna lasts, the longer the husband will love his new bride.

Health effects

Henna is known to be dangerous to people with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency (G6PD deficiency), which is more common in males than females. Infants and children of particular ethnic groups, mainly from the Middle East and North Africa, are especially vulnerable.

Though user accounts cite few other negative effects of natural henna paste, save for occasional mild allergic reactions (often associated with lemon juice or essential oils in a paste and not the henna itself), pre-mixed commercial henna body art pastes may have undisclosed ingredients added to darken stain or to alter the stain color. The health risks involved in pre-mixed paste can be significant. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does consider these risks to be adulterants and therefore illegal for use on skin. Some commercial pastes have been noted to include: p-Phenylenediamine, sodium picramate, amaranth (red dye #2 banned in the US in 1976), silver nitrate, carmine, pyrogallol, disperse orange dye, and chromium. These have been found to cause allergic reactions, chronic inflammatory reactions, or late-onset allergic reactions to hairdressing products and textile dyes.

The U.S. FDA has not approved henna for direct application to the skin. It is, however, grandfathered in as a hair dye and can only be imported for that purpose. Henna imported into the U.S. that appears to be for use as body art is subject to seizure, but prosecution is rare. Commercial henna products that are adulterated often claim to be 100% natural on product packaging in order to pass import regulations in other countries.

Black henna

Natural henna produces a rich red-brown stain, which can darken in the days after it is first applied and last for several weeks. It is sometimes referred to as "red henna" to differentiate it from products sold as "black henna" or "neutral henna," which may not actually contain henna, but are instead made from other plants or dyes.

Black henna powder may be derived from indigo (from the plant Indigofera tinctoria). It may also contain unlisted dyes and chemicals such as para-phenylenediamine (PPD), which can stain skin black quickly, but can cause severe allergic reactions and permanent scarring if left on for more than 2–3 days. The FDA specifically forbids PPD to be used for this purpose and may prosecute those who produce black henna. Artists who injure clients with black henna in the U.S. may be sued for damages. The name arose from imports of plant-based hair dyes into the West in the late 19th century. Partly fermented, dried indigo was called black henna because it could be used in combination with henna to dye hair black. This gave rise to the belief that there was such a thing as black henna which could dye skin black. Indigo will not dye skin black. Pictures of indigenous people with black body art (either alkalized henna or from some other source) also fed the belief that there was such a thing as black henna.

A neutral henna does not change the colour of hair. This is not henna powder; it is usually the powder of the plant Senna italica (often referred to by the synonym Cassia obovata) or closely related Cassia and Senna species.

para-phenylenediamine

In the 1990s, henna artists in Africa, India, Bali, the Arabian Peninsula and the West began to experiment with PPD-based black hair dye, applying it as a thick paste as they would apply henna, in an effort to find something that would quickly make jet-black temporary body art. PPD can cause severe allergic reactions, with blistering, intense itching, permanent scarring, and permanent chemical sensitivities. Estimates of allergic reactions range between 3% and 15%. Henna does not cause these injuries. Black henna made with PPD can cause lifelong sensitization to coal tar derivatives while black henna made with gasoline, kerosene, lighter fluid, paint thinner, and benzene has been linked to adult acute leukemia.

The most frequent serious health consequence of having a black henna temporary tattoo is sensitization to hair dye and related chemicals. If a person has had a black henna tattoo and later dyes their hair with chemical hair dye, the allergic reaction may be life-threatening and require hospitalization. Because of the frequency of PPD allergic reactions, chemical hair dye products now post warnings on the labels: "Temporary black henna tattoos may increase your risk of allergy. Do not colour your hair if: ... – you have experienced a reaction to a temporary black henna tattoo in the past."

PPD is illegal for use on skin in Western countries, though enforcement is difficult. Physicians have urged governments to legislate against black henna because of the frequency and severity of injuries, especially to children. To assist the prosecution of vendors, government agencies encourage citizens to report injuries and illegal use of PPD black henna. When used in hair dye, the PPD amount must be below 6%, and application instructions warn that the dye must not touch the scalp and must be quickly rinsed away. Black henna pastes have PPD percentages from 10% to 80%, and are left on the skin for half an hour.

PPD black henna use is widespread, particularly in tourist areas. Because the blistering reaction appears 3 to 12 days after the application, most tourists have left and do not return to show how much damage the artist has done. This permits the artists to continue injuring others, unaware they are causing severe injuries. The high-profit margins of black henna and the demand for body art that emulates "tribal tattoos" further encourage artists to deny the dangers.