The World's First Beauty Parlor

by Meam Wye on October 25, 2009

The world's first beauty parlor/cosmetology school was opened by Ziryab in the 9th century in Cordoba, the capital of spain, during the medieval islamic civilization . Cordoba, along with Baghdad, was considered as one of  the major centres of intellectual and cultural activities during middle ages.

Ziryab was born in baghdad, Iraq in 787 AD and was of African descent. His real name was Abu Al-Hasan Ali Ibn Nafi and was lovingly called Ziryab, which means 'Black Bird' in Arabic, due to his extremely melodious voice, dark skin and pleasant speech. Ziryab arrived in Spain in 822AD and joined the court of Cordoba at a magnificent monthly salary of 200 gold dinars, annual bonuses amounting to 2500 gold dinars  and many other benefits.

Ziryab, in addition to being a great musician [details on his musical chievements later], was a trendsetter and a fashion icon for the upper class of the Cordoba. He introduced new styles of seasonal clothing and personal grooming and revolutionized the art of dining [details in another post]. According to Louie Provencal, the famous historian of Spanish civilization:

 “ [Ziryab ] was a genius and his influence in Spanish society of the time not only encompassed music but also all aspects of society.”

Ziryab opened the world's first beauty parlor/cosmetology school in cordoba in 9th century, for women, where he introduced a new hair style for women that was considered quite daring at that time. The women of spain at that time parted their hair in the middle with ears covered and used to have a long braid at the back. Ziryab's new hair style had hair cut into bangs on the forehead and the length was shorter with ears uncovered. At the parlor, chemical depilatories were used to remove body hairs. He also invented a new type of deodorant that, unlike the previous deodorants, didn't leave stains.

The 16th century historian al-Maqqari described Zaryab in his well-renowned book 'Nafh al-tib' (The Perfumed Breath):

"There never was a man of his profession, either before or since, who was so unanimously loved and admired. Even in the twilight years of the kingdom of Granada, which fell in 1492, poets were still finding in his glory a subject for their songs."

The  famous Spanish composer and guitarist, Paco de Lucía, dedicated his entire album 'Zyryab' (1990) to Ziryab.