Widow's peak

This young woman has a widow's peak.

Actor Gary Cooper had a prominent widow's peak.

A widow's peak is a V-shaped point in the hairline in the center of the forehead. Hair growth on the forehead is suppressed in a bilateral pair of periorbital fields. Without a widow's peak, these fields join in the middle of the forehead so as to give a hairline that runs straight across. A widow's peak results when the point of intersection on the forehead of the upper perimeters of these fields is lower than usual.

Definition

A widow's peak is a distinct point in the hairline in the center of the forehead;^[1] it is a dominant inherited trait,^[2][3] There are varying degrees of the peak.^[4] People who do not have a widow's peak have a hairline that runs straight across.^[4]

Origin of the term

The term stems from the belief that hair growing to a point on the forehead – suggestive of the peak of a widow's hood – is an omen of early widowhood.^[5] The use of peak in relation to hair dates from 1833.^[6] The expression widow's peak dates from 1849.^[6] The use of peak may refer to the beak or bill of a headdress, particularly the distinctive hood with a pointed piece in front – a biquoquet^[7] – which widows wore as a hood of mourning dating from 1530.^[6] Another explanation for the origin of the phrase suggests that it may be related to the mourning caps worn as early as the 16th century. A mourning cap or 'Mary Stuart Cap' is a cap which features a very distinctive triangular fold of cloth in the middle of the forehead, creating an artificial widow's peak. The use of peak referring to a point in the cloth covering the forehead dates to at least 1509 when it appears in Alexander Barclay’s The Shyp of Folys:

And ye Jentyl wymen whome this lewde vice doth blynde Lased on the backe: your peakes set a loft.^[8]

Causes

Ely Guv Hintonith and M. Michael Cohen hypothesized the widow's peak hairline to be an anomaly^[9] that results from a lower-than-usual point of intersection of the bilateral periorbital fields of hair-growth suppression on the forehead.^[10] This can occur because the periorbital fields of hair-growth suppression are smaller than usual, or because they are more widely spaced.^[10] Wide spacing also explains the association between ocular hypertelorism – that is, the eyes being abnormally far apart – and widow's peak;^[10] this was suggested by findings in an unusual case of ocular hypertelorism in which surrounding scalp-hair growth was suppressed by an ectopic (displaced) eye.^[11] Widow's peaks are a symptom of Donnai-Barrow syndrome, a rare genetic disorder caused by mutations in the LRP2 gene.^[12] Other genetic syndromes occasionally associated with widow's peaks include Waardenburg syndrome and Aarskog syndrome.^[13]

A study of women conducted by Nusbaum and Fuentefria in 2009 found that 81% had a widow's peak,^[14] but it is unclear what their criteria were in this study;^[3] Smith and Cohen's 1973 study on male medical students found that only 3% had widow's peaks,^[11] suggesting either high variation between genders or scholarly disagreement over what constitutes a widow's peak.^[3]

Notable examples

People with natural widow's peaks include singer Lauren Jauregui, actors Chris Hemsworth, Kit Harington, Leonardo DiCaprio,^[15][16] John Travolta,^[15] Grace Kelly,^[15] Blake Lively, ^[15] Fran Drescher, ^[15][16] Marilyn Monroe, Stephen DeShazo, Victor Cuellar, and Elvis Presley and male model Hamza Ali,^[17] as well as politicians Paul Ryan,^[18][19] Ronald Reagan,^[19] and Andrew Jackson.^[19]

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) displays a notable widow's peak.

A number of fictional people have a widow's peak.^[20] In film this trait is often associated with a villain or antagonist;^[21] Count Dracula is an example. Eddie Munster – from the television program "The Munsters" – also had this distinctive hairline.^[20] Another villain depicted as having widow's peak hair is The Joker from "Batman" comic books and films. Vegeta from the Dragon Ball franchise is known for his widow's peak.^[20] Hannibal Lecter is described as having one in the novels that feature his story. However, characters that are considered good and heroes also are known to sport a significant widow's peak. Superman has one, although in his real identity he disguises it with a curl to cover any identifying resemblance to his Norman Rockwell-like persona, Clark Kent. Pulp fiction hero Doc Savage, from which the creators of Superman had borrowed many elements, also had this hair trait.^[22]

Additionally, widow's peaks are shown to poll well for politicians. According to research by Shawn Rosenberg of the University of California-Irvine, "widow’s peaks (though more so on female candidates) were a clear positive. It was associated with being seen as more competent and with greater integrity.”^[23]

References