Barber is a person who uses to cut any type of hair, give shaves, and trim beards. In earlier times, barbers also performed head massage, body massage including surgery and dentistry. With the development of safety razors and the increasing rarity of beards the barbers are restricted to hair cutting only. In the countries like India, Pakistan and some gulf countries many barbers still practice massage as an additional service. Most of the countries in the world has restricted the use of surgery to the qualified surgeons only.



In American and Commonwealth countries barbers specialize in the simple cutting of men's hair only. They do not offer any significant styling or 'fancy' haircuts when compared to hairdressers working in hair salons. Lately, larger numbers of women have been going to a barber for their haircuts, especially when they choose to have their hair cut very short or shaved. Some Master Barbers modify themselves as hairdressers and work in a salon. There is a common disbelief that barbers do not perform any service other than hair cutting but this is untrue.

The trade of barber is ancient one. Razors have been found among relics of the Bronze Age in Egypt, and barbering is mentioned in the Bible by Ezekiel who said "Now, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber's razor to shave your head and your beard. (NIV)" Indian culture had given a special status to the barbers. According to the Hindu rituals barbers have a special place right from the birth of a child till the death. Any ritual is not complete without the presence of a barber. The profession of barber was introduced to Rome from the Greeks and barber shops quickly became very popular centers for daily news and gossip. The barbers of former times in the Middle East and Gulf countries were also surgeons and dentists. As well as haircutting, hairdressing and shaving, barbers performed surgery of wounds, blood-letting, cupping and leeching, enemas, and the extraction of teeth, and maalish.

The days are gone when the barber would cut your hair or just run the razor right across your head or face. In the modern time fashion statements are changing regularly and men are getting bolder and smarter with their haircuts. They too have realized the importance of looking good. And with guys growing their hair, hairstyles are now playing an important role in a man's life.

At present short hair is very common among the population, long hair is somewhat rare. The medium length of hair that is mostly preferred option world over. Rock stars or their fans, students, journalists, politicians or any guy with fondness for their hair are very selective about their hair when it comes to maintenance and hair care. Style of haircut cannot be defined in particular. They often vary from person to person depending on hair texture, face cut and many other factors.

Womens haircuts are also getting popular world over, the short hair provides distinct advantages over their longer counterparts. Longer hair also needed cutting but usually they are complicated ones. Generally men's haircuts are not as complicated as that of the women. For straight hair it's not much of a hassle but for hair with a bit of fizz it can get very difficult. In cases like that hair styling is required. If the texture of hair is rough and fizzy then it has to be conditioned beforehand to experiment with some of the hair styles. With the changing times the profession of barber has seen a lot of changes and that are bound to change further with the time to come.