8 Unusual Beauty Standards in Different Countries in Asia

Although in many regions of the world beauty standards are similar and follow everything we see in fashion magazines and catwalks, each country has its own characteristics and traditions. For example, while in many nations people pay large sums of money for perfectly straight teeth, in Japan many women do so to make their teeth look crooked. And this is just one of the many examples that confirm: the concept of beauty is always very relative.

Thinking about it, the incredible.club researched different countries and found some pretty unusual beauty standards (for someone who isn’t from there, obviously) with ancient and very interesting historical roots.

The dream of many women in different countries is to have a thin and perfectly plucked eyebrow. This is not the case in Tajikistan, where women prefer a natural “unibrow”, which for them is a traditional sign of beauty.

Those who are not lucky enough to be born with thick eyebrows often use a green herb known as ‘usma’, the ‘unibrow’ herb. Some even color the space between the eyebrows to create an even stronger effect, a procedure that begins in childhood.

Long necks are the hallmark of the women of the Kayan tribe. There are different explanations for this tradition, but countless people claim that many, many years ago the practice was important to protect women from slavery. According to some, the long neck makes them look like dragons, important figures in local folklore.

Girls start wearing these bronze rings at age 5. With the passage of time and the progressive elongation of the neck, they gain more and more of these metal hoops.

In Bali, teeth sharpening is a very traditional ritual. This procedure is mostly done by teenagers to ‘ward off evil spirits’ and filed teeth are a sign of maturity. After the procedure, teenagers are considered ready for marriage.

The procedure is not very complicated and although it has lost popularity, it is still performed by many people in Bali or by people who are from there and live in other regions.

In 2015, Indian man Shridhar Chillal entered the Guinness World Record as the person with the longest fingernails in the world. In his case, the record set is in his fingernails, unlike what we see in many Indian women, who value toenails a lot. And besides the size, there is a great concern with the colors of the nail polishes.

South Korea has the highest number of cosmetic procedures per inhabitant in the world. Facial contouring is in the top 3 of the list of most popular plastic surgeries in the country. Despite the risks involved in achieving a heart-shaped face, women undergo cheekbone reduction, V-line surgery (performed on the V-line of the face), and jaw correction.

While in other parts of the world people spend a lot of money to straighten their teeth, in Japan the trend seems to be going in the opposite direction. In the land of the rising sun, women pay to bend them. The trend, called yaeba (or “double tooth”, in free translation), consists of bending teeth from small temporary prostheses to reproduce the effect of a crooked arch.

They say that crooked teeth make women look younger, which is why the trend is increasingly popular among Japanese women.

‘Ohaguro’ is the Japanese custom of dyeing teeth black with an iron-based liquid. Although this practice is no longer used today, it is important to note that black teeth were considered a sign of beauty for some time in Japanese history. ‘Ohaguro’ was a status symbol, worn mainly by women, to show off beauty and their willingness to marry.

Due to the enormous popularity of rhinoplasty, Iran has come to be called the “world capital of nose surgery”. One explanation for this lies in the fact that women cover their bodies and heads, making them obsessed with the appearance of their faces.

The bandage used on the nose after surgery even has a special name: “bandage of honor”. That is, women do not try to hide it; quite the contrary, they show it off with pride to state that they have recently had a rhinoplasty. Some keep using them even after a long time, as a symbol of wealth, showing that they can afford a surgery like this.

Which of these beauty standards impressed you the most? Do you know other traditions of this type in other countries?