Polish plait

Polish plaits could take various forms, from a ball of hair to a long tail.

These convictions were so widespread and strong that many people lived their whole lives with a Polish plait.

Those rumors were said to have helped eradicate the Polish plait in the region.

The Polish plait usually results from deficient hair care.

The belief probably originated as an explanation to the Polish plait phenomenon, a hair disease.

The Polish plait was quite common in past centuries when hair care was largely neglected.

Polish plait (Plica polonica in Latin) is a formation of hair.

Due to superstitious beliefs, the Polish plait used to be particularly common in Poland (hence its name).

Reference to "Polish plait" and description.

In Western Galicia, it was Professor Józef Dietl who made a particular effort to examine and treat Polish plaits.

The Polish word for the Polish plait, kołtun, is now used figuratively in Poland to denote an uneducated person with an old-fashioned mindset.

It was also believed that casting a magic spell on someone could cause that person to develop a Polish plait, hence also the name "elflock" was used in English.

A huge, 1.5-meter long, preserved Polish plait can be seen in the Museum of the Faculty of Medicine (Medical College, Jagiellonian University) in Kraków.

A Polish plait (Koltun in Polish, meaning "Knot", but often referred to in English as an "Elf-Lock") is a lock of matted hair similar to a dreadlock.

The Polish plait is typically a (sometimes large) head of hair, made of a hard impenetrable mass of keratin fibers permanently cemented together with dried pus, blood, old lice egg-casings and dirt.

He was also known to disapprove of fasting, and when his court doctor "discovered" that the Polish plait is caused by the linum oil, he succeeded in obtaining a papal bull allowing him to eat dairy products during the fastings.