There is much evidence that beauty standards, contrary to popular belief, are not static and pre-determined. They change dramatically across time, place, and culture.The following resource was curated from this textbook by Max Mirho.If you’re interested in learning more about the topic, there’s nothing I recommend more than that book.Feel free to email me if you have questions! :)
Recent and current beauty standards have been largely homogenized, thanks to the internet, globalization, and worldwide cultural blending.
But there is still much diversity, depending on where and who you are.
Asia
South Korea prefers feminine or "cute" men, and they have the highest rate of plastic surgery per capita.
In Japan there's a focus on youth for women, and both countries are a huge market for men's cosmetics.
Indonesia's cultural beauty standards are derived from its history of colonization by Europe and Asia. Formal wear is a mix of European suits, and Japanese kimonos, but light skin is often desired in women.
China's beauty standards have special focus on height. Job applications routinely specify minimum height requirements for both men and women. Many universities and professional schools do the same.
In India and other parts of South Asia, thick, dark, shiny hair is the standard for women. Perfume and jewelry are important for both men and women, and lighter skin is often considered most beautiful.
Iran has a strict dress code for women that has often appeared in the news. Outside of clothing, full lips and a curvy figure are desired in women, but having a small, pointed nose is especially prized.
Americas
In Venezuela, beauty is a huge industry. Miss Venezuela has won the most world beauty pageants, many Venezuelans will make weekly trips to hair salons, and beauty school is common for young kids.
Brazil has a reputation for beauty. There was a traditional preference for small breasts that has started to lose out to for North American standards. However, Brazil still highly prizes a thicker bottom / legs.
Argentina's beauty norms are largely tied to a European appearance, with a focus on hard work. From 1930 to 1970, the nation's beauty pageants crowned the "prettiest little worker."
USA -- Since the post-war era - exemplified by Marilyn Monroe - beauty standards in the USA have revolved around hourglass curves and large breasts.
Europe and Africa
Italy -- in rural provinces, until recently, plumpness was considered sexual, happy, and attractive for women. Generally the beauty standard is thin now, but it revolves closely around the health of the individual.
The Mende people of Sierra Leone are attracted to fresh and sweet breath. In general, West African beauty standards align with ideals of good behavior. The word "beauty" is often synonymous with "good."
In Ethiopia, the Mursi people are one of the few groups still practicing lip plates, and men of the Bodi tribe compete to see who can become the fattest by drinking a mixture of cow's blood and milk.
Most in this list are in Europe, and show how quickly standards have evolved, even in the past.
Many beauty standards for women evolved based on what art and aristocrats romanticized.
The West and Pacific Islands
In the 1920's in the USA and other Western cultures, the female beauty standard was more "boyish" - desiring smaller breasts. During this period, breast-binding was common with "flappers."
In Fiji in 1989, there was a great preference for larger body size - it was considered healthy and beautiful. In 1998, likely due to the introduction of television, 15% of young girls had developed eating disorders.
Europe
In the 1700s in France, large, pink lips were the focus of many paintings of aristocratic beauties. During the reign of Louis XIV, women first began leavings their petticoats undone to show cleavage.
In the British Isles, as the Crusades started (~1100 CE), beauty and emotion became more open in society. Women began removing their eyebrows, and plucking their hairline back to highlight a high, elegant forehead.
The "Windsor Beauties" defined the beauty standards of England under Charles II of England's rule (1660s). They were court women considered the most beautiful, and they were often Charles's mistresses.
Beauty spots came into fashion in 17th century England, and facial patches were often worn.
The Romantic era (~1800 - 1890) inspired young women to drip belladonna - a poison - into their eyes to dilate their pupils.
In the 1500s and 1600s in Northern, medieval Europe, early Renaissance artists painted their women subjects with small, barely visible lips - and later focused on a deep "dip" in the upper lip.
Fun Facts
16th century women in Venice first started wearing high platform shoes, in part to elevate them above the flooded ground. Upper class men during the Renaissance wore stacked heel shoes as a sign of status.
A 15th century Hungarian countess named Elizabeth Bathory de Esced allegedly killed over 600 peasant girls and bathed in their blood to combat signs of aging in her skin. She is known as the Blood Countess.
The "supermodel" phenomenon is relatively new. Its start is traced back to the 1990s, when British magazine Vogue identified five models as "Top Models in the World." Models have defined standards since.
Many items in this list are more historical facts about beauty practices and early cosmetics, but some directly discuss standards as well.
Americas
The Ancient Mayans believed crossed eyes were beautiful, and parents often hung beads between the eyes of babies to make them permanently cross eyed. This practice was in honor of the god of the sun.
Jewelry has been around a long time. In Ancient Chile of the El Molle period, archeologists found remains that suggest that the right to wear jewelry was connected to warfare and masculinity.
Europe and Africa
For women in Ancient Greece, a full figure was preferred, and they would often expose their breasts in everyday clothes. Golden skin with red hair was the ideal, and it was common to shave the side of one's head.
In Ancient Egypt, early cosmetics, eyeliner, and perfumes were used often. The ideal body shape was slim, with narrow hips, and some men would remove their facial hair and wear wigs and fake beards.
Asia
In Ancient Babylon, men manicured and colored their nails. The darker nail colors were reserved for the elite, and many poorer individuals settled for a dark green. In this way, nail color was a sign of status.
In Ancient India, the ideal for a woman was to have lips in the shape of a rosebud, to emulate the Hindi goddess of romance. This shape is still preferred in India, as seen in a number of popular Bollywood stars.
Ancient China had a unique and specific definition of female beauty that centered on small, delicate feet. This led to the practice of foot-binding, which lasted from the Shang Dynasty to 1928.
Evolutionary psychology believes there are physical traits that all or most people will find attractive, simply because of their biological programming as humans.However, as you've seen throughout this site, there isn't much evidence to support that theory, and beauty around the world seems to be more derived from cultural and social norms and priorities.Across the world, across cultures, and across time there are only a few traits that seem to be considered universally attractive, because of biological programming or otherwise.The first is cleanliness. Being clean and taking care of yourself is commonly held as attractive around the world.The second is status. When wealth or power is consistently expressed by a physical characteristic within a culture, it becomes bound up in sexual attraction.The last is fitting in with the "average." The average in studies is consistently rated as more attractive than any exaggerated features, and fitting the average characteristics of the culture you live in is often more attractive than being seen as an "other."I hope you enjoyed learning about this topic as much as I did compiling the data. Thanks for visiting and reading! :)The one and only source for all this information was "Beauty around the World: A Cultural Encyclopedia" by Erin Kenny and Elizabeth Gackstetter Nichols