Did Pocahontas wear a band and a feather on her head?

Answer 1

It is wrong to generalise about native Americans as if they were all exactly the same, but the idea of native Americans wearing headbands is generally pure fiction.

One of the major culprits is the film industry of the USA, which for a very long time refused to employ genuine natives to play the role of "Indians", instead using white Americans or Mexicans kitted out with far-from-realistic war paint and black wigs. These wigs needed to be kept on and the wardrobe departments came up with headbands; sadly this fantasy became ingrained in the white American idea of how a native should look.

Today even genuine native Americans have taken to wearing headbands, pandering to this false image.

The vast majority of native American women never wore headbands before the 1930s, when tourists began to expect such things. Some wore feathers at certain times, but not in a headband; some ceremonies and religious gatherings saw native women adopt unusual face paint, costume items and feathers that would not have been worn ordinarily.

By far the most common hair style for women and girls was to wear their hair very long and entirely loose, with the centre parting painted red for adults. The second most common style was two braids hanging down in front of the shoulders.