Top-knot


 * This article is about the hairstyle popular in the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom. For the similar hairstyle used in the Water Tribes, see warrior's wolf tail.



A top-knot is a regular hairstyle worn by people in the World of Avatar, more commonly by those in the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation.

Earth Kingdom
Many Earth Kingdom citizens wear top-knots, most commonly in the countryside or small towns. In Omashu, they wear small green turbans, while in Ba Sing Se, they generally don queues. Top-knots in the Earth Kingdom are generally much larger than those worn in the Fire Nation, and they are typically worn with an unadorned green metal ring. The exceptions are the generals of the Earth Kingdom, who wear highly decorated clothing to show their position and have large elaborate top-knot rings.

Fire Nation


In the Fire Nation, top-knots are generally smaller and thinner than their Earth Kingdom counterparts, and are worn by almost all men from every class, although the styles of the top-knots may vary from class to class. The Fire Nation lower and middle class citizens appear to wear plain top-knots, tied with a little red material or with a tiny flame decorative piece on top; nobles and other important people may have more decorative pieces. The two most recognizable pieces are the ones used by the Crown Prince and the Fire Lord, both of which require a top-knot in order to be worn.

The top-knot is a sign of honor in the Fire Nation. After becoming fugitives of the Fire Nation, Zuko and Iroh cut off their top-knots and threw them into a creek to symbolize their rejection of their homeland and the beginning of their true exile. The firebending master Jeong Jeong also once donned a top-knot, as shown on his wanted poster.

Trivia

 * A top-knot in Japanese culture acts as a chonmage; it is said to assist the samurai in keeping his helmet in place.
 * Sumo wrestlers may also wear chonmage, but only when done by a tokoyama, a hair dresser employed by the Japanese Sumo Association, and if they are sekitori, a sumo in one of the top two professional divisions.