Rattails - The Hairstyle the World Could Do Without

The rat tail is the bastard son of the mullet. It is ugly in every way, in every style, on everyone. The rat tail is a mockery of all the beautiful mullets out there.

Wikipedia defines the rattail as follows:

A rattail is a haircut that is characterized by a long "tail" of hair growing from the back of the head. It saw a notable short all over their head except for a few strands in the back that are left to grow out.

The rattail usually curls naturally; however, it can be braided, treated as a dread, permed, straightened, or curled with an iron. In some instances, an individual might choose to grow several tails or grow a single tail very long.

Wikipedia goes on to give more information on the rattail:

This hairstyle seems to be rather commonly seen on manga characters. For example, Dr. Tofu (a character in Ranma 1/2) and Masaharu Niou from Prince of Tennis all have small ponytails resembling rattails. Tenchi Masaki also is seen with a rattail. Auron from Final Fantasy X also sports a rattail in a concept art by Tetsuya Nomura (it is not visible in game because of his high-brim collar). However, this may be due to the hairstyle's similarity to the queue.

As the hairstyle has become less popular, it has been increasingly associated with redneck culture and is a common characteristic found in stereotypes of lower class North Americans.

Shaved head with long braided rattailSome punks and rivetheads have been known to support them also, although in a much more punky style, totally shaven head, except for a tuft of hair at the back, usually dyed in various luminous colours.

Former junior welterweight boxing champion Kostya Tszyu sported a rather famous rattail throughout his career.

The Guinness World Record for longest rattail measures 4 feet 9 inches held by Grant Ruramora.

Dog the Bounty Hunter stars Leland Chapman and Tim Chapman both have a variation of this haircut.

Cristiano Ronaldo has a variation of this haircut as it originated in his native country

And now, for some rattails:

A braided gangsta rattail.


An Asian rattail, free flowing.


This is a mullderline, that is, it is almost a mullet, but not quite. It is best classified as a multi dread rattail.


A long arse rattail, braided and ultra thin at the end. The best part? It's the only hair on his head (at least I hope it's a 'him').


A golden rattail.


A thick, wavy rattail. If this rat tail extended just a few more inches on both sides, it could be considered a mullet.


A short, braided rattail. This is among the most vile variety, the single patch of hair rat tail.


The Rattette. Females with rattails..... Shiver.


Yes, do it, put it out of it's misery.


A punk rock rattail. Who would do that to their child? Go back to your trailer, grab some scissors, and give your boy a cut, and let him grow a proper mullet.


This is an example of normal hair cut, with a nasty rattail sprouting out of no where.


Perhaps the worst of all is the short curled rattail. Typically found on teenage girls who want to look like boys. You know the type.


He looks like a Jedi.


The 'oops missed a spot' rattail.