Earrings are jewelry attached to the ear through a piercing in the earlobe or some other external part of the ear (except in the case of clip earrings, which clip onto the lobe). Earrings are worn by both sexes. In western cultures, earrings have traditionally been worn primarily by women, although in recent decades, ear piercing has also become popular among men in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Fact: date=June 2008.

Common locations for piercings, other than the earlobe, include the rook, tragus, and across the helix (see image at right) Fact: date=June 2008. The simple term “ear piercing” usually refers to an earlobe piercing, whereas piercings in the upper part of the external ear are often referred to as “cartilage piercings.” Cartilage piercings are more complex to perform than earlobe piercings and take longer to heal Fact: date=June 2008.

Earring components may be made of any number of materials, including metal, plastic, glass, precious stones, and beads. Designs range from small loops and studs to large plates and dangling items. The size is ultimately limited by the physical capacity of the earlobe to hold the earring without tearing. However, heavy earrings worn over extended periods of time may lead to stretching of the earlobe and the piercing.

History

One of the early signs of earrings worn by men are from the walls of Perspolis in ancient Persia, the carved images of the soldiers from various parts of the Persian Empire which are displayed on some of the surviving walls of the palace showing the soldiers wearing an ear ring.

Pierced ears were popular in the United States through the early 1920s, then fell into disfavor among women due to the rising popularity of clip-on earrings. Nevertheless, a small male following continued to exist, particularly among sailors, for whom a pierced earlobe often meant that the wearer had sailed around the world or had crossed the equator Fact: date=June 2008. In addition, if a non service member sailor was involved in and survived a sinking ship, they were often seen wearing an earring in the left ear. There was also a long-held belief that puncturing the earlobe was beneficial to increasing the acuity of eyesight (see acupuncture) or of hearing Fact: date=June 2008.

Ear piercing continued to be practiced by Western women of various cultures, e.g., Hispanic, but was less common in Anglo-based cultures until the 1960s Fact: date=June 2008. At that time, the practice re-emerged, but since a large commercial market for them did not exist, most ear piercings were done at home Fact: date=June 2008. Teenage girls were known to hold ear piercing parties, where they performed the procedure on one another. Such an event is depicted in the 1978 motion picture Grease, where Sandy (Olivia Newton-John), the leading lady, is pierced by her friends.