The distinctive dress of Haredi Jews helps them to define, and then insulate, their communities, as well as maintain a traditional and spiritual focus. They dress as their ancestors dressed in 18th and 19th century Europe. The men tend to wear dark suits with white shirts, and to cover their heads with black, wide-brimmed hats. The men also generally have beards and sidelocks (peyot). Women, in line with strict standards of modesty, tend to wear long skirts and shirts with long sleeves and high necklines. After the women get married, they cover their heads with either scarves, hats or wigs.
The Torah says, "You shall not round off the פְּאַת Pe'at of your head" (Leviticus 19:27). The word Pe'at was taken to mean the hair in front of the ears extending to beneath the cheekbone, on a level with the nose (Talmud -Makkot 20a). The Mishnah interpreted the regulation as applying only to men. Thus it became the custom in certain circles to allow the hair over the ears to grow, and hang down in curls or ringlets. According to Maimonides, cutting the sidelocks was a heathen practice.There is considerable discussion in the halachic literature as to the precise location of the payot and of the ways in which their removal is prohibited.
Because most varieties of secular education are frowned upon, few haredim hold professional degrees. Most adult men devote themselves to full-time Torah study, and their wives commonly assume the role of breadwinner. Because most haredim live in single-earner households with large numbers of children, haredi communities are generally characterized by extreme poverty, requiring subsidies from charities and governments in order to subsist. However, in recent years, a new haredi upper-class has emerged, Children of the haredi upper-class attend the same yeshivot as their less-privileged peers, while their parents direct a very large portion of their income to communal charities and funds that support major rabbinic figures and their projects.
