Tignon law

The tignon law (also known as the chignon law[1]) was a 1786 law enacted by the Spanish Governor of Louisiana Esteban Rodríguez Miró that forced black women to wear a tignon headscarf. The law was intended to halt plaçage unions and tie freed black women to those who were enslaved, but the women who followed the law have been described as turning the headdress into a "mark of distinction".[2]

A young Creole woman in a tignon of her own creation. Note that the rosette in the tignon is repeated as either a brooch or in the linen at her neck. Painting from the Historic New Orleans Collection.
  1. ^ Dillman, Caroline M. (2013-10-28). Southern Women. Routledge. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-136-55696-8.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).