Like many beauty trends on social media, hair oiling isn’t anything new. “Applying oils to the hair [and scalp] has been around for centuries and is thought to have originated in India and other areas in South Asia,” Dr. Marisa Garshick, MD, FAAD, a board-certified dermatologist and clinical assistant professor at Cornell–NewYork-Presbyterian, explained to BuzzFeed.
The practice of massaging hair in oil is called “champi” in India, and it originates from Ayurveda — the ancient Indian medical system — as explained by Anita Kaushal, founder of Mauli, in a Harper’s Bazaar interview.
