Shaving, either of the head or face, was not always a voluntary act, for it has been enforced by law in England and elsewhere. Cleanliness and vanity were therefore not the sole reasons for a "clean shave"; the origins lie deeper. Before the Macedonian conquest brought the custom of clean shaving, the ????e?? in the Greek agora would trim and style his patrons' beards, hair, and fingernails, as gossip and debate flowed freely.

Barbering was introduced to Rome from the Greek colonies in Sicily in 296 B.C. and barber shops quickly became very popular centres for daily news and gossip. A morning visit to the tonsor became a part of the daily routine as important as the visit to the public baths, and a young man's first shave (tonsura) was an essential part of his coming of age ceremony.

A few Roman tonsores became wealthy and influential, running shops that were favorite loci publici of high society; most were simple tradesmen, owning small storefronts or setting up their stool in the street and offering shaves for a mere quadrans. Some had reputations as clumsy butchers who left their patrons scarred about the cheeks and chin; their dull bronze or copper (never steel) razors must share some of the blame. The better barbers offered depilatories for those customers who refused the razor.

The barbers of former times were also surgeons and dentists. As well as haircutting, hairdressing, and shaving, barbers performed surgery, blood-letting, cupping and leeching, enemas, and the extraction of teeth. Thus they were called barber surgeons and they formed their first organization in 1094.