“在下巴和下脸部生长的浓密胡须，通常是成年男性的特征”（上唇的胡须在现代英语中被称为 mustache），古英语中称为 beard，源自原始日耳曼语 *bard（同源词还有古弗里斯语 berd、中世纪荷兰语 baert、古高地德语 bart、德语 bart）。Pokorny 认为它来自原始印欧语词根 *bhardhā-，意为“胡须”（同源词还有古教会斯拉夫语 brada、俄语 boroda、立陶宛语 barzda、古普鲁士语 bordus，可能还有拉丁语 barba “胡须”）。不过，Boutkan 从发音上否定了这一说法，认为它可能是某种非印欧语的词汇。古法语 berd 则来自日耳曼语。
The Greek and Roman Churches have long disputed about the beard. While the Romanists have at different times practised shaving, the Greeks, on the contrary, have strenuously defended the cause of long beards. Leo III. (795 AD) was the first shaved Pope. Pope Gregory IV., after the lapse of only 30 years, fulminated a Bull against bearded priests. In the 12th century the prescription of the beard was extended to the laity. Pope Honorius III. to disguise his disfigured lip, allowed his beard to grow. Henry I. of England was so much moved by a sermon directed against his beard that he resigned it to the barber. Frederick Barbarossa is said to have been equally tractable. [Tom Robinson, M.D., "Beards," St. James's Magazine, 1881]
希腊和罗马教会长期以来对胡须问题争论不休。罗马教徒在不同历史时期曾实践剃须，而希腊教徒则坚决支持留长胡须。公元795年，利奥三世成为第一位剃须的教皇。仅仅30年后，教皇格里高利四世就发布教皇诏书，反对有胡须的牧师。在12世纪，留胡须的规定甚至扩展到了平信徒。为了掩盖自己毁容的嘴唇，教皇霍诺里乌斯三世允许自己留胡须。英格兰的亨利一世被一场针对他胡须的布道感动，以至于他把胡须交给了理发师。传说腓特烈·巴巴罗萨也是如此顺从。[汤姆·罗宾逊，医学博士，《胡须》，《圣詹姆斯杂志》，1881年]
胡须在阴毛方面的用法始于17世纪（但 neþir berd “阴毛”则出现在14世纪晚期）。在1811年的《粗俗语言词典》中，beard-splitter 被定义为“一个非常好色的男人”（可与俚语中指生殖器的 beaver 相比较）。
