Why the beard might finally die in 2016

'The hipster beard, or lumberjack beard, is going to be the defining facial hair of this generation'

People have been predicting the end of the beard since 2013 (Getty)

The year 2016 may finally be when beards come to an end.

According to an interview The Times UK did with historian Alun Withey, an academic who will run a three-year research project on the beard and its cultural history in the UK, people have been predicting the end of the beard since 2013.

Each time it seems they've been wrong, and the beard has maintained as strong as ever in the eyes of the public.

“People have been predicting the fall of them since 2014 and that Peak Beard has been reached,” he told The Times UK.

This time however, it's really ending. Like, actually. He says it's all down to the historical pattern, which, according to his data, is predicting a huge decline right around now.

“There will be a backlash,” he said. “They are divisive. There is already a backlash in the United States where there’s a new ideal; the yuccie.”

The yuccie, as determined by writer David Yi at Mashable, is a “Young Urban Creative.”

Withey says this class is in ascendance, and with it will come the end of the era of beards, since yuccies prefer a “stricter, sleeker look.” They will eventually become the defining class.

This trend can even be seen in our list of the best-dressed men at the Golden Globes, where a majority were clean-shaven.

But don't worry. The beard trend of the early 2010s will still have its place in history.

“The hipster beard, or lumberjack beard, is going to be the defining facial hair of this generation,” Withey said.

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