What is significance of the long hair?

Long hair means a few things. Golding never really tells us how much time has passed. The length of their hair is the only indication of time that Golding gives us. The hair also is significant as to the general loss of civilization. The longer the boys spend on the island, the more "uncivilized they become. Long hair is a physical manifestation of this.

The long hair has symbolic significance tying them to mother earth whose hair is long grasses. Many Native Americans believe their hair is a physical manifestation of the growth of the spirit, and some say it allows for extrasensory perception, and connection to all things.