Tribal Tattoo’s

Tattoos have been created by peoples from many different parts of the world. A number of techniques were developed, but they were often very painful and lacked the accuracy and detail of modern tattoos. The skin was usually cut and pigment rubbed into the wound. These painful experiences, in which blood was spilled, were often seen as a test of strength and courage. Both boys and girls were usually tattooed, the boys being tested as future warriors, and the girls as potential mothers who would have to endure childbirth.

The Maori used bone (and later, metal) blades to cut the skin, while needles were used by Native Americans either to prick the skin or to inject ink under its surface. Tribes living in the Arctic Circle created their tattoos by drawing a soot-coated thread through the flesh using a sharp needle, as if sowing. In the South Pacific, islanders used an instrument like a sharp little rake in order to tap pigment into the skin.

Strict rules often governed the types and designs of tattoos which someone could wear. Each tattoo could carry a very specific meaning. Maori tattoos, for example, could be used to mark out a person's ancestry and rank, as well as whether they were eligible for marriage. A Maori's entire life history could be read from their tattoos. The women wore tattoos only around the chin and mouth, while the men's tattoos covered large areas on the body as well as the face. The Maori designs were probably the most intricate and precise of all tribal tattoos.

In Samoa, future chiefs were tattooed when they reached puberty in an elaborate ceremony. Tattoos in Samoa often covered the body from the middle of the torso down to the knees, and were very painful to receive. It usually took about three months to complete them, with sessions lasting all day, but it would be a whole year before the skin completely healed, and the men would often need to be taken care of by their family for a large portion of this year. Women endured less extensive tattoos.

The tattooing process was often a deeply spiritual one. It was generally carried out after a period of seclusion and was highly ritualized. In Hawaii, tattoos are linked to particular gods and are made by priests.  They often mimic natural forms, unlike the more abstract designs that are common for Maori and Samoan tattoos.

Magical powers have sometimes been attributed to tattoos, for example there was a Burmese love charm that involved getting a particular tattoo made with special ingredients. Totem animals were commonly tattooed on the body in many cultures in the belief that the wearer would take on some of their attributes. In Asia, tattoos were believed to have healing properties, with specific gods and goddesses being tattooed onto afflicted parts of the body in India. Similar beliefs were held by the Maori and Ainu.

Tribal tattooing is still practiced today in some parts of the world.