The art of tattooing has been around for thousands of years, and tribal tattoos continue to have a place of importance for certain groups of people. Whether it is to show a connection to a particular group or a sense of belonging to a certain race or religion, tattoo symbols continue to be used. There is information explaining the many ways in which a tattoo can be placed.
One of the main ways that a tribal tattoo was used was to show the completion of a particular rite of passage. Tattoo symbols would be placed on the body or face of an individual going through a certain stage in their life. The most common stage was from child to adult. Different tattoos might have been used for different types of situations, but the markings served as a symbol to all that the individual has completed a rite of passage.
Other ways that a tribal tattoo was used was usually in conjunction with identification. Many groups would use certain tribal tattoo designs to mark their members, showing that these people belonged to a certain group. This was a useful way of bringing a group together and creating a particular identity and sense of belonging. There was less confusion with groups that seemed similar when identifying tattoos were used.
Tribal tattoos were more common among Native Indians than they were in groups made up of a mix of races and backgrounds. Their main purpose was to provide the individuals in the group with a method of identity and also display the group’s hierarchy. A body tattoo could show the world that the person was a strong leader of a particular group, and other members would have different tattoos to show their particular rank or position within the group. Branding a person may have meant that they belonged to another human being, but also to show that they weren’t as important as others within the same group. Sometimes, just by being born to a lower status mother meant that you could never reach a higher position within the group context.
As can be seen, tribal tattoos were used for multiple reasons; a rite of passage, identification with a particular group or to show a person’s level of status within a group. All were reasons to choose to have a body tattoo. North America is made up of many different races and religions, and for some it is important to reconnect with their past family history. In other cases, such as gangs, tattoos are generally used for identification purposes. They can also be used in gangs to denote status. However, even if none of these apply to you, it is still possible to pick a tattoo that is related to a particular group just because you like how it looks and it may represent something only to yourself.