What Are Maori Tribal Tattoos?

The Maori tribes are natives of New Zealand. Though, they are part of the Polynesian heritage, they have given themselves a distinct cultural heritage that historians have separated them from the different tribes of Polynesia.

It is very much the same for their tattoo designs. The Maori tribal tattoos have their own unique identity compared to their Polynesian counterparts. Their spirals and curved shapes form a very intricate pattern that very distinctive to the Maori tribes. Legend said that a young warrior learned the art of the Maori tribal tattoos from the lord of the underworld, after winning back the heart of the lord's daughter.

For the Maori tribe, the tattoos are part of special rituals celebrating a particular or special event in one tribesman's life. A tribesman would receive his or her first tattoo as a rite of passage from childhood to adolescent and would be added whenever there are significant events in his or her life that would need to be celebrated. A tribesman that would be awarded with a tattoo would go into fasting before he or she was given a tattoo. During the ceremony itself, there would be music and chanting as it is a celebration not only for that particular tribesman but for the whole tribe itself.

Both men and women of the tribe can be awarded with a tattoo as a show of courage, strength and would be given a specific status in the tribe. The tattoos of the men in particular would cover the whole face while the women would only cover the cheeks and the lips, though sometimes the tattoos for the women would cover the neck as well.

It is said that the more tattoos a person have in his body, the higher his status is in their tribe. Tribesmen who do not have a tattoo in their bodies were considered worthless. Though women in the tribe have lesser tattoos in their bodies, it is mostly because they are not required to show much courage and strength and leave their men to it.

Maori tribal tattoos are mostly known for their face tattoos. But there are also tattoo designs that are used for the body specifically the legs and the buttocks. The body tattoos would be closely similar to the face tattoos with the small difference of the curves and spirals being bigger and more distinct than the face tattoos would be.

At present, the Maori tribal tattoos are being revived after it was almost extinct in the late 19th century. It has lost much of it significance during the arrival of the European settlers in New Zealand but is slowly being revived including the ancient way of putting on the tattoos. But today's tribal tattoos are mostly placed on the body and are seldom being done on the face. The use of modern equipment to put the tattoos has also replaced the old ways.

But even with the modernization of the Maori tribal tattoos, there is one thing that the Maori tribe had kept in their tradition. That is to keep a tattoo unique since a tattoo is a symbol of a person's identity. To copy an existing Maori tattoo design is an insult to the Maori tribesman you have copied it from. So, get a tattoo that is unique.

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maori tribal tattoos

The Sacred Heritage Of Turtle Tattoos

Turtle tattoos are becoming an increasingly popular choice so if you think you might like a turtle tattoo, read on.

There are many cultures around the world that attach significance and respect to turtles through legend and folklore. The turtle is a fascinating animal, it spends its life in the water but lays its eggs on the land, and thanks to their unique shell they are well protected from predators and danger. Deep meaning, respect and importance have been attached to the turtle due to its mysterious way of life and the fact that it can live to a great age. It comes as little surprise that these fascinating creatures are revered in some cultures with almost religious admiration.

The turtle holds a sacred place in the cultural heritage of many Native American tribes. Many of them attribute the creation of the world to the turtle. The Huron people, for example, believe that in ancient time a sky girl fell to our world, which was made of nothing but water and water based animals. Those animals took her to the wise turtle who told them to put grains of from the sea bed on his shell. They did this and soon the land grew and grew and the sky girl was able to live comfortably, as this land grew it became the world as we know it today.

This is only one example of how the many cultures of the world incorporate the turtle into heir 'creation' myths. Often, the turtle is suggested to either carry the world upon its shell or is directly or indirectly used to support the world or the heavens. The turtle is mostly associated with the qualities of reliability and tranquillity among many different cultures, and turtle tattoos are often used to represent bravery, endurance, courage, wisdom, recovery, safety, security, perseverance and longevity.

Another advantage of turtle tattoos is the ability for the tattoo artist to place an additional image within the tattoo. Many tattoo artists like to use the shell of the turtle to include another design or symbol. For example, if you have a turtle tattoo, you could also include the Japanese character for strength or any other image you desired within the shell.

Obviously, you need not use Japanese characters within your tattoo; you can always choose an alternative design or symbol that contains significant meaning to you to be on the turtle shell. After all, the whole purpose of a tattoo is to make it a personalized statement and turtle tattoos are quite versatile. Now that you have discovered some of the myth and mystery surrounding turtles you need to find a turtle tattoo design to suit you. And remember, you can personalize it by adding designs into the turtle shell.

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