Tribal Tattoos - Tribe Tattoos - Tribal Designs

Tribal tattoos might be the most popular form of tattoos in the world right now. Originally referred to as any tattoo style done outside of the Western World, it has now come to be known as a style indicative of the tattoos created for thousands of years in the Pacific Islands and Africa.

Tribal tattoos are instantly recognizable with their dramatic use of aggressive dark lines in jagged symmetrical shapes spread throughout the skin. Tribal tats are most often done in simple black and skin tones but they can also be infused with color to brighten the overall look. Whereas other tattoo styles attempt to represent a specific object, tribal tattoos seem far more concerned with the ‘feel’ rather than what it specifically looks like.

For the cultures who created this powerful tattoo style, tattoos were not acquired because they looked cool. (Which they do.) They got them because of the power a tattoo could give them. The Samoans believe that an entire body suit of tattoos was the final step in becoming man— and any man who does not have this is considered an outcast. American Indians used body art to protect them while in battle. Even today, Burmese villagers believe that a tattoo over the heart can actually protect that area of the body from bullets. It is this special meaning that elevates the tribal tattoo from the simply decorative to the powerfully symbolic.

For years though, the western world’s only introduction to tribal tattoos were picture books drawn by scientists in the 18th and 19th centuries. These books  detailed the tattoo work of cultures in the Marquesas islands and the Maori tribes of New Zealand and were often passed around in Europe like exotic pornography.

It wasn’t until LA tattoo artist Leo Zuleta borrowed a notebook from a friend of his depicting this tattoo style and began using it on LA rock bands in the 90’s. This fusion of trial tattoo with his own modern aesthetic, sometimes called neo-tribal or pseudo-tribal, and with its reliance on ancient spiritual symbolism became a worldwide phenomenon and one of the most sought after tattoos in the world.

Common Misspellings: Tribal Tatoos, Tribal Tattoes, Tribal Tattos