Tribal Tattoo Designs

It is amazing how popular tribal tattoos have become. Almost one thirds of people searching for tattoo designs online end up looking for tribal designs. Of course, one of the reasons may be that the tribal tattoo genre has such a ridiculous amount of variety to choose from! (It’s like trying to pick up cereal at Walmart!) Another reason may be that they’re so darn good looking.

The selection ranges from the designs of the aboriginal or indigenous peoples to the contemporary graphic designs for body art. Although you may find a perfect tribal design in our modern world, it might be hard to find the actual experience of getting a tribal tattoo. The needles, sticks and plant dyes have all been replaced by tattoo machines and high tech inks. Likewise the shamans (the predecessors of today’s tattoo artists) have been replaced too.

It is said that the very first tattoo was probably a natural one, an accidental tattoo that lead to its discovery. Sources have it that after its discovery some of the first tattoo designs were that of a sun or flames in honor of the sun gods. The loss of blood (a vital life source), the pain involved in the process and its permanence lead to its transition from simply being art to a spiritual ritual. This enchanting combination got the ancient people into a trance, a feeling of being in union with their god and the god’s associated magical powers. They believed that the body and soul were quite alike, and according to that belief their tattoos also existed in both their physical and spiritual realms. Some tribes from Borneo believed that the right tattoos not only got them into the right spiritual world but that they also offered them unique qualifications for profitable livelihood when they got there.

In fact, studies have shown that some kind of body art was used by most (perhaps even all) of the ancient tribes of the world. Evidence of primitive tattoos, scarifications or temporary body paint have been found in almost every ancient tribe. This body art was widespread and present in almost every unconnected part of the world till of course our modern “civilization” arrived and these arts lost popularity.