A Comprehensive Guide to the World's Traditional Tattoo Styles

"Human beings have been getting tattooed for more than 5,000 years. We know this because Ötzi the Iceman was sporting ink circa 5,300 years ago. Given that it's unlikely we found the very first dude with a tattoo - not to mention that myriad early civilizations spanning the continents developed their own tattoo systems and an entire culture surrounding them - it's a safe bet that the practice of tattooing dates back much further."

"Such a lengthy and far-reaching history indicates there's a deep-set and innate human desire to share a part of one's personal story with the world, to express oneself with a permanent visual representation of important beliefs or cherished ideals. The purposes of tattoos over the millennia have ranged from conveying social status, sharing familial ties and history, declaring religious devotion or invoking spiritual protection, and, eventually, deciding something looked rad as fuck on your bicep, bro."

"There's an incredible diversity of traditional tattooing methodologies that have developed, too. Hand poking with needles, tapping with wooden tools and sharp implements carved out of ivory tusks or teeth, and carving with knives are a few of the most well-known. But anything that could apply some type of ink or dye into human flesh has probably been practiced by one culture or tribe or another."

Human beings have been getting tattooed for more than 5,000 years, as evidenced by Ötzi the Iceman sporting ink circa 5,300 years ago. Many early civilizations developed tattoo systems and cultures, suggesting tattooing likely dates back much further, possibly by several thousand years. Tattoos fulfill deep human desires to share personal stories and to express permanent visual representations of beliefs and ideals. Purposes have included conveying social status, sharing familial ties, declaring religious devotion, invoking spiritual protection, and personal aesthetics. Traditional tattoo methodologies vary widely, including hand poking, tapping with wooden tools and sharp implements, and carving with knives, and remain practiced worldwide.

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