Football season is back at BYU, and that means it's time for the annual "Wait, how come our players have tattoos...?" conversation. This got me thinking about tattoos, and in particular, tattoos that seem to have cultural and significant meaning.Tribal tattoos have been an important part of Hawaiian culture in the past, and have recently made a significant comeback. In many places in Hawaii, the traditional methods for tattooing are still used. There was a period of time after Christianity was introduced that the frequency and meaning of these tattoos was greatly reduced. Tattooing was associated with non-English, and thus primitive culture. It was also contrary to the Christian doctrines, and thus discouraged.
Eventually Hawaiians resented the attempted assimilation into traditional American culture. When I was in Hawaii, it was made clear to me by many of the locals that they were Hawaiians first, Americans second. Now these tattoos have enjoyed renewed significance and popularity as Hawaiians try to preserve this unique characteristic of their culture.
Tattooing originated with the Polynesian people, and was called “kakau” by the Hawaiians. The instruments used in their tattooing process were usually a bird’s beak or a claw, carved bones, or certain sharp spines from various fish. There were no sterilized needles or tattooing machines like today. The instrument needed to be dipped in ink, and then hammered with a mallet into the skin. The ink would then be deposited beneath the skin.
The designs themselves were very personal. They represented class standing, were considered protective forces, and sometimes were thought to have powers of their own. These tattoos were highly sacred to the people, and only their spiritual leader (the kahuna) could apply them.
Men were commonly tattooed on their legs, arms, face and chest. Women often had tattoos on their tongues, wrists and hands.
Designs common to the tattoos included flowers, animals such as turtles, and strong geometric patterns.
Through their love for traditional Hawaiian culture, Hawaiians (and indeed most Polynesian cultures) have preserved an intriguing and important segment of their folk knowledge.
Interesting. After watching that video, I can't imagine how painful that would be to cut a needle into your skin like that.. (cringe) I wonder what percentage of BYU football players with tattoos have them for tribal reasons?
ReplyDeleteI wasn't judging, or pretending to know the reasoning behind any of the football player's tattoos...or even trying to justify tribal tattoos for mormons. However, I think it is interesting to think about and I'd certainly like to know that percentage myself.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to think about how the Hawaiians used tattoos, the Native Americans did, and so other Polynesians and then think about how they all share a common ancestry. The Book of Mormon also tells us that the Lamanites marked their skin in tattoo-like fashion.
ReplyDeleteIt's also interesting to think that, historically, tattoos were common essentially everywhere except Europe and most of Asia. I wonder if that is in fact connected in any way to religious beliefs or if it is just a practice that never took hold in these places.
What kinds of cultural information are preserved or transmitted through ink on skin?
ReplyDeleteThe symbols set in ink each represent something important to the culture. This can be an idea, an important animal, or simply a common flower. Even now, most tattoos are more than a pretty picture. They are symbolic of something important to the individual. Not surprisingly, mandalas are very common in the inking world.
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