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Polynesian tattoos are very impressive works of art for the body. Though any tattoo often has great significance to the person wearing it, a Polynesian tattoo is a bit different.
The original process involved making small cuts with bird bone, turtle shell, or bamboo. The inks were then injected into those areas of the skin. If often took a long time to heal and was considered a sign of courage, among many other things.
Today, most of us go to the tattoo parlor, and there is little doubt that the process is much easier! While the sessions of original Polynesian tattooing took a great deal of time and were very painful, today's tattoos bear little resemblance to the sheer endurance it took to bear a Polynesian tattoo. However, the designs are still enormously popular and requested for numerous reasons.
The meanings behind the Polynesian tattoos still ring true today. They were signs of courage and a rite of passage. They were also said to increase the attractiveness of the person who wore them. They were considered protection, much like a talisman worn on the skin. The tattoos also explained in clear detail that person's place in society and what was expected of them. Thus it makes sense that a tattoo left incomplete was considered a sign of shame.
The original Polynesian tattoos have evolved into other designs as the Polynesian people spread throughout the world. Hawaiian tattoos, for instance, are Polynesian tattoos that have evolved to celebrate the beauty around the Hawaiian Islands. Many of these tattoos are elaborate flowers. There are also tattoos specific to those on Easter Island, as well as New Zealand or Samoa. As the groups on those islands became very close-knit and formed their own ways of life, their ways of tattooing began to change, too.
Finally, one of the most common Polynesian tattoos in the Western world is the Tiki. All tiki art refers to a mythical ancestor and first human, known as Tiki. The art began as statues and carvings, but in recent years it has evolved into body art as well.
No matter your choice in a Polynesian tattoo, be sure to know what the meaning of your tattoo is. If you see a gorgeous tattoo design in a book, take the time to research the origins before you put it on your body! Make sure your Polynesian tattoo is one that reflects what you want it to say - and who you really are.
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