African Tattoo Designs

In today's world the practice of getting tattoos is more a statement of expression and fashion than anything else, but in olden times, tattooing was all about identification, spirituality and medicinal purposes. African tattoo designs were commonly used as means to distinguish between members of different tribes, and even within a tribe, each hierarchical strata was easily recognizable by the tattoos that they had inscribed on their bodies.

These designs and meanings were also used as protective measures against harmful spirits and apparitions, and African culture is steeped with a multitude of such tattoos. In the era before Christ, especially in Egypt, tattoos had a great significance in the culture and traditions of the people there. Today, these tattoos symbolically state a reverence to the heritage and history of these places, and more people invest in them simply because they look very attractive.

History of African Tattoo
The first evidence of these designs that has been discovered leads us to the mummies of ancient Egypt. These mummies were regularly inked with tattoos as a symbol of their family's history, or to signify the achievements of that person in his life. Some designs were also believed to offer protection to the mummified person in the afterlife. The oldest tattoo was found on the body of Amunet, who was a priestess of the Goddess Hathor during the years 2160 - 1994 BC. The most common designs were parallel lines and intrinsic elliptical patterns on the arms, legs and the navel.

Most of the earliest evidence of this tattoo culture were found in women and it is believed that these signified fertility and rejuvenation in the lives of these women. Male bodies with tattoos were discovered in Libya, and these designs dealt more with worship and offerings to various deities, especially the Sun.

Some designs were also meant to distinguish warriors from other men, and the most commonly seen tattoos signifying this were those of Neith, a Goddess who supposedly led men into battle. This was popular around 1300 BC, and subsequently became more widespread. Another important aspect of African tattoo methods was a process known as 'Cicatrisation'. This was a method that was popular amongst extremely dark skinned African tribes, who used this ornamentation method to conceal the original color of their skin. The origin of the term lies in the French word 'Cicatrices' which means 'scar'.

African Tattoos in Contemporary Times
The Internet is an open source directory of free tattoo designs. You can find numerous such designs over the web, and these are brilliant inspirations for tattoos, even for people who have absolutely nothing to do with African heritage and civilization. Some of these resemble the commonly seen tribal tattoos, whereas some are depictions of deity worship. African culture is still shrouded in a lot of mystery, so there are no accurate meanings of these symbols that can be deduced. So, it all depends on the perspective of the individual.

Opting for African tattoos using the means of 'Cicatrisation' is not for the faint hearted though. The method involves cutting the skin open and then rubbing some ash on the wound so as to leave a permanently raised and designed pattern on the body. African tattoo sleeves are also very popular, and most of these signify a lot of courage, bravery and an almost superhuman personality of the wearer of the tattoo.

If you are opting for tattoos that are pertinent to, or are derived from certain cultures, then you should be a descendant of that culture. This makes more sense rather than blindly copying the tattoo designs from another culture simply because they look good.