Polynesian Tattoos

Polynesian tattoos are an ancient art that has been receiving a lot of attention in modern times. Though few of us who are not from the Polynesian islands would be willing to undergo the painful and lengthy procedure that real Polynesian tattoos necessitate, we might well be attracted to elements of the traditional tribal designs and wish to incorporate them into our own tattoos – using modern methods (most of us anyway).

The people of the Polynesian islands have evolved their own distinct culture over hundreds, even thousands of years. Though there are many islands in this area, the people all came from a common homeland – though no one is exactly sure where this might have been, or when they came or how.

Polynesia is a group of islands spread over the Pacific Ocean (over 1000; Polynesia is the Greek word for many islands). The Marquesa islands are probably where the Polynesian people came to first and they later spread to:

• New Zealand: Aotearoa (Maori for NZ) is where the Maori people live. Tattoo art or Ta Moko as they call it, is a very important aspect of their culture. Discover all about Maori Tattoos here
• Hawaii: Hawaiian tattoo designs are distinct from other Polynesian tattoos in that sense that they have a more personal meaning. Popular today are Hawaiian flowers, turtles and abstract tribals. Learn more about Hawaiian Tattoos

• Easter Island (Rapa Nui): the tattoo designs of the inhabitants of the Easter Island have a huge variety: stylized boats, vaginas, spears, birds, geometrical patterns, .... Women and men had a combination of bold lines and dots on their forehead, from one ear to the other. The tattoos made their skin sacred and enabled them to communicate with the gods.
• Samoa: Samoan tattoos are generally very large and denote the social status and rank of the man or woman who wears it. See further.
• Tonga: the Tongan tattoo is similar to the Samoan tattoo.
• The Cook Islands: the tattoo designs of the Cook Islands were spread over the entire body. Each tribe had its own tattoo sign.
• French Polynesia (Tahiti): traditionally, only people of a high social ranking had tattoos. Tahitian tattoos covered the whole body, except the face. Women as well as men were tattooed. The women were tattooed at a very young age. Later they are tattooed again when they reach sexual maturity. When they desired a man, they would show their tattoos by lifting their skirts.
• The Marquesa Islands: a group of islands in French Polynesia with a deeply rooted tattoo tradition. The people of the Marquesa islands were the most heavily tattooed of all the Polynesian tribes.
• Several other islands which now house distinct ethnic groups.

Though they are distinct, a lot of cultural similarities remain. For example, practically all of these people practice the art of tattooing, and they do so in startlingly similar ways. Tattoo art was very important in the Polynesian culture. Because they had no written language, tattoos were used to depict social status, family history and spirituality.

The Motives For Polynesian Tattoos

Here are some of the reasons the Polynesian people had tattoos:

• The tattoos were a symbol of courage. The tattoo process was very painful and a lot of perseverance was needed to endure the long tattoo sessions.
• Getting the first tattoo marks the transition between childhood and adulthood. It is a rite of passage.
• Tattoos added to the sexual attractiveness of a man.
• Tattoos offered protection, they were a talisman.
• Polynesian tattoos read like a book. By looking at a tattoo, insiders get to know the social status and rank of the tattooed person.

Samoan Tattoos

Typical Samoan Tattoo Design

Samoan tattoos received a lot of attention since the time of first contact with people in that region.

There is no doubt that the Samoan tattoo is particularly impressive for several reasons – including the intricacy of the design and the painful process that those being tattooed had to undergo.

The tattoos for men are called pe'a. Samoan tattoo designs would be impressive regardless of their size, but when they cover almost half of a man’s body, starting from just under the ribcage, and continuing down to the ankles, they are particularly striking.

The tattoos for women are called malu. They can be as big as the male tattoos, but they don't have the large black areas. The Samoan women also had tattoos on their hands.

On Samoa the art of tattooing stayed alive throughout history, where in other parts of Polynesia tattoos disappeared after missionaries banned them.

Samoan Tattoo Patterns

Samoan tattoo patterns are highly meaningful to those of that culture, and that is something we can grasp just be looking at a Samoan tattoo, even without knowing what its precise meaning is. The tattoo patterns and symbols are complex and abstract, consisting of a lot of interlocked, interwoven shapes and patterns.

As mentioned before, they are also remarkable because of the sheer expanse of skin that they occupy – and especially when the tattooing is done using the traditional methods, this is a real endurance test for the person being tattooed. Instead of needles, the skin is punctured using a pig’s tooth or shark’s tooth.

Not finishing a tattoo once it is started is a source of shame.

Though few of us would be willing to undergo the discomfort necessary to get real Polynesian tattoos, incorporating some of the symbols and patterns into a modern tattoo is a different matter. Polynesian tattoos certainly have a striking, timeless appeal.

Tiki Tattoos

Tiki Art

All Polynesian statues and carvings that depict a human figure are known as Tiki art. The word tiki refers to the mythical ancestor and first human called... Tiki.

Temples were the home of those large wooden Tiki statues, who have tattoo patterns on the hands and the face.

Nowadays, the Tiki figure has a certain popularity as a tattoo design.

Pacific Island Tattoos as Global Practice

In is widely believed that through the early explorations of the Pacific Islands that tattooing entered into European consciousness. Nowadays the tufaga ta tatao or priests of tattooing are almost cult-like figures in an increasingly globalized and wired body modified world.

Sydney Parkin an artist on the first Captain Cook voyage of 1769 wrote:

The natives are accustomed to mark themselves in a very singular manner, which they call tattowing.

There is no doubt that these explorations have made a significant contribution to Western tattooing but in turn has also influenced Polynesian tattoos. In pre-colonial Polynesian society tattooing played an integral part in the organization of such instituions such as politics, warfare and religion. In Polynesia tattoos were considered honorable and decorative in contrast to the western experience of tattoos which was punitive and/or stigmatic for many years.

Tattooing itself is an act of sharing time and space amongst tattooist, tattooed people and others in the outside world. Almost all people compare and observe their bodies and those of other people to some extent. Whether on a conscious or unconsciously level we all include or exclude others based on similaries or differences to one degree or another.

Tattooing is no different in that regard and it is commonly believed that certain types of tattoos or markings on the skin belong to a certain place or people. So we refer to 'Japanese tattoos' or 'Celtic tattoos'. As a result of hundreds of years of cultural mixing Polynesian tattoos are no longer confined just to Polynesia. This goes for all types of tattoos.

Polynesian tattoos for better or for worse have become influenced and in turn influences on other tattoo cultures. Many critics have argued that tribal tattoos have become commodified whilst others claim that they still represent cultural and personal histories as well as gender differences not just in Polynesia but around the world.

In many ways traditional tattoos were saved from the jaws of extinction by the influence of 'outsiders' who have travelled to places such as Samoa, Marquesian Islands and Aotearoa (New Zealand). There very presence both sought the inhabitants to strenghten their tattoo traditions but allowed the 'outsiders' to receive traditional tattoos from the 'tufaga ta tatao' which were then popularized in Europe and the United States.

Below is a short video I took of Croc and Innia II from Moko Ink in New Zealand. Inia is a respected Maori tattoo artist who was consulted for work on the movie "Once were Warriors". Croc can be seen practicing the traditional ta moko tap tap tattoo style common amongst Pacific Islanders and other forms of ancient tattoo practice.