Polynesia tattoo designs for men's shoulder, ready-made. Polynesian style tattoo

Polynesian tattoos originated on the Pacific Islands, united under the name Polynesia. These are beautiful, complex patterns of lines and geometric shapes that form a complex symbolic composition. Today, Polynesian tattoos no longer have a strictly sacred meaning and are intended to decorate the body, but this was not always the case.

The history of Polynesian tattoos

In the culture of the ancient island tribes, Polynesian tattoos were not decoration, but part of beliefs, cult, reflected the connection with the divine upper world, and had a deep religious meaning. The patterns were applied to the body in a strict order and to the desired areas, determined by the energy flows in the human body. The symbols depicted in Polynesian tattoos had the meaning of amulets, talking about clan and tribal affiliation, the social status of a man (most often about high status). By the tattoo one could find out whether the owner was a hunter or a warrior, what actions he had committed and what he had achieved, what qualities he possessed.

The tattooing itself was a ritual act that could only be performed by shamans. The designs were made with a sharp shark tooth or boar fang, as well as a needle made from bird bones. Surviving a tattoo was already a feat that only a real man is capable of.

Polynesian tattoos in the modern world

Today, Polynesian style tattoos are very common. They are beautiful, original, effective. You can choose the symbol that suits your spirit best. True connoisseurs even go to the islands of the archipelago to get real Polynesian tattoos, because only the bearer of the culture has the necessary knowledge and will do everything according to the canon.

The main motifs in Polynesian tattoos were determined by the surrounding world, nature, animals and plants of the islands - what people saw around them. Heavenly bodies, totem animals worshiped by the islanders, and many other symbols incomprehensible to a modern city dweller were depicted.

Today, the following designs and their combinations are common:

• shark;
• turtle;
• stingray;
• lizard;
• ritual masks;
• spiral;
• Sun and moon.

Historically, only men had the right to wear tattoos in the Polynesian archipelago. Now all over the world tattoos, including Polynesian ones, are popular among women. Anyone can choose suitable images and get a tattoo. It can be either a very small ornament or a huge image consisting of many interconnected elements. A Polynesian tattoo applied to the shoulder, with a transition to the neck, chest, going down to the arm, looks impressive. This design is especially popular among men.

Polynesia tattoos are often performed on the leg; for example, sharks were originally depicted on the legs – calves or thighs. Tattoos are often performed on the stomach, back, neck, and sometimes cover a large area of ​​the body. A Polynesia tattoo on the arm can be in the form of a linear single ornament or. It will look good on the wrist and hands.

The meaning of Polynesian tattoos

To choose suitable sketches, you need to have an idea of ​​what their meaning is. It stems from the lifestyle of the tribes that created Polynesian tattoos, their surrounding world and beliefs.

• Shark is a symbol of power, strength, forward movement. Such tattoos have a protective meaning - they protect from enemies and dangers. They could be used for protection from sea predators, because the islanders spent a lot of time in the ocean.
• Tiki (masks) - had the meaning of amulets against evil spirits and hostile otherworldly forces. Usually several masks were depicted, looking in different directions, as a sign that they protect the owner from all sides.
• Polynesian tattoos in the form of a turtle meant wisdom, longevity, perseverance, and protection from harm (associations with a turtle shell).
• The sun is a symbol of life, cyclicality, endless circulation. Since ancient times, Polynesian tattoos have depicted the sun, since people began to worship it earlier than other gods. The sun is a symbol of light and warmth, it illuminates the path and brings goodness.
• The moon is a night luminary and was revered on a par with the sun. The ornament depicting the moon had the meaning of great strength of character and spirit, determination and perseverance in one’s craft. The moon patronized hunters and promised good luck.
• Iguana (lizard) is a symbol of physical strength, speed, endurance. The owner of a Polynesian lizard tattoo was believed to be endowed with supernatural powers. It was a tattoo of the chosen ones.
• The stingray is one of the most revered totem animals of the tribes. A Polynesian tattoo in the shape of a stingray means restraint, wisdom, calmness and rationality, which, however, can hide strength, swiftness and danger.
• The spiral symbolizes infinity, cyclicality, renewal and development.

The listed images can exist either separately or combined with each other, intertwined. In different combinations they acquire new meanings. For example, the combination of the sun and the moon in a drawing represents the possibility of the impossible. Almost any pattern includes spiral elements and sun signs.

Performing a tattoo in the Polynesian style requires great skill and a sense of composition from the artist. After all, you need to symmetrically and accurately arrange the parts of the pattern, draw many straight and curved lines flowing into one another. High-quality tattoo designs amaze with their complexity and beauty.

Polynesian tattoos have recently become popular and are attracting the attention of more and more people. Even some movie stars prefer them. Black and white geometric patterns reminiscent of wood carvings really look stylish and mysterious!

Video: Creating a Polynesia tattoo on the arm

Tattoos in the Polynesian style became popular among Europeans relatively recently, in the first half of the twentieth century. Of course, they came into fashion thanks to their complex, bizarre and unusually beautiful patterns, consisting of spirals, waves, zigzags, and geometric shapes. Even modern world celebrities (for example, John Dwayne) were seduced by such tattoos.

But few people think about their true, original purpose. In the archaic Polynesian culture, tattoos served not just to decorate the body, but they were invested with a deep sacred meaning. With their help, contact was established with the transcendental upper world.

The very process of applying a tattoo was a sacred sacrament, a rite that only a priest could perform. Each drawing had its own meaning, influencing the fate of the wearer. This perception of body painting in the Polynesian picture of the world goes back to the ideas and rituals of the ancient Maori tribe.

A tattoo in Polynesia was a kind of calling card or, more precisely, it played the role of an identity document. She reported to what clan, and at the same time tribe, a person belongs, what social status he has, what feats and worthy deeds he has performed in life, what he has become famous for.

The sketches of Polynesian tattoos captured in the photo are reminiscent of ancient artistic wood carvings, which not only perform an aesthetic function, but are endowed with great sacred content. The tree in the primitive, especially totemic consciousness was also deified, spiritualized, and identified with the human body.

In mythological concepts, the human body was likened to the world, the Universe, and in the astral understanding it was divided into zones of intersection of various energy flows. It was on these areas that drawings were applied in order to block the influence of, for example, negativity, to bring good into life, correct character, change or improve fate, as if rewriting what was destined for it. The result directly depended on the image and the symbolism associated with it.

• in the ancient Polynesian sense, it personifies protection, an impenetrable energy shell that will not allow any evil forces into life. It also brings health, family strength, longevity
• means eternity, interconnection and continuity of life, as well as death. Attracts life-giving warmth, Happiness, goodness, success in planned enterprises.
• considered a powerful amulet. Protects from negativity. Gives inner freedom, sophistication and attractiveness.
• gives power, authority, willpower and perseverance. Protects from enemies and all kinds of harm.
• (and at the same time, a gecko, an iguana) reveals higher knowledge, the gift of clairvoyance, and enhances supernatural abilities.

And today, in our technological and civilized age, tattoos on some Polynesian islands have not lost their sacred meaning and are used to communicate with higher deities.

Video of tattoo in Polynesian style

Chapter 3. Symbols and their meaning.

This chapter provides a short list of the most common symbols and motifs. There are many more symbols than we present here, but either their meaning is not known or we cannot be completely sure of it. Oceania has dozens of large islands and hundreds of small ones, so it is almost impossible to give an unambiguous definition for each character. For the same reason, it is incredibly difficult to “read” a finished tattoo - after all, much depends directly on the choice of the tattoo artist. Large elements consist of smaller ones, each of which has its own meaning, which affects the overall meaning. Most of the known symbols come from the Marquesan tradition, the most complete record of which appeared in 1928 based on notes made by Karl von den Stein during a trip in 1897-98.

Human figure, or enata means man or woman, less often - deity. This design can be placed in a tattoo to represent friends, relatives And dear people, relatives. If you place this pattern in a tattoo, turning it upside down, then the pattern will mean defeated enemies. Below I provide a few examples to demonstrate how a pattern can evolve from an artistic point of view and take on new versions of the image:

First simplification:

Second simplification:

This motif is called even more stylized ani ata- people forming a circle. In translation, this motif is called “cloudy sky”. According to the legend, Ranks(Heaven) and Dad(Earth) once came incredibly close to each other and their children lived between them in complete darkness until the deified man pushed away Ranks back up and thus did not let the light in. This is a common motif among all Polynesian peoples and is used to represent sky, and ancestors protecting their descendants.

Human figures paired together traditionally represent wedding, marriage:

Often the image of a man and a woman differs from each other:

Warrior.

Another version of the human figure is often used to depict warrior, especially if the figure is holding a spear above his head:

Like others, this original image gives rise to a variety of simplified patterns. On version b, only the torso and head remain from the original image:

A spear.

Another classic symbol to represent warrior- a spear:

Often the spear is stylized into a circle of tips; there are several options for the image:

This pattern can also symbolize any sharp objects and even sting stingray or other animal.

Adze, hoe.

This stone tool was used for many purposes, including war. Basically, it was used to carve canoes and build houses. In a tattoo it symbolizes skill, overcoming obstacles, strength(physical and spiritual), authority.

Centipede.

Even if the poisonous spines on the centipede's head are not depicted, it still means aggressive environment, nature, animal nature. In the tattoo it symbolizes spirit of struggle, warriors, determination, rebellion. As usual, simplified images are provided below:

Club (at least).

A flat, short club used in battles mainly by leaders. In this case, this symbol means chief, leader, honor, respect, greatness, nobility, nobility- in general, all the qualities inherent in a tribal leader.

Lizard.

Lizard or gecko in Polynesian is pronounced mo"o or moko and plays an important role in Polynesian myths. Gods ( atua) and spirits often appear to humans in the form of a gecko and perhaps this explains the fact that the design elements used to depict a lizard are very similar to the elements used to depict a person. Lizards are powerful creatures that can bring good luck, connection with the gods, access to the invisible world. At the same time, they can bring death or bad omens to disrespected people. In Australia, lizards symbolize regeneration, transformation, survival in difficult conditions. In Maori culture, they are more likely to be protectors and trustees, so they are often buried in new, newly built houses, and also carved on walls - thus keeping illness and evil spirits as far away from the home as possible. Also, the lizard is sometimes perceived as the ancestor of man, and apparently this is what explains the similarity between the simplified image of a gecko and a man:

Besides, " moko" is the name for Maori facial tattoos, which are also incredibly sacred, so it's probably the name " moko" came from earlier designs in which the image of a lizard was considered a sign of divine origin. These motifs are characteristic of early Hawaiian tattooing, so it is easy to assume that the travelers who discovered these lands knew them. The myths say that " moko"can only be worn by people of divine origin, and by non-tribal people (non-Maori, "pakeha") should not be applied. Elements " moko" are as important as their location, conveying information about the wearer, his rank and the rank of his ancestors. However, such people can wear Kirituhi(literally blackened leather) or other decorative styles that can be applied anywhere and by anyone.

Turtle.

Turtle (" honu") is another important creature in all Polynesian cultures. It has several meanings, mainly - health, fertility, long life, peace, recreation, navigation. The Polynesian word "hono" also means “to connect, stitch together,” which explains the meanings of this symbol such as community, family(This can also be explained by the fact that turtles cross vast distances to return to their place of birth and give life to the next generation there). The ocean is life for the islanders, but it is also a place to relax. The earth and the ocean are two halves of the world, and a turtle can exist in both halves, and can also move freely between them. From this point of view, it is believed that the turtle can also freely move from the world of the living to the world of the dead and back, accompanying the dead on their final journey, safely delivering them to a place of eternal rest. To safely depict the deceased being guided to a resting place by the turtle, it should be placed on or near the shell image.

Two symbols similar to the image of a person ( enata) is a traditional image of a turtle:

Another pattern representing a turtle imitates its shell:

Fish.

Fish is the main food for the islanders. This symbol means wealth, abundance, prosperity, life. Fish, as a symbol of abundance, is painted on the walls of houses and canoes to attract blessing of the gods.

Stylizations:

R

Another pattern depicting fish scales brings protection to the owner:

Shark.

According to Hawaiian legend, one day while swimming, a woman was bitten on the ankle by a shark. Even though the shark was her totem, she grabbed it without recognizing it. The woman screamed her name loudly and the shark immediately released her, apologizing for his mistake. The shark promised that this mistake would not happen again, because... the woman's ankle will bear the scars of her teeth and she will recognize her immediately. Since then, many tribes have painted a pattern depicting shark teeth on their ankles (" niho mano"), which provides them protection in water.

Shark teeth also mean protection, guidance, strength, fearlessness. At the same time, in many cultures the shark is associated with adaptability, adaptability.

Hammerhead shark.

The hammerhead shark symbolizes perseverance, strength and determination. At the same time, it matters community, sociality because this species always moves in a group of several individuals.

Bonito (tuna).

A pattern similar to shark teeth is called "tuna tail" or " Hiku-atu". Means energy, agility, skill and abundance.

Moray eel.

In Polynesian myths, the moray eel plays a major role evil spirit Most stories tell about moray eels deceiving and devouring people. Symbolizes evil spirits, misfortune, illness.

Whale symbolizes abundance,family, care, education.

Other marine life with specific meaning:

Dolphins symbolize playfulness, joy and friendship.

Barracudas - ferocity And determination.

Marlins - speed And sharp mind, goal orientation.

Stingrays - elegance, wisdom, protection And freedom.

Sea urchins spicy and tough on the outside, but soft and delicious on the inside. For this reason they symbolize light in the dark.

Killer whales - strength, family, speed.

Polynesian tattoos, which appeared on the Pacific Islands, did not initially serve as decoration for the body. The Indians used body paintings to indicate their status in the environment, talk about their exploits and spiritual state. Tattoos meant a lot to people: some of the designs were able to attract the gods themselves to their side. It was impossible to eliminate one detail from the overall picture; they all hid a deep meaning behind them. The more a person’s body was decorated, the more successful and influential he was considered.

A Polynesian style tattoo differs from others in its unusual energy, which can attract the gaze of any person. The drawings are powerful, strong, sometimes even frightening. This is not surprising, because many of them show aggressiveness.

This style comes in black, but there is also a women's version. Modern people pigment their skin more for beauty and aesthetics, less often for semantic reasons. Therefore, girls are allowed to dilute the roughness of the sketches with bright colors before getting a Polynesian tattoo on the shoulder.

By the way, Polynesian women were also tattooed, but mostly on the lips and chin.

Men are more accustomed to getting a Polynesian tattoo on their sleeve. This trend requires space, only then will it look decent on the body.

Polynesia is the name given to the group of Oceania islands scattered across the central and southern Pacific Ocean, within the triangle that contains New Zealand, Hawaii and Easter Island. The people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are called Polynesians, and they have many things in common, including language, culture and beliefs.

Polynesian languages ​​are virtually the same and vary depending on the distance between the islands. There are some words that are the main source and reflection of the deepest core of all Polynesian cultures - Ocean (moana) and Spiritual power (mana) - The ocean guarantees life. These two words most accurately and vividly show the relationship between Polynesian culture and the Ocean.

Most of us know Jules Verne as a novelist and great writer of the 19th century. Along with novels, he also wrote popular science books about the world's most important discoveries in geography and other scientific works.

“The History of Great Travels” (in three volumes - read it - very interesting) was written on the basis of a careful and painstaking study of documents, notes from travelers, and diaries of expedition participants. This is how Jules Verne describes the Maori people we are interested in: “According to ancient legends, the Maori came approximately 1.5 thousand years ago from the Hawaiian Islands. This beautiful Polynesian tribe inhabited all the islands scattered in the vast region of the Pacific Ocean. The Maori drove away or almost completely exterminated the primitive population. They had a custom of tattooing; some tattoos showed both amazing skill and taste, which was difficult to expect among primitive people. The islanders were distinguished by their good physique, they had beautiful faces, their skin was yellowish or dark red, seeming almost black from the tattoos that covered their entire body.”

In the past, being tattooed required courage, endurance and perseverance, especially for those who were performing such a ritual for the first time. To do this, the Master marked a pattern on the skin and introduced pigment there with a pick, hitting it with a hammer stick. Sometimes tattoos were applied without prior marking. But, since any mistakes here are irreparable, the design was sometimes outlined in advance with charcoal or even using a special stamp.

Hence the word "Tatau" means "beating" in the Maori language. By the way, Captain James Cook, the first European, heard and wrote down this word in 1769.

This procedure could take several days and after its completion, a holiday was held in honor of the one who withstood all these tests and challenged himself through pain. By making irreversible changes to their appearance, including getting tattoos, people believed that they were changing themselves. As noted by the author of the book “Tattoo as a Historical Source” - anthropologist, archaeologist, Doctor of Historical Sciences M.B. Mednikov that “The human body was supposed to be “finished” so that it corresponded to its new social state. After all, in order to become a genuine person, you also need to resemble the mythical model.”

Maria Borisovna gave me permission to quote her book (“Languages ​​of Slavic Culture”, 2007), which perfectly tells the history of tattoos in general among many peoples of the world. The anthropologist's interest in this topic reveals to us the semantic meaning of tattoos, which justifies and proves the desire of Homo sapiens to apply indelible marks to himself.

In the book by M.B. Mednikova has a legend that tells about the hero of the New Zealand aborigines Mataora in the afterlife and about his acquisition of a tattoo - a gift from the gods to man and at the same time a gift from man to the gods.

Nowadays, modern tattoo machines work much faster and cause only temporary, tolerable pain and burning. New technologies have allowed everyone to get closer to the art of tattooing, as now people can be tattooed painlessly and can consider a tattoo as an adornment of their own body.

Tattooing, which in its primitive form was very crude, later became one of the most refined arts.

Maori tattoos are great because they tell the story of their bearers, they are like a business card that anyone can read. A tattoo reminds us of something important, exalts our qualities and strengthens our spirit.

The traditional Maori tattoo style is a whole series of coded elements used to tell the story of the life of the person who has the unique tattoo with icons and lines.

As accurately described in “Russian Paleography” by V.N. Shchepkina, “ornament is a rhythmic visual art within a plane. Every ornament consists of repetitions and has a certain frame, expressed or unexpressed. The frame can have various forms, ranging from the simplest to the most complex. Rhythmic units, or repeating artistic elements, are called motifs in ornamentation. The motif acts on us as an artistic unit, i.e. gives the impression of aesthetic unity. The combination of motifs occurs in the ornament completely independently of nature, based on the instincts of symmetry and rhythm.”

Most of the motifs are either borrowed from nature, such as the crescent moon, shark tooth, bird's foot, herringbone and others, or they are not contained in nature, but in Euclidean geometry (point, triangle, angle, etc.), hence the distinction between natural and geometric ornament styles.

Maori ornamentation consists mainly of such motifs as spirals, waves, ribbons and meanders (an ornament composed of right angles folded into a continuous line), creating a compositional whole. The main symbols of Polynesia are present in almost all ornaments:

- continuity through change, life;

- a symbol of eternity and life;

- femininity, abundance;

- strength, power, stamina and perseverance;

- symbol of family and protection;

On the lower parts of the body, especially on the buttocks, men had motifs of large spirals, called “rape”, and an additional “pukhropo” pattern on the hips. Sometimes men also tattooed their chests and wrists, which helped determine their position in the social hierarchy. It happened that representatives of both sexes had a strong tattoo located on different parts of the body, including intimate places, the face, and also on the tongue.

Today, many contemporary artists have appeared on the Internet who take it upon themselves to interpret Maori symbols on their own. These are some of the meanings that the author of The Polynesian Tattoo Handbook puts into tattoo designs.

Polynesian Tattoo Guide:

adaptability, strength, power, water protection

health, longevity, family, navigator

Whale: family, protection

Dolphin: harmony, friendship, protection

wisdom, elegance, freedom

A lion: courage, perseverance

freedom, good news, protection

Butterfly: soul, transformation

friends and family who provide support

Dragonfly: magic, transformation

Phoenix: immortality, eternity, reconstruction

new beginning, peace and tranquility

Wolf: loyalty

Cat: change, adaptability

Fire: change

continuity through change, life

unity, origin

eternity, life, joy, inexhaustible positive energy

femininity, abundance

excellence, overcoming all adversities

warrior, fighter

protection from external troubles and adversities

Scorpion: bravery

strong connection, everlasting love

adaptability

Canoe: adventure

Acne: distress situations

affection, love, shelter, shelter

Seagulls: alertness, the ability to see what is happening from above

Cord: ancestors

Cross: balance, symbol of harmony

good luck in everything

beauty

blessing, peace

courage, masculinity

connections represent past, present and future

stability

Here I would like to remind you that the fauna of the islands was very scarce, and of the four-legged animals there were only rats and dogs, and the latter were readily eaten by the natives. But the plant and aquatic world, on the contrary, were very diverse.

Therefore, I consider the presence of wolves, lions, and especially phoenixes in the ornaments to be incorrect for a Polynesian tattoo.

And this is the tattoo of Duanne Scala Jones, famous throughout the Internet, with the meaning that he put into the symbols and elements.

A) Coconut leaves, or niu, which denote the Samoan chief warrior.

B) This -/a is the sun, which brings good luck.

C) This is isa/ga fa"atasi (three people in one), This is me with open arms, then continues on my chest and connects with my o lo"u to"a/ua (my wife, Dani) and my o lo "u afafine (my daughter, Simone Alexandra).

D) The descending whirlpools represent the past, present and future. The future is getting bigger. The fragment continues under my hand, where its meaning is written.

E) Two eyes, called o mata e lua, represent my ancestors watching my path.

F) Big Eye. It is an intimidating symbol that allows its user to possess the spirit of their enemy. The eye is used to distract the enemy during a confrontation.

G) Damaged face marked with shark teeth - symbol of strength. This is my spiritual patron and a symbol of my struggle.

H) This is the priest and spiritual mentor who trains the warrior to enlightenment and supernatural power under the eyes of the warrior's ancestors.

I) These are stones of achievement and abundance. They are the foundation of my life and the symbols of my dedication, They give the right to stand and speak with honor as a Tula Fale. And they support mana, or supernatural power.

J) Turtle shell to ward off evil spirits. Warriors used shells as shields."

You can, of course, get confused and follow this path, composing your tattoo from symbols close to your heart. But let’s not forget that European symbolism is much more interesting and complex than the symbolism of primitive islanders, caressed by the sea and the sun.

And also, I’ll give here as an example a letter from a beautiful girl, Natalya, who ordered a tattoo from me based on Polynesian motifs: