Thousands of years old art
Tattooing is a form of marking with ink on the body, thereby changing skin pigmentation, for aesthetic purposes, to create impressions or other purposes. Tattooing has been around since the Neolithic period. Many mummies have been found from the 5th millennium BC in Egypt or Siberia. Some of the famous mummies have tattoos such as Ötzi the Iceman, the mummy of Amunet,...
Tattoo art appears widely around the world: the Ainu people in Japan, the Berbers in North Africa, the Maori people in New Zealand, the tribes of the Pacific dugout region, the Americas, Europe, the Philippines, and Cambodia. ,... Despite the taboo surrounding tattooing, this art is still becoming more and more popular.
Right in Vietnam, in the book of Vietnamese anecdotes, Nguyen Khac Thuan wrote: one of the oldest customs of the Vietnamese people is tattooing, which lasted until the end of the 13th century and the womens skull sweatshirt beginning of the 14th century. Some people say that, because of this custom, the name of the first country of the Vietnamese was Van Lang.
Tattoos have existed for a long time
Regarding the cause of this custom, the book Linh Nam Chic Quai (Hong Bang Thi Story) records: At that time, people in the mountains who went to the water to fish were often injured by the stream, so together they told the king about it. . The king said, “The varieties in the mountains are different from those in the water. The species in the water only like what is similar to us and hate what is different from us, so we are harmed.” Then, the king ordered everyone to take the color of the water monster tattoo on their body. From then on, no more injuries caused by the flux. The custom of drawing oneself of Bach Viet people started since then.
In order to confirm the reason for tattooing of the ancient Vietnamese, the Dictionary of Vietnamese Rituals also records: Ancient Vietnamese from 2000-3000 years ago had the custom of tattooing water monsters (dragons, snakes ..) on their stomach, chest, etc. back, legs, arms…. Legend has it that in the past, people used to swim in rivers to find food, so they tattooed their bodies to avoid being harmed by sea monsters and mingle with animals in the water, from which they could hunt them.

The Dong Son bronze drum tattoo stands out on the man's calf
Today, the custom of tattooing to fight water monsters or to show solidarity and bravery against foreign invaders is no longer there. Instead, the tattoo trends and habits of young people show their love for "artistic" tattoos or express their own personality. Therefore, many different forms of tattoo art were born.
According to Mr. Vuong, a long-time tattooist in the profession (resident in Ha Dong, Hanoi), tattoos are classified as "traditional" such as lotus flowers, cranes on Dong Son bronze drums, etc. dragon, phoenix... These are all tattoos that have existed for thousands of years, over time that can be "innovative", more creative, but all have sacred meanings.
Not only "People, brothers and sisters"
Nowadays, the old stereotypes about tattoos have become blurred. People no longer see tattoos as a sign of crime or low class culture. Instead, people have more positive thinking about it as a special art of beauty.
However, up to now, the 21st century tattoo has not been recognized by the entire society as other normal arts, especially in Asian countries like Vietnam. Although it is accepted and allowed, there are still a few people who still "denigrate" tattooing. Extremely rude words for people with tattoos or tattoo artists of a large part of society make the view with this art is at an extremely one-sided level.
Previously, tattoos were often used by "elder" and "elder" people to show their strength and dominance. But over the years, that concept still exists in society - anyone with a tattoo also becomes a skull apparel playboy, likes to show off, but has Gypsy blood in them. In fact, tattoos are not bad by default. It is truly a beauty art. The tattoo artist is also an artist who creates beauty.
A study conducted by experts from the University of Miami (USA), said that owning a tattoo is now no longer stigmatized. On the contrary, it helps candidates look more fashionable and personality, easily winning sympathy from employers. More surprisingly, the percentage of people with tattoos is increasing, even more in some professions than those without tattoos.