#29 Tattoos

Hawaiian Tattoos are no longer what they used to mean, but that doesn't mean they don't mean something.  What?  Who really knows? There is art, fine art and body art.  The ancient Hawaiians had no form of written language, which means that everything; stories, legends, family history, the old family pig roasting recipes, fishing spots, the winners of special sporting events and much much more were all memorized in chants.  Otherwise, the only other form of written history of Hawaiians are in their cultural tattoos.  Today, the only form of written history of Hawaii's people are found in their tattoos.

Tattoos yesterday and today represented different things.  In the past, it was a method of tribal identification. Chiefs in Samoa still receive ceremonial tattoo rituals, such practices have long ceased in the Hawaiian islands for the lack of chiefs.  Tattoos also took the shape of 'aumakua or animal guardians who offered protection (Hawaiians are very superstitious).  Hawaiians are now fashioned with arm-band tattoos (by the way, it was created in the 70's), and other sorts of tattoos that have less traditional meanings and displayed more often due to faddism.

The popularity of these traditional, non-traditional tattoos have grown due to a number of things.  The Hawaiian renaissance, a period when Hawaiians began shaping a modern identity for themselves due to the revival of various Hawaiian practices and traditions, sparked an interest in tattooing.  The University of Hawaii football team with their players and their uniform.  The sports announcers never ceased to educate the national public about the significance of the Hawaiian uniforms white triangular patterns that could be seen on the pant leg, arms and seems of the jersey.  Very fitting for the only school in the nation to don a uniform that represents a small warrior nation in the middle of the Pacific.  As for the players, it seems that every player on the UH football team has some visible tattoo to go with their dreadlocks or lion mane coming out of the back of their helmets.

Hawaiians that get tattoos to show who they are on the outside are not as important as the Hawaiian that show they are Hawaiian from the inside.  Stay Hawaiian is not about following fads or pop culture, or even submitting our traditions to an over-taking way of life, but instead, it's about leading Hawaiians into a modern era, celebrating and sharing our differences and preserving our honor by moving forward.