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Tattoo Traditions of Hawaii
Anthropologist and tattooist Tricia Allen has harnessed centuries of knowledge about Hawaiian tattoos and has created this fascinating, comprehensive reference book that can be enjoyed by both tattoo enthusiasts and cultural scholars. Tattoo Traditions of Hawaii describes the evolution of Hawaiian tattooing as an art and science tracing it from its early roots in ancient Polynesia; presents motif, meaning, placement, tools and techniques along with personal observations and commentary in meticulous and graphic detail; discusses contemporary Hawaiian tattooing within the context of contact with the Western world; and includes drawings of designs and patterns for ideas and consideration.
218 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 25, 2025
Loved the visuals and analysis of early accounts of Hawaiian kākau. This was a great read for me, someone looking to learn more about the prevalence of tattooing in early Hawaiian societies.
August 29, 2018
This is a riveting little book-- a unique little gem. First off, the author is both an outsider and an insider to this tradition-- she's a haole woman anthropologist from the mainland, and a serious scholar in Hawaiian tattoo arts. And she's a highly respected tattooist in Hawaii, marking the bodies of Hawaiians looking for traditional references to their ancestors' bodies, and non Hawaiians who are connected to the Hawaiian tradition. This is interesting and a little disorienting, because so much of our belief about traditional knowledge gets tangled up with race, class, and stereotype. In this era of the horrible aspersion of "cultural appropriation" the reality of who gets to do what and for what reason when it comes to cultural practice is more nuanced and complex than we are usually comfortable with admitting. It's simpler to draw racial and cultural lines and squat xenophobically on either side. But that's not the reality.
The structure of this little book is very orderly. She includes all of the earliest written descriptions and artistic renderings (in all their awe, bias, and contradiction) from the first haole visitors--explorers, missionaries, and traders--to Hawaii. This part of history tends to get flattened out in the retelling-- the complexity of the time lost to the sad story of what ultimately happened to the independent island kingdoms, and then their united Kingdom of Hawaii. A story of enlightened Edenic natives vs despoiling avaricious colonizers leaves out the interesting curlicues and strange interchanges that are the reality of any period where humans interact with other humans.
But back to tattoos. In the earliest written records, both by haole and Hawaiian sources, it's clear that Tattooing was a widespread practice, but not ubiquitous. It was significant, with death dates, family names, and mourning tattoos on the tongue marking important events and losses. It marked genealogy. It was a part of kapu-- and especially connected to women's mana and ability to perform spiritually dangerous tasks, like give birth, play the ipu, dance hula, prepare food, and prepare the bodies of the dead. It was also a reflection of trends and fashion-- when goats came to the islands, they became a popular subject for tattoos! So queens were known to have beautiful rings of goats, like pictographs, around their collarbones.
The tradition itself was passed on "vertically, not horizontally," which means that in certain places, norms and tools and symbolic meanings were taught between family members. So although tattoos existed from the earliest days all over the islands, their meaning was not set by a rigid iconography. Deep kaona exists, of course, in every shape and line-- but what that kaona is is determined by the land, the family, and the individual.
And while the tattoos were deeply significant, the tattoo art itself was not a set or sacred practice in Hawaii, in the same way it was in other Polynesian cultures. Basically, anybody with a gift for art and a willingness could provide the tattoo marks for a person wanting to be marked. Even ships' artists were sought after for popular tattoo designs like fans, rifles, and birds. I love this-- people are curious and adventurous and generous, and any time cultures come together, things blend in interesting ways.
Anyway. I've maybe spent an outsized amount of time on the first part of the book because I thought it was so compelling, and I'm a well-meaning haole lady with a degree in anthropology who sort of accidentally stumbled deep into Hawaiian language and culture. In a few weeks I'm receiving a Hawaiian tattoo in the traditional style. Back when I first started thinking about it, a Hawaiian friend said that Kakau Ma'i are traditionally the first tattoos that people got. I filed that away... and when, years later, i went to make my tattoo appointment with a big island artist, I couldn't find any other information about that kakau ma'i with even my most skillful google-fu! This little book does describe them though-- yet another reason to read books instead of relying on google, kids! But I identified with that strange in-between place of being an outsider on the inside or an insider on the outside. The author utterly does not put that identity muddle center stage but i perceived it as the backdrop of the whole project.
In spite of my lopsided review, the bulk of the book is actually first hand stories of Hawaiians with traditional tattoos, describing why they got them, their relationship to them, and in some cases their personal meanings, with gorgeous photos. And the last section is tattoo artists and practitioners who do traditional tattooing telling about their beliefs about and relationship with traditional Hawaiian tattoo. It's a fantastic little book for people who love Hawaii, art, tattoos, anthropology, history-- nā poʻe a pau loa.
The structure of this little book is very orderly. She includes all of the earliest written descriptions and artistic renderings (in all their awe, bias, and contradiction) from the first haole visitors--explorers, missionaries, and traders--to Hawaii. This part of history tends to get flattened out in the retelling-- the complexity of the time lost to the sad story of what ultimately happened to the independent island kingdoms, and then their united Kingdom of Hawaii. A story of enlightened Edenic natives vs despoiling avaricious colonizers leaves out the interesting curlicues and strange interchanges that are the reality of any period where humans interact with other humans.
But back to tattoos. In the earliest written records, both by haole and Hawaiian sources, it's clear that Tattooing was a widespread practice, but not ubiquitous. It was significant, with death dates, family names, and mourning tattoos on the tongue marking important events and losses. It marked genealogy. It was a part of kapu-- and especially connected to women's mana and ability to perform spiritually dangerous tasks, like give birth, play the ipu, dance hula, prepare food, and prepare the bodies of the dead. It was also a reflection of trends and fashion-- when goats came to the islands, they became a popular subject for tattoos! So queens were known to have beautiful rings of goats, like pictographs, around their collarbones.
The tradition itself was passed on "vertically, not horizontally," which means that in certain places, norms and tools and symbolic meanings were taught between family members. So although tattoos existed from the earliest days all over the islands, their meaning was not set by a rigid iconography. Deep kaona exists, of course, in every shape and line-- but what that kaona is is determined by the land, the family, and the individual.
And while the tattoos were deeply significant, the tattoo art itself was not a set or sacred practice in Hawaii, in the same way it was in other Polynesian cultures. Basically, anybody with a gift for art and a willingness could provide the tattoo marks for a person wanting to be marked. Even ships' artists were sought after for popular tattoo designs like fans, rifles, and birds. I love this-- people are curious and adventurous and generous, and any time cultures come together, things blend in interesting ways.
Anyway. I've maybe spent an outsized amount of time on the first part of the book because I thought it was so compelling, and I'm a well-meaning haole lady with a degree in anthropology who sort of accidentally stumbled deep into Hawaiian language and culture. In a few weeks I'm receiving a Hawaiian tattoo in the traditional style. Back when I first started thinking about it, a Hawaiian friend said that Kakau Ma'i are traditionally the first tattoos that people got. I filed that away... and when, years later, i went to make my tattoo appointment with a big island artist, I couldn't find any other information about that kakau ma'i with even my most skillful google-fu! This little book does describe them though-- yet another reason to read books instead of relying on google, kids! But I identified with that strange in-between place of being an outsider on the inside or an insider on the outside. The author utterly does not put that identity muddle center stage but i perceived it as the backdrop of the whole project.
In spite of my lopsided review, the bulk of the book is actually first hand stories of Hawaiians with traditional tattoos, describing why they got them, their relationship to them, and in some cases their personal meanings, with gorgeous photos. And the last section is tattoo artists and practitioners who do traditional tattooing telling about their beliefs about and relationship with traditional Hawaiian tattoo. It's a fantastic little book for people who love Hawaii, art, tattoos, anthropology, history-- nā poʻe a pau loa.
September 6, 2020
Super informative! I appreciate the inclusion of Kanaka voices sharing personal connections to the Tatau. Beautiful photographs as well.
April 8, 2007
This is one of the best books on the Tattoo history of the Hawaiian people. If you are thinking about getting some ink, check this book out.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews