Japanese Tattoos

Japanese tattoos can be from simple to incredibly intricate in style, and are both aesthetically pleasing and can carry a vast amount of significance for the wearer. Based on the myriad design choices and the incredible history these tattoos have, a Japanese tattoo may be the perfect option for you.

Perhaps simply because of its exoticism, Japanese culture has mystified the Western world. Through architecture, movies, religion and tattoos, much of this ancient oriental tradition has been passed to the occident. The writing style most commonly used in Japanese tattoo design is called Kanji. While the characters of this calligraphy are rather simplistic, the diversity of meanings each symbol carries perfectly epitomizes the essence of the concise yet profound Japanese culture. Practically anything can be expressed through Kanji’s short and straight lines.

Japanese tattoos can also be flooded with images both fantastic and realistic. Typical Asian emblems such as dragons and koi fish are wildly popular, but you can also go a less popular route with the qilin, which brings good luck, peace and prosperity. Other popular Japanese images are the cherry blossoms and the lotus.

Much like the famed Japanese screens, tattoos can feature puffy white clouds, and the classic-style wavy wind and waves. Mimicking the ukiyo-e or “pictures of the floating world”, these images are most often found on traditional Japanese woodcuts. It might be interesting to take a scene from your own life or something uniquely special to you and alter it into a Japanese-style theme.

It is also popular to dream up an entire Japanese scene, intricately connected through signs and symbols, lettering and images that may cover large parts of the body such as your back. These large tattoos are so common that they have specific names in Japanese. A nagasode, or sleeve tattoo in English, covers the entire arm from below the shoulder to the wrist. Getting more specific, a shichibu is 7/10ths of the sleeve and a gobu is 5/10ths. A hikae, or chest panel tattoo, is a classic placement, which begins at the the chest and continues onto the shoulder, and sometimes over to the upperarm.

If you are especially adventurous you can do what many people have done and tattoo a large portion of your body, from neck to mid-thigh, with images from the Suikoden, a classic Chinese four volume piece of literature. These stories became hugely popular in Japan when they were interpreted on to woodcuts in 1827. Often done in bright and bold colors, these tattoos are best for people who strongly associate with Eastern culture, and perhaps either share or have studied its rich heritage.