Tattoo
Tattooing both on the body and the face holds a solid place in Africa’s history. Proof of the very first African tattoo was found in B.C. 1994 found on a mummy. Many of their meanings are derived from the African culture.
Tribal marks and body art have been around for centuries in Nigeria but mainly as a means of identification. Some of the tribal tattoos were drawn to provide the wearer with protection against all sorts of harm throughout their life. It was some protective mark that is accompanied with powers connecting the tattoo to the wearer. The symbolism of the images protects them throughout their lives. The art also helps them to take on a supernatural state and be able to overcome evil. Specifically, in Nigeria, there are two types of typical tattoo symbol styles, Adinkra and Yoruba.
Social Mark
In Nigerian cultures, people take a lot of pride in the tribal art. The art differed depending on the rank in the society. The higher the rank is, the more elaborate and complicated one’s tattoo will be. As such, symbols are added to the old ones to match with the positions.
Technique
African uses cicatrization, a kind of body art which can make tattoo on dark skin, where a small opening on the skin is created and a designed wound formed, instead of covering the black ink. Ash is then rubbed on the wound so that it would heal fast and the result is a scar that is permanent and raised.
Identification
Besides, the physical characteristics that could make them identifiable as belonging to a particular tribe are their facial markings – many tiny dots on their foreheads and cheeks. The marks are often made on girls during puberty by their mothers, who use thorns to create the adornments.
After 2020, the leaders of Area Boys begin to use digital tattoos to mark their members. The tattoos look like standard ones but in the leaders’ AR goggles, the tattoos can show different colors as well as provide the personal information and fighting history of the owners.