The Maori tattoo, known by the likes of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, is a tattoo that is very popular with the general public. However, this tattoo also has a deeper meaning and especially a deeper history. For some people, the beautiful style of the tattoo is enough to be convinced, but for those people who also like to find the meaning behind a certain type of tattoo important, we want to take a moment to explain the meaning!

The meaning of a Maori tattoo

The Maori tattoo originated in New Zealand. Specifically from the island’s original inhabitants. These inhabitants are called the Maori. The styles we see in tattoos today are based on the decorations the Maori used to have applied to their faces or other places on the body through scratching. Each Maori tribe used to have its own patterns, and so those patterns were applied in the “tattoos.

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The tattoo brought with it a certain status. Indeed, originally, only members of the tribe were tattooed. This allowed one to see immediately whether the person was a member of a tribe, and in many cases it was then immediately clear which tribe the person was a member of. Therefore, when one did not have a tattoo it immediately stood for a lower social status.

In addition, certain patterns on specific parts of the body also equated to certain “ranks” within the tribe. The tribal chief was always immediately visible by his “face scratches.

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Meaning patterns within a Maori Tattoo

With Maori Tattoos, there are an awful lot of different symbols and patterns that all have their own meaning. We briefly explain the meaning of each pattern below:

1. Unaunahi: This pattern represents health and abundance.

2. Ahu Ahu Mataroa: This pattern represents (sports) achievements, new challenges and talent.

3. Taratarekae: This pattern represents strength and feeling.

4. Hikuaua: This pattern represents prosperity and prosperity

5. Pakati: This pattern represents courage, strength and struggle.

In addition, there are an awful lot of symbols that also have interesting meanings attached to them. Definitely worth delving further into that when looking for a Maori Tattoo.

Maori Tattoo in the Netherlands

There are sometimes some questions regarding getting a Maori tattoo in the Netherlands. Indeed, some people wonder if it would be culturally inappropriate to get such a tattoo. After all, it does represent a certain group of people who have historically given it value. Fortunately, there are no crooked faces around this topic. No one finds it a problem when you get a Maori tattoo in the Netherlands or as a Dutchman.

The next question that often comes up then is whether there are any real experts who do Maori tattoos in the Netherlands. This is absolutely the case, and one of the experts in Maori tattoos in the Netherlands is Falcon Ink, based in Geleen.

Falcon Ink has several top international artists who regularly come to our location in the Netherlands. This includes experts on Maori tattoos.

Interested in a Maori tattoo in the Netherlands? Then feel free to request a free intake interview. Falko is happy to assist you!

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