The 10 Best Tattoo Artists In New Orleans

The word tattoo, or tattow in the 18th century, is a loanword from the Samoan wordtatau, meaning "to strike". The Oxford English Dictionary gives the etymology of tattoo as "In 18th c. tattaow, tattow. FromPolynesian (Samoan, Tahitian, Tongan, etc.) tatau. InMarquesan, tatu." Ahead of the importation of thePolynesian word, the practice of tattooing had been described in the West aspainting, scarring or staining.The etymology of the physique modification term is not to be confused withthe origins of the word for the military drumbeat or performance — see military tattoo. In this case, theEnglish word tattoo is derived from the Dutch word taptoe.The initial written reference to the word tattoo (or tatau)appears in the journal of Joseph Banks (24 February 1743 – 19 June 1820),the naturalist aboard explorer James Cook's ship HMS Endeavour: "I shall nowmention the way they mark themselves indelibly, each and every of them is so marked by their humour or disposition".[5] The word tattoowas brought to Europe by Cook, when he returned in 1769 from his 1st voyage to Tahiti and New Zealand. In his narrative of the voyage,he refers to an operation known as "tattaw".

Tattoo enthusiasts might refer to tattoos as "ink","pieces", "skin art", "tattoo art", "tats" or "work"; to the creators as "tattooartists", "tattooers" or "tattooists"; and to places where they perform as "tattoo shops", "tattoostudios" or "tattoo parlors".Mainstream art galleries hold exhibitions of each standard and custom tattoo designs, such as Beyond Skin, at the Museumof Croydon. Copyrighted tattoo styles that are mass-developed and sent to tattoo artists are recognized as"flash", a notable instance of industrial style.[8] Flashsheets are prominently displayed in numerous tattoo parlorsfor the purpose of deliveringboth inspiration and prepared-made tattooimages to buyers.

The Japanese word irezumi indicates "insertion of ink"and can imply tattoos using tebori, thetraditional Japanese hand technique, a Western-style machine or any technique of tattooing utilizing insertion of ink.The most frequent word used for conventional Japanese tattoodesigns is horimono. Japanese might use the wordtattoo to imply non-Japanese types of tattooing.