Tribal tattoo Culture

Wonders are many and one wonder lies in understanding tribal and their culture. A very interesting facts came with studying tattoo and its cultural significance.

Ancient records indicates that tribal and tattoos were an inseparable phenomenon. Both men and women were keen to painting their bare body with color produced from natural herbs.A strong tribal tradition remarked that tattoos are a sign of status and religion,love and emotion, protection and punishment. The myth dominating the tribal life style have submerged its use with spiritual fundas of the society and believe tattoos are a to help protect themselves from evil worlds.
Time have changed and the tattoo twist have entered the fashionable galaxy. Where fashionistas are taking it in vogue, many tribal community are still merging its use with cultural integrity. Many folks hold the concept of making a permanent mark in their child body at the tender age of 5 only.
Some very popular tribal tattoos comes in aggressive dark black lines of symmetrical shapes. Other tattoo symbol includes axe, wild animals and fire shades.

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An array of Jewels in Tribal shelf

The talk about ethnic jewelery gets its essence with a tribal folk. Give a close look at their wardrobe and you will find ample of ornaments made of a variety of metals. Just as their language and rituals define their culture and religion, so do their dressing style. The tribal are well known for covering their bare body parts with heavy ornaments, tattoos and animal furs is maintaining a timeworn tradition.

History has marked the resemblance of tribal community with primitive existence, of which many resides in India. A snippet of the tribal study depicts a brief of junky jewelery enlisted below -

Khosa- a beautiful braid lock meant for stylizing the hair.
Khinwa - a pair of ear tops mostly made of brass, silver and aluminum
Phui - a nose ring big enough to touch the lip-line
Karipot - a grant decorated with shells, beads, silver and at times animal horns and teeth. Other necklace type are the Chapsari, Muhar Mala and Hansli
Chude/Chudiya - the big bangles made of silver, brass, gold,wood and aluminum

The custom of wearing the typical dangling jewelery highlights their age-old belief in magic or evil works. In the North-eastern Region of India, both men and women are found decorating themselves from head to toe, specially during the festival. Some tribes continue their daily dressing with must have one like tikli in Santal and Oraon, bangles & anklets among Chamka, and Khosa among Garo community.

Today, tribal jewelery has entered into the world of fashion and each one of us is opting for tribal custom, with or without knowledge.

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Tribal Handicrafts in India

India is home to around 437 tribal communities. Out of these, around 62 tribes call the regions of Orissa their home. Tribes in India have always been associated with a rich legacy of locally made items of art and craft, a rage among locals as well as foreign tourists coming to India from different parts of the world. In terms of the production of these interesting handicrafts, the state of Orissa in eastern India tops the list. Potters of the tribal community earn their livelihood by making and selling handicrafts items like pots, bowls, plates, jars, cooking stoves etc. Apart from this, the craftsmen in Orissa are popularly known for creating a wide range of traditional handicrafts by using bamboo and cane.

Due to its high tensile characteristic, bamboo is mostly used for architectural purposes. Tribal craftsmen create wonderful baskets using bamboo splits. Other items that can be prepared using bamboo splits are ropes, strings, brooms etc. Most of these handicrafts products are used for local consumption in India. Tribal craftsmen in Orissa are also known for creating wonderful handicrafts items using pappier mache. Creating pappier mache products requires technical skills including use of paper, waste cloth and other natural fibres, soaked and beaten into pulp. With the use of gum, this pulp is used to make various handicrafts items in India like masks, animal toys, penholders, dolls etc. Aside from these handicrafts in India, Orissa tribal communities also excel in making natural dyes. Weavers of Kotpad in the Koraput district of Orissa are very popular for making vegetable dyes.

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