Inuit Tattoo Traditions

Project Spotlight: An Instagram account by a tattoo artist and researcher shares knowledge about traditional tattoo practices, cultural preservation and contemporary approaches to tattooing.

Indigenous Sovereignty ch’i cha jų̃ kwa’ch’e Jų̃ ts’e’į
A black-and-white photograph shows two women’s hands with finger tattoos, gently resting on each other on a wooden background.
Dazhän akàndür dänkwänji ke shų nenàdhàt.
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Inuit Tattoo Traditions was founded in 2010 by Maya Sialuk Jacobsen.

The relatively new Instagram account offers an introduction to a methodology of research of immaterial and material culture conducted by Maya Sialuk Jacobsen (Qeqertarsuaq, Greenland). The account is devoted to Inuttut Kakiuineq (Inuit tattoo practice) and aspects surrounding the practice both in religion and in the daily life of Inuit prior to colonization.

A black-and-white photograph shows two women’s hands with finger tattoos, gently resting on each other on a wooden background.
PHOTO: MAYA SIALUK JACOBSEN.
A black-and-white photograph of a woman in three-quarter profile, showing a dotted tattoo pattern along her temples.
PHOTO: MAYA SIALUK JACOBSEN.

The research shared on the Instagram account covers all Inuit territories in the circumpolar North, drawing on Maya Sialuk’s cultural background and language as well as academic literature, ethnography, anthropological descriptions and archaeological objects. Maya Sialuk also offers reflections on the ongoing revival of the practice.

A black-and-white photograph shows a woman’s hands with tattoos on the fingers and back of hand.
PHOTO: MAYA SIALUK JACOBSEN.

This story is part of the Greenland Spotlight. View more content from the Spotlight here.

Article Tags

Greenland | Community | Decolonization | Digital Arts | känàdän | (u)ghàałān | uʼǖr | dän | dákwändǖr | Indigenous | Inuit | dákwänjē | Mixed Media | Visual Arts | Ädä̀äkal
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