Tattoo is a symbol that we choose to embed in our skin for the deeper meaning it conveys. It can be defined as a symbol or a drawing that tells a story without the usage of the words. Using of symbols to communicate dates from the ancient times, and although we have developed the modern means of communication, importance of symbols still hasn’t diminished. Symbolism has a very important role in our everyday lives, and different symbols may have a profound significance to us and our surroundings.
In the process of choosing the right tattoo design, importance of symbolism is present more than ever. We are often guided by our lifestyle and/or religious beliefs, so the tattoo symbol that we choose will be something that is deeply connected with the very core of our being, something that adds to our personality and compliments it.

You have probably seen many tattoo designs and pondered over what their meaning might be. You might have found out that a particular symbol has a meaning which is not in accord with your own values, although you liked the symbol itself. If that happens, you should consider if the connection is really obvious or not. Let us say that you love Hyacinths very much, and yellow ones at that. You love them so much that you are considering to include them in your new tattoo design. However, you have found out on the Internet that the symbolic meaning of yellow Hyacinths is jealousy, which is something you would never want to convey with your tattoo. If that is a case, you need not worry, that kind of symbolism is on the Internet for the entertainment purposes only and there is no reason you should stick to it and not get a tattoo done. If you have your own reason and value regarding some symbol, you should forget about every other meaning, because your own bears much deeper importance and is far more personal.

Tattoos often express your deeper interest or an involvement in a certain community. Such tattoos are family, pride or tribal tattoos. Family tattoos date far back in the history of tattooing, from Maori and Polynesian tribes, tattooing their whole family histories on their body, to medieval times in the history of northern Europe, where the noblemen had tattoos of their family crests applied on their arms.
Pride tattoos convey the meaning of belonging somewhere and of gained freedom. There are also gang tattoos or group tattoos that express belonging to a certain group or passion towards some movement. One such group is Hell Angels, a motorcycle group, which is also widely known for the tattoo designs it inspired.

Tattoo designs inspired by religious and spiritual beliefs are also widely common, and such designs often incorporate Christian cross and other religions’ sacred symbols.

Another popular group of tattoo designs carries symbols such as flowers, cartoon characters, astrology symbols. Also there are many tattoos that represent words, often expressed in some oriental script, such as Kanji. However, getting a tattoo in a language other than your own bears a risk of altering the whole meaning of the symbol, by a simple misplaced line.