Traditional Meaning of Sparrow Tattoos
Tattoos and the meaning behind individual tattoos are always a matter of debate. It depends on the person wearing the tattoo more then anything else as the person who got the tattoo has some reason and thought behind it. This is further complicated because some tattoos have a very long history and the meaning and symbolism behind them has been changed over time as different groups of people and people in different locations ascribe different meaning to the tattoos.
So for example what one group of sailors might assign as a meaning to a tattoo in England would be very different in the United States. So tattoos and the meaning behind them is different depending on the country, person and time period.
However there are some pretty common uses of sparrow tattoos over the history of tattoo art and therefore some common meanings behind them.
Sparrows are a small, fast bird that lives close to land since they do not fly very far. Thus the first meaning or significance of the sparrow tattoo came from sailors. Sailors orginated most of the classic tattoo designs and sparrow tattoos are no different. Sparrow were seen as a symbol of good luck. Since they flew close to land then a sailor would know he was close to land once he saw a sparrow flying by the ship. This was a good sign as it meant a safe end to a dangerous journey.
Over time sailors started ascribing certain meaning behind differnt sparrow colors and tattoo designs. Most of these have been lost and obscured over time. However, it is known that a person would get a sparrow tattoo after making a long significant journey for example after crossing the equato or other such long journey.
Modern Meaning Of Sparrow Tattoos
Today sparrow tattoos have taking on a variety of different meanings. Again depending on the time and place a tattoo canmean a very different thing.
Yet like in history certain aspects of how sparrow live have given credence to certain meanings and symbols behind them as tattoos. For example sparrows typically only mate with one other bird and stay with each other for their entire life. This is not typically of many animals and esepcially many other specieis of birds as they will more often mate with different mates. This has lead sparrows to become a symbol for loyalty. So one significant meaning behind a sparrow tattoo can be loyalty to a loved one of just loyalty in general.
Since sparrows can fly great distances they are often thought of as being free. Therefore sparrow tattoos can also symbolize freedom. Thus many people who have spent time in jail get sparrow tattoos to represent their freedom from jail.
Some people also get sparrow tattoos on their fists. Sparrows are very fast flying birds and the beliefe is that sparrows onthe fist will help have a fast punch in a fight or fast fists. Therefore some people get sparrow tattoos on their fists.
Sparrow Tattoo Designs:
The sailors were among the first people to popularize this tattoo and that explains the popularity of the nautical theme. The combination of nautical star tattoos and other oceanic symbols with this sparrow tattoos is quite popular. Tattoo artists also incorporate ships, stars and flags in the sparrow tattoo designs. You just need to be creative and sparrow tattoo ideas can be used for beautifying a larger tattoo. You could have a tattoo showing a sparrow hovering over a coastline or diving into the water. The memorial tattoo designs generally show the sparrows holding a banner mentioning the name of the person being memorialized. Using calligraphy for the name would be a great idea.
Another popular design is showing two or three sparrows diving towards the nautical star. This tattoo design is symbolic of the freedom to love and be loved in return. You could also use other design elements and tattoos to make your tattoo more meaningful. If you don’t want a big tattoo, you could just have a simple sparrow tattoo. The art lies in the use of beautiful colors. This can be inked anywhere on your shoulder, arm, chest and feet.
For sparrow tattoos for girls, you could add flowers, butterflies, hearts and other popular tattoo designs. You could have two sparrows to symbolize profound love. Sparrows carrying a rose or a necklace in their beak, a flying sparrow, or a sparrow perched on a branch are all popular sparrow tattoo ideas. Sparrow tattoos have become more popular with girls since the character of Jack Sparrow was played superbly by Johnny Depp in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean.
Several designs have come up since then. Ideas for sparrow tattoos for guys could include sparrow tattoo on the back, memorial sparrow tattoo, or including sparrow tattoo as a part of a bigger tattoo. You could make a sparrow against a rising sun or around the waves of the sea. You could have a cartoon-styled image or a more realistic version of the sparrow. Whether you use this as a memorial tattoo or as a tattoo symbolizing your principles, it simply looks perfect.
