The Ramnami Samaj are a group of people living in Chhattisgarh in India. They are the only people in this project who cannot be categorised as a tribe. They are simply a sect of Hindu believers who devoutly follow Rama as their god. Their tattooing practice was started as they were not allowed into temples in the past because of their dalit status in the caste system that India’s society operated on. Unlike most Hindu groups, the Ramnami tattoo रामराम […]
The Kui people are a self-sufficient tribe residing mostly in the hills of central Odisha, India. They have a history of human sacrifice and facial tattooing, yet are scarcely documented no matter where one looks. Although their practice of human sacrifice has ceased, animal sacrifice is still common among the villagers. I came across the Kui people as I was searching the Internet for various tattoo-faced peoples of Asia. The world commonly knows them as the Kutia Kondh (an Oriya […]
The Ollo are a Naga people living in both Arunachal Pradesh in India and the Naga Self Administered Zone of Myanmar. They are also known as Lazu Naga or Oloh, but the current official spelling of the tribal name is Ollo. In Arunachal Pradesh, they live in the restricted area of Lazu District. Although currently considered to be a sub-group of the Nocte people, they are petitioning to be recognised as an independent group based on their unique culture, language, […]
The Hiatuii are a small group within the greater Chin Nation. Their numbers are not exact, but village heads say there are only 10 villages containing a total of approximately 2000 of Hiatuii people. They are all dotted between the larger groups of Ng’hang and Vet along the Laymro and Tin rivers in Chin State, Myanmar. As far as the village elders know, there are only 5 living ladies with the Hiatuii facial tattoo. One thing that makes the Hiatuii […]
Residing along the banks of the north-western Laymyo River in Chin State, Myanmar, the Vet are a sub-group of the people known as Chin. As with all the Chin groups, they have their own history and culture that has some links to the tribes nearby. As with many of the groups in the area, the Vet also tattooed their young women in the past. The Vet have a tattoo that is almost indistinguishable from their neighbours, the Ng’hang. The Vet […]
The Ng’hang people live on the banks of the north-west Laymyo River. To their south, the Lai Tu people can be found. Further upstream, the Vet, Uppu, and Hiatuii live in villages dotting the river. The Ng’hang are the most populous people in this area and their influences can be seen in many other villages. The Ng’hang tattoo, as with all Chin groups in recent times, was done as a coming of age for young girls. For many, it was […]
The Kaang people fall under the Chin Nation, as with the other peoples in this section. They can be recognised by their dotted tattoo pattern with lines breaking it, typically across the forehead, nose, and cheeks. They are also recognisable for their huge earrings. In the past, a woman of beauty for the Kaang people was considered one who had the perfect tattoo, many necklaces, and the biggest earrings. They are from the Mindat area of southern Chin State. Although […]
Coming soon.
The Yindu are one of the smaller groups of Chin people. Many of their villages are quite remote and their culture is not as well preserved or remembered as some of the other groups. Some of the tattooed elders still keep their traditional clothing and some of the men recall their traditions. The tattoo is one of the more intricate and painful among the Chin peoples and was often completed over four or five separate sessions so the girls could […]