In the interests of research and as an ongoing barometer of popular culture we have decided to provide you with a weekly update of the Top Ten Weekly Tattoo Designs Search.

You can access the archived weekly lists on this page.

The Top 10 Tattoo Designs and Symbols, based on our site searches ending 7/14/06.

It's been an interesting week in Top Ten Tattoo Designs of the Week as we get a strange melange of the classic tattoo designs and a generous sprinkling of the new rising to the top.

Speaking of tattoo designs, both old and new, our good friend and world-renowned Vancouver tattoo artist Thomas Lockhart is supplying the tattoo art and ink for the popular Mark Burnett reality television series, Rockstar: Supernova, The Tommy Lee Project.

In its second season, Rockstar: Supernova is auditioning aspiring rock stars to front a new band led by Tommy Lee, formerly of Motley Crew, to be called Supernova.

Thomas was approached by Microsoft's MSN earlier this spring and asked to provide tattoo-inspired artwork in keeping with the rock and roll traditions of body art to use on the Rockstar web site. The results are inspired.

Thomas penned a full tattoo back piece that serves as the interactive backdrop for the front page of the Rockstar web site. Visitors to the web site can click on the various tattoo designs that make up the back piece and navigate around the site.

Lockhart's bio is carried here.

My favorite tattoos? It's a toss-up between Tom's water dragon and the koi with scales that look like piano keys!

1. Star/Stars - Rising from number two to the top spot this week. Stars are often encountered as symbols, and in many cases the meaning of a particular star symbol may depend upon the number points it has, and sometimes the orientation of these points as well. As a light shining in the darkness, the star is often considered a symbol of truth, of the spirit and of hope. The symbol of the star embodies the concept of the divine spark within each of us. Their nocturnal nature leads stars to represent the struggle against the forces of darkness and the unknown. See the Nautical Star, a star with its own special meaning.

1. Tribal / Maori Tattoos - Down a spot. Tribal tattoo designs continue to dominate tattoo design searches. Interestingly, an analysis of tattoo design searches probably reveals that women spend more time online looking for tattoo designs than men.

Tribal Tattoos account for nearly a third of all tattoo design search requests, and the term "tribal" of course covers an astonishing array of tattoo design possibilities, from the traditional tribal tattoos of indigenous and aboriginal cultures, to the latest in graphic design for the body.

Maori tattooing is a distinct school of patterns and graphic designs within Polynesian tattooing. While much of Polynesian tattooing is derived from straight-line geometric patterns (and thought to originate with patterns found on ancient Lapita pottery shards such as have been discovered in Samoa), a design fact which rose in part because the traditional Polynesian tattoo combs are best suited to linear designs, Maori tattooing is essentially curvilinear, and the mainstay of Maori designs are based on the spiral. It should be noted that renowned traditional Hawaiian artist Keone Nunes has demonstrated that it is possible to reproduce complex curved designs using traditional Polynesian tattooing implements.

Maori tattooing is distinguished by the use of bold lines and the repetition of specific design motifs that are prominent both in the tattooing or "moko" of the Maori people of New Zealand and within other cultural artworks suck as carving and weaving. A traditional Maori tattoo artist -- the tohunga ta moko -- could produce two different types of pattern: that based on a pigmented line, and another, the puhoro, based on darkening the background and leaving the pattern unpigmented; as clear skin. Within Maori facial tattoos it is possible to discern two spiral patterns very similar to the fern frond, or koru, that is a repeating motif common to Maori art, including tattooing or "moko", painting and carving, in both wood, bone and greenstone.

Traditionally Maori tattoo artists followed very specific rules laid out for facial "moko" or tattoos. It is important to note that because of the tremendous cultural complexity of New Zealand's many tribes and clans, these rules often had local variations. But the idea that the tattoos followed a set of prescribed rules was widespread, and tattoos were specific to individuals, family, clans and tribes. Maori tattoos follow the contours of the face, and are meant to enhance the natural contours and expressions of an individual's face. A well-executed tattoo would trace the natural "geography" of an individual's facial features, for example lines along the brow ridge; the major design motifs are symmetrically placed within opposed design fields: lines are used in certain areas where spirals are not used; two types of spiral are used -- the koru, which is not rolled up and has a "clubbed" end, and the rolled spiral. (Ta Moko: The Art of Maori Tattoo, By D.R.Simmons)

An excellent example of a modern, Maori-inspired tribal tattoo is that of heavy-weight champion boxer Mike Tyson. Singer Ben Harper has beautifully executed Maori-inspired tattoo design motifs.

3. Cross/crosses - Up 4 spots this week. A testament to the popularity of the cross tattoo design.  For many people, the idea of a tattoo of a cross may well serve to smooth over any negative feedback they are receiving about getting body art. If you're a nice Christian boy or a girl, and you want a tattoo but don't want to be excommunicated by the local Baptists or tossed out the house by Mom and Dad and make Grandma wail, a cross tattoo seems like a positive compromise.

It testifies to personal faith, shows commitment and is a tough symbol to argue against. The cross may well be an artfully cunning manoeuvre for the Christian who wants to sport ink and cut off the body art opposition before they get to the pass! And for the members of the family who bring up the Bible as opposing tattoos, this will surely spark a lively, fun-filled family discussion about the scriptures - Leviticus. And that can never be a bad thing.

4. Wings - Back in the Top Ten this week. Wings as a tattoo design can often have inspirational or spiritual symbolism. In many myths, wings often have to be earned by their wearer. Wings, often associated with birds, represent speed, elevation, freedom and aspiration.

Wings associated with angels are spiritual, symbolizing enlightenment, guidance and protection - to be taken under the wing - and inspirational.

Wings associated with butterflies, dragonflies, fairies, mythological winged creatures like dragons, griffins, and the winged-horse Pegasus, have an element of the magical about them. As in alchemy and magic, wings can be transformational, allowing an individual access to a previously unattainable state. The presence of wings allows the combination of different elements, earth and sky, wind and fire.

5. Angel/Angels - Holding fast in the number five spot. An angel tattoo design is an overtly religious symbol. Angels are anthropomorphic - meaning in the shape of men - winged forms intended to transmit the word of God to humankind. Angels personify divine will and are the messengers of God. Winged messengers appear in a number of religions as intermediaries between the spiritual and material worlds, but appear most often in Islamic, Jewish but most particularly the Christian faiths. The word angel comes from the Greek 'aggelos', meaning messenger. Angels make frequent appearances in the Christian Bible, not only as messengers of God but also delivering his protection or punishment. Angels act as God's intermediaries, carrying out God's will in the affairs of man.

Symbols closely associated with angels in art include trumpets, harps, swords, sceptres and wands. Angels are usually portrayed as young men with wings and halos, representing their divinity. The representation of angels as Cupid-like young boys or babies, 'putti' did not occur until the period of the Renaissance.

As a tattoo design, an angel is a symbol of devotion, spirituality and faith and signifies a relationship with God. An angel can be intended as a figure of guidance and protection. An angel is often used as the centerpiece of a tattoo that is intended as a memorial.

6. Turtle Tattoos - While often in the Top Twenty-Five, this is the first time we've had the turtle in the Top Ten.

Able to escape the world with the comfort of its shell, there are many people who identify well with this aquatic creature. The spirit of the turtle is one of protection, healing and inner knowledge. The Turtle is considered by some Indigenous North Americans to be one of their the oldest, most sacred symbols. They believed that North America was created on the back of a turtle. To this day most Indigenous peoples refer to North America as Turtle Island.

The medicine of turtle is its deliberate and thorough approach to life; Turtle is also courageous because it makes progress only when it sticks its neck out, and moves forward with patient, steady flow in order to achieve the desired results.

Turtles are also very popular in Polynesian art, and in many myths of the South Pacific, the island atolls that are surrounded by coral reefs and lagoons are the tops of the shells of giant sea turtles!

6. Bikini line tattoo - A first time for this tattoo search in the Top Ten, but not that surprising, as this is a favorite spot for women to get a tattoo, especially among Celebrities it seems. Like the lower back tattoo, or the breast tattoo, a tattoo on a woman's bikini line is a flag, a lure for us to look closer at an erogenous zone! See Alyssa Milano, Drew Barrymoore, Britney Spears. Also Gilding the Lily

6. Rosary Tattoos - Back in the Top for the first time since Easter. A classic tattoo design of religious faith and salvation.

The Rosary (its name comes from the Latin "rosarium," meaning "crown of roses"), is an important and traditional devotion of the Roman Catholic Church, combining prayer and meditation in sequences of ten "Hail Marys," each sequence being called a decade. A complete Rosary involves the completion of fifteen (now twenty) decades. A common tattoo symbolizing religious faith, particularly among Catholics, and a favorite tattoo design within the "chollo" culture of Hispanics in the United States. The Rosary is also a favoured religious tattoo design among women, and a number of celebrity women have had tattoos of rosaries, including Cher and Alyssa Milano.

7. Devil - He's Back! The devil is the name given to a supernatural entity, who, in most Western religions, is the central embodiment of evil. This entity is commonly referred to by a variety of other names, including Satan, Asmodai, Beelzebub, Lucifer and/or Mephistopheles. In classic demonology, however, each of these alternate names refers to a specific supernatural entity, and there is significant disagreement as to whether any of these specific entities is actually evil.

The English word devil derives via Middle English devel and Old English dēofol and Latin Diábolus, from Late Greek Diabolos, meaning, slanderer, from diaballein, to slander: dia-, across + ballein, to hurl. The term devil can refer to a greater demon in the hierarchy of Hell.

In other languages devil may be derived from the same Proto-Indo-European root word for deva, which roughly translates as "angel". However, a "deva" or "diva" is not a devil.

8. Kanji - Back in the Top Ten. Covers an entire genre of tattoo designs, but Japanese kanji account for nearly twenty percent of tattoo design searches in recent years.

Kanji is one of the three common Japanese alphabets (the other two are Katakana and Hiragana). Kanji is a set of ideographic symbols (symbols that represent ideas) developed in China, and is extremely difficult to learn. This is mostly because there are well over a thousand Kanji symbols in everyday use in Japan, plus around another thousand that are used more occasionally! Not only this but the context they are used in can change the pronunciation of each symbol quite considerably.

8. Koi Tattoos - Koi, or Carp, are a fixture of Japanese tattooing and play important roles in both Chinese and Japanese myths, legends, fables and stories. In many of those stories, Koi are transformed through their efforts and perseverance, able to climb waterfalls or become dragons. The Koi as a symbol represents perseverance in the face of adversity and strength of character or purpose. The Carp can also represents wisdom, knowledge, longevity, and loyalty.

9. Death's Head Skull - "Death Head" Skull is used to describe a military insignia featuring a skull above crossed bones. It is distinguished from the similar traditions of the skull and crossbones and the Jolly Roger (pirate symbol) by the fact that the bones are positioned directly behind the skull.

Although the Death's Head design is often associated with the German SS and Nazism, like the Swastika, the design is considerably older in origin. Both designs have suffered a significant stigma because of their association and use in Nazi Germany.

It became a popular tattoo design with biker's who used it as a symbol - an amulet or talisman - to ward off and protect oneself from death.

Skulls used in art and as symbols has a rich cultural history, ranging from the great Master painters of the Renaissance, to the art of the Church, to the legions and battalions of Armies across Europe.

9. Tiger - Tiger tattoo design searches continue to be very popular. Is this because of the tiger's association with Angelina Jolie's traditional Cambodian tattoo of a tiger on her lower back? 

The Tiger is a potent symbol across Asia in many cultures and has long been a fixture in indigenous tattooing in India, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, China and Japan. Tigers are associated with power, ferocity, passion and sensuality, beauty and speed, cruelty and wrath. The appearance of a tiger in a dream may signal that new power or passion may awaken within you.

10. Buddha - Buddha has been popping up with increasing frequency in the Top Ten Tattoo Designs of late. Another religious tattoo, but one symbolizing the traditions of Asia and India.

Buddha is the term commonly used to refer to Siddhartha Gautama, the historical founder of Buddhism.

In Buddhism a Buddha is any being that has become fully enlightened and has permanently overcome emotional states like anger, greed and ignorance. Having achieved such awareness, a being has achieved total liberation from suffering, better known as Nirvana.

Nirvana is a state of Being where one is devoid of passions such as lust, anger or craving -and is thus in a state of great inner peace and contentment. Nirvana is the abiding of a fully enlightened being in a state of pure awareness. Through enlightenment comes the attainment of wisdom.

The path to enlightenment comes from the study of The Four Noble Truths, which are fundamental Buddhist teachings about the nature of suffering. Suffering, as derived from Sanskrit, encompasses a number of English terms; sorrow, suffering, affliction, pain, dissatisfaction, discomfort, anguish, stress, misery, and aversion.

Buddha literally means "awakened" or "that which has become aware".

As a tattoo symbol Buddha may be represented by a literal symbol, such as the statues of Buddha one is familiar with, or by a Lion, a Begging Bowl, a Stupa, an empty Throne, the Bodhi Tree (the tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment), Buddha's footprints, or an Eight-Spoked Wheel and Deer.

So, as you can see, one can express devotion to Buddhism in many ways.

10. Celtic - A tattoo genre with ongoing popularity.

Celtic knot designs while at first and foremost decorative on the surface, are at their roots very culturally significant and deeply symbolic. And so too can be Celtic tattoo designs.

Celtic tattoo designs are primarily a genre of complex interwoven lines representing knots, mazes, spirals and other figures. Celtic animal figures are zoomorphic or stylized renderings of animals that were used for carvings, in jewelry and wood, stonework and manuscript illustrations. Many images used by tattoo artists today are derived from the famous Irish Book of Kells.

The Book of Kells is an ornately illustrated manuscript, produced by Irish Monks around AD 800. It is one of the most lavishly illuminated manuscripts to survive the period. The name "Book of Kells" is derived from the Abbey of Kells in Kells, County Meath in Ireland, where it was kept for much of the mediaeval period.

There are strong Norse design influences in Celtic knot work, and there is some debate as to the exact origin. Clearly there were exchanges between cultures through both trade and conquest. The complexity of Celtic design is thought to mimic or echo the complexity of nature, the use of Celtic knots in spirals and mazes, the intricate interweaving showing no beginning and no end, reflective of the cycles of the seasons and of life.

For great tattoo design ideas, check out our good friends at TattooJohnny.com

Alphabetical Listing of Tattoo Symbols & Designs
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z