Nautical Star Tattoos the History, Meaning and Symbolism: What a Strange Mix!

The history, significance and symbolism of nautical star tattoos is
a hotly debated topic.  Today many different groupings have got got got
adopted the Nautical star tattoo as a symbol for their ain
motion and they have all ascribed their ain significance and
history to the symbol.  Frankincense have Pb to a broad
dissension as the the significance of the tattoo.Historically
most everyone holds that Sailors were the first people to acquire
nautical star tattoos.  Inch fact the very word nautical
associates back to sailing.  Sol this connexion have been
pretty firmly established.  Most people would hold the
crewmen were a pretty superstitious grouping historically and
crewman traditional knowledge abounds with superstitious and fantastical narratives
of life and decease and being lost at sea.  Early on
crewmen navigated by the stars at nighttime and the North star
became the symbol for determination 1s manner home.  Once you
cognize where the North star is you tin indicate your ship in the
right manner to acquire home.  Sol the star became a symbol
for determination 1s manner place or more than than than symbolically even determination
1s way in life.  Therefore many crewmen would tattoo
nautical stars on their forearms as a good fortune symbol in
hopes of returning home. 

However their modern twenty-four hours significance is a more debated topic. 
Many believe that groupings including cheery and lesbians, hood
bikers and those in the military have adopted the nautical
star tattoo as a very of import symbol.  The diverseness of
these three groupings have Pb many to reason the significance of their
tattoos.

For the military the connexion is pretty obviously point
back to the early crewmen and the symbolism and meaning is the
same as the early sailors.  Many military people acquire a
nautical star tattoo as a symbol for finding 1s way place
safely.  Of course this can also include more
symbolically just finding 1s way in life.

Here is a quotation mark we establish from a member of the armed
services and his reading of the tattoo:

"I am in the United States Army, an military policeman who searched towns
and small towns for Aluminum Quida and insurgents. I was in Republic Of Iraq for 1
year. I have got a reddish and black nautical star on my wrist. The
ground I got it was because when I was out there, I felt it
was a guide to guide me place to my household safely. I got it so
that it would remind me that I am going to do it to see my
boy turn up. I am not gay, it doesn't substance what you believe
it represents, it intends something different for everyone. Out
in the desert, I would look up at the stars and believe about
home. Sol anyone can believe what they desire to, that is what it
intends to me. "

Punk bikers have got got got got also adopted this as a popular symbol to
have tattooed.  The hood motion traces its history and
usage of the nautical star tattoo back to Sailor Jerry. 
Sailor Kraut is historically 1 1 of the most celebrated tattoo
people ever.  Helium was well known for his advanced and
"cool" designs.  Punks have taken this symbol and it have
very much the same significance of determination 1 manner in life. 
Being the rugged individualists type Punks are drawing to the
symbolism of true North and determination one ain alone manner in
life.  So the Nautical star have go a symbol for this. 
You see many hood sets that have full arm tattoos
typically integrate nautical star tattoos either on their
elbow joints or elsewhere.

The cheery woman and gay connexion is the one that makes not
look so obvious at first.  Historically back in the
1940's and 50's when option life styles were not the norm
and often women had to conceal their option picks they
would athletics a concealed nautical star.  Often they would acquire
the star tattoo done on the interior of their carpus where it
could easily be hidden by a ticker during the twenty-four hours but shown off
in the eventide when out on the town.  Today many gay women
where the nautical star tattoo to demo their connexion with
their early pioneering sisters.  Here is a small
grounds to back up my points.  

"Here's the transition (with some pieces dropped) from "Boots
of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian
Community" by Elizabeth Ii Lapovsky Jack Kennedy and Madeilne D. Davys
right of first publication 1993 p. 189.

(talking about the 1940's and 1950's):

"...During this same time period, the cultural pushing to be
identified as lesbians- Oregon at least different- all the time
was so powerful that it generated a new word form of designation
among the tough barroom lesbians: a star tattoo on the top of the
wrist, which was usually covered by a watch. This was the
first symbol of community personal identity that did not trust on
butch-fem imagery. We can trace this phenomenon back to an
eventide of revelry in the late 1950's, when a few dikes
trooped over to "Dirty Dick's" tattoo parlour on Chippewa
Street and had the bantam bluish five-pointed star set on their
wrists. Later, some of the fems of this grouping also travel the thought
1 nighttime and did it...The community positions the tattoo as a
definite grade of identification..."the American Bison police force knew
[that] the people that had the stars on their carpus were
gay women and they had their name calling and so forth. That it was an
personal identity thing with the cheery community, with the gay woman
community". The fact that the star tattoo was created by those
who were firmly into roles, in fact by the grouping that was
considered the butchy dikes and their fems, propose that the
military unit to asseverate gay woman personal identity was strong adequate to interrupt
through the existent traditions of daring based in butch-fem
roles. The stars bode the methods of personal identity created by
cheery liberation. In fact, the grade have go something of a
tradition in local circles and have seen a resurgence since the
1970s."

This significance of the symbol have got of course created a batch of
jobs and statements among the other two groupings of carriers
of nautical stars.  Most Puck and military people make not
desire to have a nautical star that points back to anything from
the cheery woman motion so many volition state that there is no
connexion there and this is false.

Here is a quotation mark from another armed military units member about the
symbolism of the nautical star among the cheery community:

"This "gay symbol" is a loading of stuff that person made up
VERY recently. The nautical star tattoo have been around nearly
as long as tattooing itself. The late Celts (or early Irish,
depending on your position of World History) were said to have got got
been the first to have the tattoos, although grounds of it
being used on ships in Kingdom Of Spain have been establish pre-dating the
Irish claim.

As a Marine, it's a very commonplace symbol amongst us if
we have got been portion of a Boat Foray company, reddish for port, greenish
for starboard on varying parts of the body. On ship, I saw
about a million different fluctuations on the Sailors I was was
serving with, obviously harking back to the crewman roots."

Here is a quotation mark from a hood rocker and his feelings about
the symbolism of the tattoo:

"what idiots..even the military male children dont cognize what it
really means....JUST sol YOU ALL KNOW!!!!!it was used by old
sailors.. and the symbol stands for North on a Map ...and it
is the North Star the crewmen would utilize it as a baring to acquire
home....you can happen it on Really really old maps and old naval forces
vessels... Hood Rock.. well we utilize it because we can and
because Sailor Kraut made the coolest tattoos who started
putting them on everyone.. my grandfather even had one thus
being used as a traditional icon"

It just travels to demo that when the same powerful symbol is
used over and over again over decennaries of time it can taken on
very different significances for different groups.  Sol all of
those that you see sporting a nautical star tattoo might not
all have got got got the same reading of its symbolism.

So make you have a nautical star tattoo or believe about
getting one in the future?  Which significance of the symbol
will you acquire the nautical star for?  As long as you cognize
what the symbolism behind the star is for and you have gotten
it for the right ground to either support the gay woman motion
or as a symbol to determination your way!