The Meaning the Popular Thistle Scottish Tattoo

The Scottish people have long been admirers and wearers of body art and adornment. You may be surprised to learn that the root of the word picture comes from the Latin pict. The Romans gave name to the Pict people and set it to mean pictures of animals and figures upon their bodies. The stone carvings seen in Scotland today are examples of the body art that is attributed to the Pict people. It was said that these warriors were so fierce that instead of trying to conquer them, a stone wall was built in the English countryside in order to keep them out of lands to the south.

The Early Celts in Scotland

Not only did the Celts tattoo themselves, but the Vikings that later conquered these lands did so as well. There is much similarity between the Scandinavian and Celtic body art. Scottish tattoos along with the Viking tattoos depicted zoomorphic animals, spirals and knotwork.

Celtic Knotwork

The Celtic knotwork seen in the past is also still popular today. Modern artists depict the Celtic knot into a variety of their artwork and not just in Scottish or Irish tattoos. Scottish images that come to mind when thinking of the people of this culture are usually bagpipes, clans and family kilts. The Saltire or the Scottish flag, Robbie Burns and the thistle are all symbols of the Scots and are often incorporated into Scottish tattoos.

Scottish tattoos may also be words or phrases written in Gaelic to symbolize some long ago event or something that is nearer and dearer to the wearer’s heart today.

The Thistle as a Scottish Tattoo

The thistle is to the Scottish people as the shamrock or a four leaf clover is to the Irish. It is a plant that is tough, much like the Scottish people themselves and it protects itself from other vegetation with thorny bristles and spines in a dense covering. It is topped with a flower of purple which is often associated with nobility and royalty. Many citizens of the past considered the thistle to be an annoyance, but for the hungry Scottish people it was a source of sustenance. Ancient Scots would steep and boil the thistles so that they could stave off starvation for another day. The prickly plant and the highlanders were thought to have much in common. The milk thistle was valued for its healing properties and was developed across Europe as a treatment for stomach or liver ailments.

For a true Scotsman, wearing a Scottish tattoo that is the thistle is showing the pride in their cultural past. The thistle symbolizes tenacity, determination and hardiness even in the face of long odds and extreme hardship.

If you happen to attend any type of Highland games, for as many kilts you see, you will see just as many depictions of the thistle as a Scottish tattoo. The thistle is uniquely Scottish and those that are adorned with this Scottish tattoo can not be confused with any other people or culture.