Japanese tattoos, photos, drawings and meanings

Japanese tattoos are one of the most popular styles in tattoo art, where each image used in Japanese tattoos has a specific meaning and purpose. The Japanese meaning of tattooing has added depth to the art that has kept Japanese tattooing for so long and has increased the number of its creations outside of Japanese culture. Japanese tattoos are based on scenes from their lives with legendary characters of this culture, religious symbols and motives of nature such as animals, flowers and plants. Japanese tattoo artists can create great designs by combining many elements of their culture in a harmonious and balanced way of color and shape. If you are thinking of Japanese tattooing, we recommend reading this blog to help you familiarize yourself with the meaning of traditional Japanese tattoos. There is a lot to learn in this area, and if you're going to put one of these on your body that will last forever, you should at least understand what that means.

An image with a full color snake tattoo on a man's arm.

Various Japanese Tattoos

Japanese tattoos have become a popular tradition for men. Irezumi is the official term used to refer to injecting ink into leather for decorative purposes that remain permanently on their bodies. The history of Japanese tattooing dates back to the Paleolithic era, when tattoos were used as punishment, but decorative tattoos were also seen. During the Edo period, Japanese tattooing began to develop into the art that it is today. In the following, we'll walk you through the types of Japanese tattoos that exist and provide you with the best examples so you can get some ideas.

Spectacular Japanese mask tattoo.

Japanese geisha tattoos

Geisha tattoos are widely used by men to apply to their bodies and represent femininity, mystery, serenity, peace and strength. Geisha are chosen for their beauty, and they often get tattoos behind their fans among many other designs.

A color tattoo of a geisha with her distinctive clothing, embodying tenderness and femininity.

Wonderful geisha tattoo with a cute look behind her fan.

Japanese tattoos are usually large creations that take up most of the body, and geisha are one of the Japanese characters widely used for skin tattoos.

Tattoo of a geisha playing a musical instrument in her characteristic dress and with her usual sweetness.

A geisha tattoo is combined with a snake that curls it around the back of a man.

Wonderful geisha tattoo and a spectacular Japanese house. This combination of patterns is very typical for Japanese tattoos.

A geisha, a snake and Japanese flowers are fully tattooed on the man's back.

Geisha tattoo combined with flowers can be drawn as an idea and done on the part of the body you want.

Sweet geisha tattooed on the skin.

Geisha tattoo with red flowers and her fan.

Geisha tattoos are also commonly done on the arms of men, and here we will show you an example of them.

A beautiful geisha tattooed on the skin.

A beautiful Japanese flower and a geisha tattooed on the skin with its feminine and delicate look.

Original Japanese geisha tattoo done all over the man's back.

Spectacular geisha tattoo with super delicate design and lots of detail.

Tattoo of a geisha kissing a Japanese warrior.

A simple geisha tattoo that you can wear on your skin if you want to portray mysticism and power.

A spectacular geisha tattoo combined with red flowers and a wonderful Japanese house.

Geisha fan tattoo done in black and red ink.

Impressive Japanese geisha tattoo to design and apply to your skin.

Geisha tattoo with her fan and feminine look.

Geisha tattoo is combined with flowers, letters and Japanese masks.

The best Japanese geisha tattoo as a symbol of female femininity.

Japanese tattoos Kiyohime

Kiyohime was a sweet young woman who often visited a temple near her home and fell in love with a Buddhist monk. She confesses her love to this monk, and he not only does not respond to her feelings, but also leaves this temple and hides in other temples so that she could not find him. The young woman, angry at the situation, went mad, became enraged and turned into a monster that lost her head. Sometimes she is depicted as a snake with a woman's face.

The Kiyohime tattoo, made on a man's arm in all colors of ink, creates a very creative and vibrant design.

Spectacular Kiyohime tattoo.

Japanese Kiyohime tattoo that you can use as an idea if you want to get this type of tattoo.

Kiyohime's creative Japanese tattoo is combined with many other elements to create a dramatic design.

Kiyohime tattoos are done on the entire back of a man.

The Kiyohime tattoo is done on the chest and part of the man's arm.

Use the Kiyohime tattoo as a base if you want to tattoo this character from Japanese culture.

Impressive tattoo done all over the back of the Kiyohime man.

The amazing Kiyohime tattoo is combined with flowers to create a striking and original design.

The Kiyohime tattoo is done on the entire back and on the arms of a man with this character as the main element and with other characteristic elements of Japanese culture.

Tamatori Hime Japanese Tattoos

There are many Japanese tattoos, and Tamatori Hime's tattoos are one of them. Tamatori Hime was a brave princess who has tattoos on many of her bodies, representing brave women who are willing to sacrifice for their families. Typically, these tattoos are done large on areas of the body where there is plenty of room for creative designs.

The legend of Tamatori Hime begins when the Tang Emperor sent three precious pearls to Japan after the death of the Fujiwara clan founder, to honor him for adopting his daughter as a consort. The dragon king stole these gems on one day of a violent storm and carried them into the depths of the ocean. Upon learning of this, Fujiwara's son decides to go in search of these precious stones and on the way meets the sweet princess Tamatori Hime. They fall in love, and she decides to go in search of stones, as she was considered a good diver. She never gave up on her mission, and one day she managed to charm the dragon and escape with the jewels. Various monsters were chasing her and, in order not to lose stones, she decided to make wounds on her chest and put stones on her skin. Because the cuts were so deep that he dies on the shore.

Japanese Flower Tattoos

Japanese flower tattoos are widely chosen by many men and women around the world to decorate their bodies and represent different things through them.

Wonderful red Japanese flower tattoo.

Get a Japanese flower tattoo as an idea.

Japanese cherry blossom tattoos 

One of the selected flowers is cherry blossoms, which bloom several days a year and are a symbol of beauty and sensuality. It is a flower that represents love and intense life every day, enjoying it to the fullest. This tattoo is more often chosen by women, but some men also use it.

Sakura's tattoo as the main character is combined with a Japanese house and a river with falling water.

A very original sakura tattoo done with a blank line on the man's arm.

The original sakura tattoo in the form of the main character is combined with an hourglass.

Spectacular tattoo with a Japanese mask and cherry blossoms.

Sakura tattoo on the chest of a man.

Wonderful tattoo with a spectacular Japanese house and cherry blossoms around it, decorating this house and adding meaning to the design.

Original Japanese cherry blossom tattoo.

A very delicate sakura tattoo is done on a woman's body.

Original sakura tattoo design.

A special sakura tattoo is done on the woman's back.

A tattoo that combines koi fish with cherry blossoms.

Beautiful sakura flowers are tattooed on the skin.

Sakura tattoo on the back.

Simple and original Japanese cherry blossom tattoo design.

Spectacular sakura tattoo design made using pink and white ink as the protagonists of the design.

Sakura tattoo is combined with letters.

Japanese lotus flower tattoo 

Another flower widely used in Japanese tattoos is the lotus flower, which is native to China but is also a typical flower in Japan. This flower is a beautiful flower that opens up into the sky and floats on the water, and symbolizes hope, rebirth and spirituality. This is a flower that is born in the swamps and in the dark, and decorates this place with its bright and shining colors.

The red lotus flower tattoo is tattooed on the central part of the man's back.

The lotus flower tattoo on the man's hand is made in red and combined with letters.

Original lotus flower tattoo.

Beautiful tattoo of lotus flower on a man's hand.

The lotus flower tattoo is combined with other characteristic patterns of Japanese culture.

A beautiful lotus flower is tattooed on the legs.

A lotus flower is tattooed on a man's hand.

The Japanese design tattoo is done on the leg with lotus flowers of different colors.

The beautiful lotus flower is tattooed in green on the body.

Lotus flower tattoo in the making.

Beautiful pink lotus flower.

Lotus flower tattoo is done on the arm.

Tattooed man on his shoulder with a beautiful lotus flower.

Wonderful Japanese flower tattoo.

Spectacular lotus flower tattoo.

A very creative tattoo that combines the lotus flower with other characteristic elements of Japanese culture.

The lotus flower is tattooed on the arm with many flowers and many decorative elements.

Spectacular lotus flower tattoo.

Very original tattoo of hot pink lotus flower.

Japanese Chrysanthemum Flower Tattoos 

Another flower chosen for the tattoo is the chrysanthemum flower, which is typical of China and Japan and is regarded by the Japanese as a sun flower symbolizing longevity and joy.

Chrysanthemum tattoo on a woman's leg, as this type of flower is chosen by both men and women.

Chrysanthemum flower black tattoo.

Tattoo with chrysanthemum flowers and many other elements of Japanese culture.

Very original chrysanthemum tattoo on the shoulder.

The color chrysanthemum flower tattoo is typical of tattoos from Japan.

The chrysanthemum flower is tattooed on the chest.

Awesome Japanese tattoo.

Chrysanthemum flower and lotus flower are tattooed on the skin.

Chrysanthemum tattoo on the arm.

The pink chrysanthemum is tattooed on the skin.

Bright chrysanthemum tattoo.

Chrysanthemum tattoo is a typical tattoo of Japanese culture.

Beautiful red chrysanthemum.

Japanese tattoo koi carp with fish

The koi fish is the mainstay of Japanese tattoos, which symbolize good luck, success, hard work and determination. Like many creatures found in traditional Japanese tattoos, koi fish can be tattooed in different colors to highlight the different traits or characteristics of these fish. In addition, koi are associated with the water element and are often depicted as floating upstream and downstream. A tattoo of a koi fish swimming downstream can have different implications in regards to struggles and obstacles that have yet to be overcome. Koi are usually tattooed with Japanese sakura or cherry blossoms, which are a symbol of Japanese culture, and sometimes with lotus flowers.

A spectacular tattoo of a Japanese koi fish as the protagonist.

Koi fish and Japanese flowers are tattooed on the skin.

A koi fish is tattooed on a man's arm.

Awesome red koi fish.

A very large koi fish is tattooed on the man's back.

Awesome koi fish tattoo done all over the back.

Koi fish design for tattoo anywhere.

Spectacular koi fish tattoo design.

Original koi fish tattoo design.

Wonderful Japanese tattoo.

Koi fish tattoo combined with beautiful Japanese flowers.

Koi fish tattoo.

A spectacular koi fish tattoo is done on the man's arm and chest.

Spectacular koi fish tattoo.

The koi fish is tattooed on the body in a spectacular tattoo design.

Japanese home tattoos

Japanese houses also choose for body tattoos, creating unique and dramatic designs that look good on any and all parts of the body where great designs can be created.

Original Japanese tattoo design with a Japanese house as the main character.

Japanese house and geisha tattoo.

A spectacular tattoo of a Japanese house and beautiful Japanese flowers.

The tattoo of Japanese houses is combined with the characteristic characters of that culture.

Original tattoo of Japanese houses.

Japanese tattoo or hannya mask tattoo

Mask or hanni tattoos are very common in this culture. Hanyas are monsters who used to be beautiful women, and this transformation into monsters is due to the punishment for feeling jealousy, anger, hatred and envy towards another person. These masks have two sharp horns, bulging eyes and a deep mouth, they represent good luck and have the power to ward off evil spirits.

Spectacular Hannya tattoo done all over the back, with many colors and many details.

Hanny's simple tattoo is done on the arm.

Japanese mask tattoo.

Wonderful Japanese tattoo mask with many colors.

The arm is tattooed with a spectacular Japanese mask.

Japanese leather mask in full color and eye-catching size.

A spectacular Japanese mask tattooed on the skin in combination with koi fish.

Hannya tattoo on a man's hand.

Japanese mask tattoo on the leg.

The tattoo of a mask on the back of a man is combined with flowers and other resources of Japanese tattoo art.

Hannya tattoo on a man's hand.

Handmade tattoo mask Hannya in full color.

Japanese Samurai Tattoos

Samurai were military aristocrats who were military leaders who ruled Japan until the XNUMX century. Most of them were warriors, but some were philosophers and artists. Swords, called katana, were typical of the samurai, as were leather or iron armor. The samurai is a symbol of courage, masculinity, honor and justice and personifies the highest male ideals. Samurai are based on the principles of Zen Buddhism, self-discipline, frugality, sacrifice and nobility.

Striking samurai tattoo done in black ink.

Samurai tattoo on the back of a man.

A spectacular tattoo on the arm of a Japanese samurai with his katanas.

Japanese samurai face tattoo.

Japanese dragon tattoos

Japanese dragon tattoos are very common in this culture, as through them they symbolize strength, luck, courage and wisdom. Dragons are strongly associated with the wind, but mostly with water, and are often painted in waves in traditional Japanese tattoos. Dragons can be tattooed in a variety of colors, such as black, red, green, white, blue, or yellow. Each color represents a dragon from a different location or sea with different qualities. Japanese dragons usually have three fingers, unlike the Chinese, which have five, and large dragon murals often appear on the ceiling of their large conference room in Zen temples in Japan.

Bright red Japanese dragon tattoo.

The green dragon is tattooed on the man's chest.

Spectacular dragon tattoo.

Amazing Japanese dragon tattoo.

Very original Japanese dragon tattoo in black ink.

Spectacular Japanese tattoo with dragons, flowers and koi fish.

Wonderful Japanese dragon tattoo.

Japanese tiger tattoos

Tigers in Japanese tattoos usually represent strength, power and courage. They are associated with the element of wind, and tigers evoke the image of lonely and brave warriors. Traditional Japanese tattoos depict the tiger in an aggressive stance with an open mouth, showing all of its sharp teeth. Bamboo stems and wind-like clouds can also be found in many tiger tattoos. Dragon and tiger or pairs of snakes and tigers are also not often found in Japanese tattoos.

Spectacular Japanese tattoo of a snarling tiger.

Super creative Japanese tiger tattoo.

Japanese tiger tattoo with a defiant facial expression.

Japanese phoenix tattoos

Phoenix tattoos (hou-ou in Japanese) are seen in Japanese mythology as symbols of transformation, victory over obstacles, fidelity, rebirth and renewal. Phoenix is ​​the symbol of the Japanese emperor. This bird is usually tattooed with a long, flowing tail and various bright colors, in which red is always visible. Phoenix is ​​associated with the element of fire and can often be paired with a dragon due to their opposite elemental nature (fire and water).

Phoenix bird tattoo is done all over the back.

Amazing phoenix tattoo.

Spectacular Japanese phoenix tattoo.

Japanese phoenix tattoo.

Japanese snake tattoos

The snake (hebi) is present in traditional Japanese tattoos and is a symbol of protection from misfortune and disease. Snakes come in a variety of colors to highlight different traits or characteristics, and they represent prosperity and wisdom. In Japanese snake tattoos, they can stand against a tiger or fight a samurai or warrior.

Japanese snake tattoo and flowers are tattooed on the skin with colored ink.

A spectacular snake tattoo will turn out as an idea.

In the image you can see a super creative tattoo that you can use as an idea if you want to get a Japanese tattoo on your body.

Snake tattoo on the leg.

A shocking Japanese tattoo done all over the chest and arms with a snake as the protagonist of the design and several other elements.

Spectacular Japanese snake tattoo.

Don't forget to leave your feedback on the images featured on this blog ...