Adinkra Tattoo

I have been looking at designing my own tattoo and I would like one
that has some meaning but is abstract. I think I want something that
means something that is relevant to me that is neither a picture nor in
writing.

I started out looking at Japanese and Chinese sayings and symbols. I
like the Yin and Yang symbol best but it is really common – so many
people have one and some of the designs I saw were fabulous … but not
quite unique enough for what I was seeking. I then had a look at
different types of symbols from science and from history. I looked at
hieroglyphs and Greek symbols but nothing quite hit the spot.
One day, as I was surfing the web, I came
across something familiar. It was familiar because I had a framed piece
of cotton fabric I thought was batik on my wall with the same markings.
As I read further, I found out that these markings were Adinkra symbols
of the Akan culture in West Africa.
The Adinkra symbols represent sayings and record historical events. The
printed fabric is used for funerals as ‘adinkra’ means ‘goodbye’. This
method of fabric ‘language’ is one of several traditional cloths
produced by the Asante in the region – another being the royal Kente.
Adinkra symbols are used on anything and everything, imbuing clothes,
vehicles, commercial products, pottery and even buildings with added
significance. As I read more about the symbology and the meanings
behind the symbols, I realised that the subtlety and secretive
communication really appealed to me and I knew I had found the tattoo
language I had been seeking. Now to find the right symbol for me…
Each Adinkra symbol has a unique name and meaning derived either from a
proverb, a historical event, human attitude, animal behavior, plant
life, forms and shapes of inanimate and man-made objects. The meanings
of the motifs cover just about every aspect of life and living.
The most popular motif is called ‘Gye Naame’ which literally translates
to ‘except God’. To the Akan, it means “I fear no one, except God” and
exemplifies the belief in one all powerful, all seeing and all knowing
God. The symbol is beautiful in its simplicity, something true of most
of the Adinkra symbols. The Gye Nyaame Adinkra symbol is the one I
chose in the end, I will have it inked just over my left shoulder blade
because it reminds me of the old blessing: ‘May God be on your
shoulder’.

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