Tramp stamp meaning

No matter what you call it, tramp stamp meaning, the lower back tattoo has earned its place in the halls of fashion history. Arguably, no other tattoo placement is as culturally divisive as a lower back tattoo on a woman. But why? And how did the association between lower back tattoos and sexual activity become so culturally ubiquitous?

All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission. In the last few decades, tattoos have become a mainstay in pop culture. As parlors around the world get ready to celebrate Friday the 13th with flashes galore, our Pop-ink package examines how these skin markings have evolved beyond their traditional roots — from fandoms to family. In this reported feature, writer Kara Nesvig outlines the rise, fall, and rise of the lower back tattoo a. Given that Spears and other pop stars and celebs of her ilk were wearing the lowest-rise jeans on the planet and cropped tops to match, there was really no missing the lower back tattoo — or, as its critics called it, the tramp stamp. People who had gotten them in their younger years hid them like a shameful secret, had them removed, or posted cheeky videos about their youthful tattoo regrets on TikTok.

Tramp stamp meaning

Accessed 18 Mar. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! See Definitions and Examples ». Cite this Entry Citation Share. Log In. She now finds herself embarrassed by the original tattoo, in part because … lower-back tattoos have come to take on a derogatory name: the tramp stamp. Word History. First Known Use. Time Traveler. See more words from the same year. Dictionary Entries Near tramp stamp.

The typical reasons for getting a tattoo cover a wide range of personal experience, tramp stamp meaning. Order Magazine Back Issues. Fashion Kira Gopinath June 18, hats, history, Rococo, pop culture.

Tattoos on the lower back became popular in the first decade of the 21st century, and gained a reputation for their erotic appeal. The tattoos were sometimes accentuated by low-rise jeans or crop tops. Their popularity was in part due to the influence of female celebrities. A study of media stereotypes criticized media portrayals of lower-back tattoos, arguing that they were unfairly cast as a symbol of promiscuity. Although historically in the western world men are more often tattooed than women, in the early s the practice gained popularity among women. The popularity of low-rise jeans and crop tops may have also spurred the increase in lower-back tattoos. Women's lower backs are often viewed by people as an erotic body part, leading to the association of lower-back tattoos with sexuality.

Karen L. Hudson is a tattoo artist and contributing writer. She has been an amateur artist as a hobby since grade school, and served a 12 month tattoo apprenticeship in a tattoo studio. Lower-back tattoos tend to conjure up a lot of assumptions about the women who wear them. It all starts with the slang terms: "back bait," "California license plate," "handlebars," "spank button," and so many more. Of course, the infamous "tramp stamp" is the most common of these. It's an insulting misnomer that suggests women who choose to wear lumbar tattoos are promiscuous—and on a deeper level, speaks to the stubbornly enduring judgments that society makes about feminine sexuality. Even in today's "enlightened" society, some ill-informed people take the stereotype to even darker places and claim scientific support. An entry in the Urban Dictionary says this of women who wear lumbar tattoos:.

Tramp stamp meaning

The most personal tattoo on my body is a shadow of Peter Pan and the second star to the right, surrounded by the text, To live will be an awfully big adventure. For this tattoo, I spent two hours bent over the artist's chair at a small shop in Baltimore, squeezing my best friend's hand during the worst of those white-hot bursts of pain from the needle. But I worried that if he stopped, I would lose my nerve and be left with a half-finished tattoo, only to force myself back in the chair weeks or months down the line.

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Like, are they thinking what he thought? Time Traveler. Arguably, no other tattoo placement is as culturally divisive as a lower back tattoo on a woman. In fact, I'm hard-pressed to think of any unflattering nicknames for men's tattoos, let alone terms that are as ubiquitous as "tramp stamp. But of course, the same men said these women gave them the perception that they had a better chance of sleeping with them. According to records taken from multiple tattoo studios in California, a large number of women requested lower back pieces in the late '90s echoing judgments from society about feminine sexuality. Facebook 0 Twitter Pinterest 0 0 Likes. In her Guardian essay "Painted Ladies: Why Women Get Tattoos," Jenn Ashworth writes, "If skin is a screen, and a woman writes on it, she is telling the world or even just herself that her own standards of attractiveness are more important to her than the standards of anyone else who might cross her path. Inuit Kakiniit code: iku promoted to code: iu , Tavlugun code: ipk promoted to code: ik Osage Haudenosaunee. Fun fact: the British call it a "slag tag".

Tattoos on the lower back became popular in the first decade of the 21st century, and gained a reputation for their erotic appeal. The tattoos were sometimes accentuated by low-rise jeans or crop tops. Their popularity was in part due to the influence of female celebrities.

ISBN Fun fact: the British call it a "slag tag". The design: A cherub. Take the quiz. Getty Images The star: Naya Rivera. Another motive for a lower back tattoo is it's easy to conceal compared to an arm, chest, or wrist tattoo. Although historically in the western world men are more often tattooed than women, in the early s the practice gained popularity among women. Thus, the phenomenon of the lower back tattoo was born in Western culture. Read Watch About Magazine. One-Time Monthly Annual. I didn't want a tattoo that would hinder my ability to wear sleeveless shirts or dresses without total strangers asking about my ink. My tattoos are part of my identity, part of my body, and my body is mine and mine alone. This trend epitomizes early s style: blurred lines between high and low class fashion and over-the-top maximalism.