Inuit daughter goes with mom to get traditional tattoos
Inuit daughter goes with mom to get traditional tattoos
TikToker Shina Novalinga (@shinanova) got a traditional tattoo with her mother in honor of their Inuit heritage.Novalinga is an Inuk throat singer, activist and influencer whoâs amassed a large social media following for her content featuring different aspects of Inuit culture.Recently, Novalinga posted a video of her and her mother getting Inuit facial tattoos, and itâs an inspiring example of how Indigenous women are reviving traditions.In the first scene, Novalinga, pre-tattoo, sits lip-syncing in the front seat of a car, while the words âWill travel 4 hours to get my face tattooedâ appear on-screen.âEveryone telling me I will regret it even if itâs cultural,â Novalinga captions the next shot of her facing the camera, continuing to lip-sync.As Novalinga turns her head to the side, the video quickly cuts to a shot of her smiling and dancing while the words âMe keeping it anywayâ appear on-screen.âMy heart telling me my ancestors will be proud,â Novalinga notes, becoming more excited with each passing clip.âWaiting over a year, excited as it will change my life forever,â Novalinga types over the next shot before it cuts to footage of her understandably âgetting nervous the night beforeâ .Finally, the big day arrives, but Novalinga wonât be the only person in her family receiving a traditional tattoo.âOn our way!
Mom getting a matching tattoo with me,â she captions the footage of her and her mother en route to get inked.At the tattoo parlor, the tattoo artist draws a line down Novalingaâs chin and a V-shape on each of her cheekbones using a marker, and to Novalingaâs surprise, âno stencils!â.The following clips show Novalinga getting her tattoo done with âthe hand poking method to be more traditionalâ .Finally, the video closes with a shot of Novalinga putting on a pair of traditional white feather earrings, and beaming in love with her new tattoo.Many supportive viewers took to the comments to share the love and congratulate Novalinga on her new tattoo.âI'm a MÄori woman from New Zealand, and this made me emotional to watch.
Itâs beautiful,â shared one user.âNormalize Indigenous facial tattoos.
Itâs nothing to regret and part of our cultures.
You look beautiful,â complimented another viewer.
.If the comments are any indication, itâs incredibly inspiring to see how new generations of Inuit women are embracing their culture and normalizing traditional facial markings