Tribal tattooing is practiced by various ethnic groups in different parts of the world such as Indochina, Oceania and North America. For this type of tattooing, the recipient's social class was very important (refer to section Reasons for tattooing).

The subject matter represents the world around us such as the sea, fish and other elements of nature. For example, the snake is used in Burma to protect against the reptile bites for who frequents the jungle. The Micronesians use the dolphin as a talisman against sharks as it is said sharks do not swim near dolphins. Tribal tattoos also have a strong decorative component with lines that follow the body's muscles and bones.

Modern interest in tribal tattooing style originated in the early seventies when western tattoo artists began to travel in search of new ideas, thus contaminating themselves with other cultures. This tendency reached its peak in the eighties when punks found expression in solid black tattoos with mixed ethnic, tribal designs.

Among the forerunners of neo-tribal tattooing, it is worth recognizing Cliff Raven, Leo Zulueta and Don Ed Hardy from California, Hanky Panky from the Netherlands and Alex Binnie from England. At TTS Milan we recommend tribal tattooing to those who like cross-cultural contamination.