Tattooing has resurgence with Egyptian youth
1,690 views · Published 5 November 2018 · 4:02 · Indexed 20 September 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(31 Oct 2018) LEADIN Tattooing is gaining popularity in Egypt for both artistic and medical reasons. The ancient Egyptians are believed to have helped spread the art of tattooing around the world, however there are those who believe it goes against Islamic teachings. STORYLINE The art of tattooing has been part of Egyptian culture for thousands of years. Tattooed human remains and iconographic evidence indicate that ancient Egyptians practiced tattooing from at least 2000 BC. The most famous tattooed mummies from this region are Amunet, a priestess of Hathor, and two Hathoric dancers from Dynasty XI that were found at Deir el-Bahari in 1898. But recently tattooing has enjoyed a resurgence amongst Egyptian youth. Tattoo artist Mohamed Alex believes that one of the reasons tattooing returned was that the Egyptian revolution of 25 January 2011 brought about the return of many Egyptian expatriates. "The tattoo started to spread more 7 or 8 years ago when the Egyptians living in Europe started coming back with tattoo designs on their bodies. But going back, tattoos never vanished from Egypt. They've existed since a very long time ago. It's believed that the ancient Egyptians are largely responsible for spreading the art of tattooing from the Pharaohs and the Copts," he says. Tattoo enthusiast Ahmed Mansy became interested in them through his love of hip hop music. He used to try to draw his own tattoos when he was young but didn't know of the existence of any tattoo artists in Egypt. But Mansy was involved in a serious car accident in Alexandria which left him with many scars and injuries on his neck and arms. This made him look into getting tattoos more seriously as a way to cover his scars: "I had a road accident in 2013, that left me with more than 450 stitches in my neck and arm. The whole tattoo thing started with me at the beginning out of curiosity and developed to thoughts of covering my accident scars, but then turned into a passion of tattoos," he says. Using tattoos to cover scars from accidents or surgery is becoming more common. According to Sherif Waseef, who is a consultant in plastic and laser surgery: "Medical tattoos can be used in breast diseases following the removal of the breast to remove tumours. Tattoos around the nipple area (areola) usually give good results to cover breast reconstruction." But despite the fact tattoos are becoming popular medically and cosmetically - there are those who believe tattooing is a sin since it changes the natural creation of God. Hassan Abdel Basir Arafa, Director of the Religious Call of Alexandria Endowments, quotes the Hadith by Prophet Mohamed: "Allah curse the women who do tattoos and those for whom tattoos are done, those who pluck their eyebrows and those who file their teeth for the purpose of beautification and alter the creation of Allah." According to Arafa: "This means that both the tattoo painter and the one who gets the tattoo are cursed." But for those such as Mansy who have been injured, or those simply enjoy the cosmetic look of tattoos, they are an important hobby and way of life. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/93f7b5091ba89f67c3ea9eba152c120f
