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Since the beginning of the 17th century Scottish tattoos were used by military men and firefighters as a rule, and incorporated symbols connected with these occupations, helmets and so on. There’ were also memorial tattoos that were done by friends of a fallen person and as other R.I.P. tattoos they featured his name, dates of birth and death.
The interest towards Scottish tattoos has risen over the past twenty years. It is true about Scottish Gaelic as well, the native language of this land (though English is widely spoken there). That’ why many people want to include scripts in Gaelic into their tattoo designs, but here it is important that you know the exact meaning of this or that phrase. Dictionaries can be helpful here, or if you have a friend who’s a native speaker ask him or her for help.
Scottish Tattoos - Designs and Ideas
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There’re also Gaelic tattoos and historical Scottish tattoos. The national symbol of Scotland is thistle; the saint patron of Scotland is St. Patrick. Therefore, you may incorporate thistle, four-leaf clover or a horseshoe into you Scottish tattoo design.