Cristabel Montoya
Geography 302
05/05/15
Artistic Enhancement Cultures around the world have their own unique forms of body modifications. Most commonly known and practiced today are tattoos and piercings. In this paper, I researched a form of body modification that the tribes of Africa practice. I will delve into the reasoning why they use scarification as a form of self-expression and the significance it has to these tribes in Africa. First, I will give some background on what scarification is and why it is practiced in these cultures. “Scarification involves cutting or making an incision into the skin, and then allowing the wound to heal, leaving a permanent scar” (MSc 2004). The tribes in Africa do these modifications when they …show more content…
For instance, the Dinka of Sudan uses facial scarification to determine who they are. They scar around the temple area in order to determine which clan they come from. In southern Sudan, Nuba girls are marked on their foreheads, chest and abdomens when they reach puberty. When they go though their first menstruation they receive more cuts under their breasts. They then experience a final scarring. They are scarred after they wean their first child. They receive scars on their sternum, back, buttocks and legs (Scarification …show more content…
The scars have different meanings depending of where the culture comes from. For instance, the Ekoi of southeast Nigeria believe their scars will help them when they die. It is a form of monetary value when they are going to the place of the dead. Suri men from Ethiopia scar their body when they kill someone. The scar signifies the enemies they have killed from other tribes. This quote was taken from an article, “…one group for example cutting a horseshoe shape on their right arm to indicate they've killed a man, and on their left for female victim” (Scarification n.d.). This is the way that the Suris show they have accomplished killing the enemy tribe to their community and to their
Geography 302
05/05/15
Artistic Enhancement Cultures around the world have their own unique forms of body modifications. Most commonly known and practiced today are tattoos and piercings. In this paper, I researched a form of body modification that the tribes of Africa practice. I will delve into the reasoning why they use scarification as a form of self-expression and the significance it has to these tribes in Africa. First, I will give some background on what scarification is and why it is practiced in these cultures. “Scarification involves cutting or making an incision into the skin, and then allowing the wound to heal, leaving a permanent scar” (MSc 2004). The tribes in Africa do these modifications when they …show more content…
For instance, the Dinka of Sudan uses facial scarification to determine who they are. They scar around the temple area in order to determine which clan they come from. In southern Sudan, Nuba girls are marked on their foreheads, chest and abdomens when they reach puberty. When they go though their first menstruation they receive more cuts under their breasts. They then experience a final scarring. They are scarred after they wean their first child. They receive scars on their sternum, back, buttocks and legs (Scarification …show more content…
The scars have different meanings depending of where the culture comes from. For instance, the Ekoi of southeast Nigeria believe their scars will help them when they die. It is a form of monetary value when they are going to the place of the dead. Suri men from Ethiopia scar their body when they kill someone. The scar signifies the enemies they have killed from other tribes. This quote was taken from an article, “…one group for example cutting a horseshoe shape on their right arm to indicate they've killed a man, and on their left for female victim” (Scarification n.d.). This is the way that the Suris show they have accomplished killing the enemy tribe to their community and to their