Tattoo on the stomach... Offensive?

[khanjar]

I believe in NZ there are only three words which are not allowed on National radio (by committee). This amazes some of my older friends who can remember the shock of first hearing "bastard" on the air.

There is actually an old family name of Bastard around here and they are at pains to let people know not to use the posh variant B'stard as it is not that. And it is a very old name where the family are major land owners from history.

 

[Zorba]

Who knows, the time may even come when we simply don't say anything to each other so as not to offend...

We're getting darn close now.

 

[Shanazel]

I believe in NZ there are only three words which are not allowed on National radio (by committee). This amazes some of my older friends who can remember the shock of first hearing "bastard" on the air.

Now I'm curious and can't find the list on line. Did find that NZ has a list of names banned for baby use. Sweden has a list of baby names, France has a list. Found all sorts of interesting stuff lexiconic (if that's a word) but not banned on air lists.

The search continues.

A local radio station, KASS, got in trouble many years ago by claiming to play KickASS music.

 

[Zumarrad]

The words are f..., s... and c....

Edited because I actually expected that OD would bleep 'em, and I know they would upset some people.

 

[~Diana~]

W-wait..."rapey term for Facebook"????? oO;;; I don't understand.

Sorry for getting a bit off-topic---I apparently live under a rock.

I also have no clue what they are talking about or refering to. I have never heard of facebook refered to or said by anythign other than facebook. I guess they are under the impression that because they know of it it must be a hugely known or used thing else where in the world.

 

[Aniseteph]

With regard to offensive words, IMO it's impossible to have a list that are officially deemed offensive. As usual, context matters. The n-word is used within some groups as so much banter, likewise assorted words for gay - it's very different when someone outside the group uses it, and quite rightly.

Even for the plain old f-word - I don't have a problem with the odd one from stand-up comedians or in dramas on TV or sitcoms past the watershed. You expect it from drunks falling out of pubs. But the other day there was a group of lads on the train at about 6pm, not drunk, not being deliberately offensive or aggressive, but using it every second word in their very loud conversation. I found that extremely offensive, same as if someone had peed in the corner, and no it was not a choice.

I don't know what the OP intended but maybe offensive was too strong a word for reactions to a tattoo - distasteful? ugly? a turn-off for some people? liable to incite judgement? I can see why you might go for offensive as a shortcut.

Regarding tattoos on belly dancers - it's practically mainstream here. I have to say the large ones are not to my taste with traditional belly dance and two piece costumes, because it breaks up the line and can be visually distracting. I recently saw a dancer with a large. pale (henna?) tattoo round her hips; at a distance looked like a grubby tide mark. Another had one on her midriff that up-close may have been amazing, but at a distance looked like a toddler had drawn a really bad spider with a magic marker. It's distracting.

(Although maybe the lighting did not help - I spent a good minute trying to work out why one dancer appeared to have incredibly hairy legs - :shok: :think: - until the penny dropped - red lace leggings.)

 

[Amanda (was Aziyade)]

Who knows, the time may even come when we simply don't say anything to each other so as not to offend, because sometimes it comes across as that, people wary of what they say may be misconstrued and so choose to say nothing.

I don't think this will really every be the case -- I know you mean it figuratively, but I think EVERY society has taboos, and taboo words. They might change from generation to generation, but it's almost as if culture NEEDS taboos to define and delineate itself.

I'm not sure it's possible to NOT be offended by people breaking your cultural taboos. It's sort of a gut reaction. But it's also why we don't understand all the fuss when someone breaks a cultural taboo that's not a part of our culture. I can't pretend to get outraged if you show me the bottoms of your feet, cause it's not my culture. But belching at the table is just disgusting and I can't help feeling that way -- it's a cultural taboo for my culture.


What I think is happening in the US, in terms of "political correctness" is that people are becoming more aware of HOW their speech and actions offend others. In the 40's and 50s, calling a person from Japan a "Jap" was a way of dehumanizing them and if they weren't human we wouldn't feel bad about imprisoning them or bombing them. We don't call people "Japs" anymore because we are AWARE of the dehumanizing effect. Or at least we recognize such as a taboo. Or just plain rude.

In our advertising materials now we include non-white people. This is because market research shows that non-white people prefer to buy products they see non-white people using. So now all our advertising (unless it's specifically targeted to certain populations) show a more multi-cultural picture of American consumers.

Who decides what is an offensive word/term and what is not and why are such terms continuously evolving ?

Language evolves constantly so it makes sense that "bad words" and offensive words also change. I would assume pop culture has a lot to do with what's currently on-trend for being offensive. (Like, did anyone ever REALLY use the term "tea-baggers" before the American Tea Party came to party? .)

Who decides it? The Electoral College, I think. :lol:

 

[Farasha Hanem]

I'm easy-going to a certain point when it comes to offensive words, but something rather embarrassing happened right before Christmas at work. There were two of us covering both registers in my department because of the holiday season. My co-worker was checking out a mother and her daughter (probably about eight years old) while I was ringing up a trio of boys in their late teens/early 20's. They were talking to each other, and swearing loudly, using the "F" and "S" words, but instead of chiding them like a normal human being, something primal kicked in, and I growled at them like some wild mother beast! And the girl wasn't even my child!

Apparently, it's not a good thing to swear in front of me with a child present.

 

[khanjar]

I try not to swear because I believe in doing so one is depleting one's own language as just how many words can be replaced by expletives, but for students of the English language there is an interesting lesson in a certain expletive on youtube of which I am not going to link here for obvious reasons but for those interested go to youtube and look up; the word f***, it's hilarious.

 

[indrayu]

Ilovemusic, be careful with the placement of the tattoo, especially now that you're putting on weight :clap:

A colleague told us that when she was young and thin, she had a tattoo of two dolphins on her lower belly. She was a bit shy, so didn't get them as low as she really wanted. Now that she is neither young nor slim, those dolphins apparently don't really look like dolphins anymore

 

[Aniseteph]

Stretch marks must be hazardous to tattoos in the belly area too, surely. I'm assuming they make pale rifts when the new and inkless scar tissue fills them in. A dolphin on the wrong part of my belly would be looking a bit fractured by now.

 

[xylia1225]

So, I'm pretty new to belly dancing, I've only danced for a year. But, I love it, and definitely want to continue as long as I can. I don't plan on being a professional, but I am considering dancing at restaurants/weddings in a few years once I get better. Maybe even teaching. I'm not 100% sure where I'll end up with it, but I don't want to ever stop Anyway, I am considering getting a tattoo on my hip bone that would be visible with a bedlah. I wanted to get a phoenix feather with the words "Forever beautiful. Forever free." in Arabic because the phoenix is the symbol of recovery and the words in Arabic because belly dancing is what made me recover from anorexia (which I had for years and almost died from when I was 16 from cardiac arrest, ouch.) But, I don't know if people find visible tattoos offensive or if I'll run into trouble with it. I already have a tattoo on my ankle and on my foot, so I don't want more on my legs. And with my career, I can't have them on my neck/ear/arms, so that really leaves my stomach area. And I'm trying to cover a scar on my hip bone where I carved the word "fat" into :/ (I was a stupid teenager...) Anyone have experience with visible tattoos? Will I be ok getting one there?

I think you'll be fine, I've seen plenty of dancers, including my teacher who dances professionally, with tattoos in the belly area. And your story and the meaning behind your tattoo is amazing. Especially since it seems to me you're doing belly dance for your own joy, and not necessarily as a career option, there is absolutely no reason not to get that tattoo. If one potential client doesn't like it, it's not the end of the world. Keep dancing and being beautiful and free! :dance:

 

[Ariadne]

It honestly all depends on where you live and what style you are doing. Without knowing that everything else is conjecture and personal opinion.

 

[BehindTheSun]

I have a visible tattoo and it doesn't cause me any problems (as far as i know, at least! I'm sure it's possible that someone might have decided not to choose me to perform because of my tattoo). It really depends on your location and audience. The only problem that you would have is if your tattoo didn't really fit into the dance. For an example, a flower or a tribal pattern would probably work a lot better than a hello kitty tramp stamp (but if that's what you like, who cares what anyone else thinks?)

 

[Tiziri]

Sounds like a nice idea for a tattoo.

As far as it being potentially offensive, you will have to judge that for yourself. As a basic thing, what others have mentioned -- getting a tattoo in Arabic needs to be done with research, not only to make sure that you're getting the words right (do a Google search on "bad Arabic tattoos" and then it becomes clearer -- not just a matter of proper translation, but making sure the words are written correctly joined, or it becomes gibberish).

The biggest reason for caution as far as giving offense rather than just mistranslating (which you probably already have some idea about) is that strictly speaking, in Islam, tattoos are haram (forbidden) and so it's easy to step a bit wrong in doing it and really put your foot in it, so to speak; this doesn't mean that no Muslims are tattooed, just that among Muslims it's considered a no-no that some people may really dislike and some might ignore (this is a lot of why at least in Algeria, facial tattooing is fast disappearing, and mostly only seen on old women.). If you aren't a Muslim, no one expects you to follow Islamic rules as far as getting a tattoo; just be careful about what you get tattooed. But: the other thing is that often people want one or two words, like something meaning "strong," or "the light," for example, and wind up using one of the 99 Names of Allah(swt), which is really not a good idea -- as in really potentially offensive. A list of the 99 Beautiful Names is here; keep in mind that some of these meanings are interchangeable with other synonyms, but I think you'd be clear with what you've said you want:
99 Names of Allah with English meanings « Love Islam Channel

I would highly recommend finding someone who can properly translate Arabic and write it out -- as in a native speaker, and even better, someone who does Arabic calligraphy, since taking the writing and making the design look pretty is going to require someone who knows how to shape the letters without altering their meaning. And a competent calligrapher can make you a really gorgeous design, as well as one that's not going to be regrettable.

 

[Munniko]

Thank you Tiziri for that google idea because I haven't laughed that hard since the last time I googled bad kanji tattoos they can just be super epic mistakes.

 

[Tiziri]

Thank you Tiziri for that google idea because I haven't laughed that hard since the last time I googled bad kanji tattoos they can just be super epic mistakes.

Yeah, like the saying goes, "That s&#@$?! is permanent."

Some internet commentary on Arabic tattoos can be vicious, and is sometimes just overcompensatory meanness, not always cultural insiders who are legitimately offended (KWIM?) But the principle of not screwing it up is a very sound one -- and there are helpful links about that.

I just found this; it makes me wince to see it...good example of welldone, but totally misguided. NO. DON'T DO THIS!!! (Not that anyone here would...but it's a good example.)

http://www.blingdomofgod.com/killer-tats.php

Ed., to explain: the tattoos on her back are "Muhammad," "Allah," and the phrase "Bismillah ir-rahman ir-raheem."

 

[Amanda (was Aziyade)]

I worked with a girl who was supposedly a Classics major, so she wanted something in Greek on her shoulder. She searched Google for an image and a phrase, and got the tattoo.

Imagine her surprise when somebody pointed out that her tattoo read "Search Results" in Greek.



Get a translation opinion, then get a second opinion. Just in case.

 

[Zorba]

I worked with a girl who was supposedly a Classics major, so she wanted something in Greek on her shoulder. She searched Google for an image and a phrase, and got the tattoo.

Imagine her surprise when somebody pointed out that her tattoo read "Search Results" in Greek.



Get a translation opinion, then get a second opinion. Just in case.

Yep. I know enough Greek to be dangerous - and I always vet my Greek with a native speaker. Colloquialisms don't directly translate!