The Korean Tattoo Culture : An Historical Overview on the Development and Shift of Perception on Tattoos in Korean Society

Sammanfattning: This study aims to analyze the development and shifts in perception of the tattoo practice. For centuries, the negative image of tattoos has been manifested in Korean society and has only shown visible changes in the past two decades. In recent years, the topic of tattoos in South Korea has become notably more popular and broadly discussed. To give a structured and detailed historical review of the tattoo custom in Korea, two articles in Korean by Kim Hyŏng-jung (2013) and Yi Tong-ch’ŏl (2007) served as main sources. By conducting a semisystematic review with a qualitative approach, the accessed data was examined, compared, and synthesized. The results show that the tattoo practice, although still not fully accepted by all, has gradually developed into its own culture in contemporary South Korean society.