Piercing is a form of body modification that has been practiced by many cultures all around the world, some believed to be dated from around 44,000 BCE!. The act of adorning the body with a foreign object is believed to have been done for various reasons. Some of these reasons were religious, others to denote status in society, some were even used as a form of intimidation on the battlefield. Some societies today still adhere to their cultural identity and practice certain piercings as a form of “rite of passage”. For example, some Native American tribes still use piercings today as a marker of one’s position in their respective tribe, or to denote one’s passage into life as an adult, or “manhood”. Although we know piercing has been practiced for many thousands of years, it is hard to pinpoint exactly the reasons why some piercings were worn, or what exactly every piercing means. What we do know is that body modification is one of the oldest forms of self expression not only for the individual, but also for a particular society.
Here in the West, piercing has seen a rise in popularity in the past 100 years only. The rise in popularity could be attributed to several factors. I have chosen three. 1.) With the end of The Age of Exploration and the rise of globalization, we in the West have a ready account of several cultures all around the world. Many piercings have been adopted from such societies to be used for fashion and other reasons, to include religious or spiritual reasons. Some of these other reasons could be described sometimes as “cultural appropriation”. 2.) The rise of “counterculture” and the idea to rebel against established norms in regard to society, art, fashion, and government has been on the rise since the mid 20th century and continues to grow today. 3.) Very similar to factor number 2, the desire for self expression has been something that people in the West have craved for quite some time now. As humans we use many ways to express our individuality. This could include the way we dress, the way we talk, or the way we decorate our body with tattoos or piercings. Sometimes piercings are a form of individualism, but could also be considered a form of collectivism all at the same time.
(Fakir Musafar)
It’s also important to note a couple key figures who were responsible for the rise of popularity and the awareness of piercings in the west. These figures are: Doug Malloy(1915-1979), who wrote several pamphlets about piercings. Some of these pamphlets contain fabricated information designed to make piercing seem more interesting. Although a lot of what Malloy has written has been proven false, he is still important for being such an enthusiast and really creating the “piercing mythos” that many people still believe today. Another important figure is Fakir Musafar(1930-2018). Fakir also wrote several pamphlets about piercings and coined the term “modern primitive” to describe the idea of modern people using ancient forms of body modification to express themselves. Also, to adopt such religious or spiritual practices. It is important to note that both of these men were gay, and often had to express their sexuality through piercing. In fact gay culture in the west was the driving force behind the entire industry before the 1990’s when piercing became a very common form of expression for many people.
