Faith and identity
Marks and styles of religion, caste, clan and community, by tradition. 53 face guides on EveryFaceShape so far.
Many face marks and styles belong to faith, caste, clan and community: the Hindu tilak and tripundra, the bindi and sindoor, the unshorn Sikh beard, the beards of Muslim, Jewish, Amish and Orthodox Christian men, the payot sidelocks of Orthodox Jews, and the tā moko of the Māori, which records genealogy. EveryFaceShape describes each as tradition, with respect, as the communities explain them.
Marks of devotion
Hindu forehead marks often show which tradition a worshipper follows: two vertical lines of clay, the urdhva pundra, for Vaishnavas; three lines of ash, the tripundra, for Shaivas; a red dot or line of kumkum for Shaktas. Many are applied after worship at temples such as Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi or in the temples of Vrindavan. Practice varies by family and region.
Faith and facial hair
For initiated Sikhs, kesh, uncut hair including the beard, is one of the five articles of faith. Many Muslim men grow a beard following the example of the Prophet Muhammad. Orthodox Jewish men may keep beards and payot, sidelocks. Married Amish men grow beards without moustaches. Armies in several countries have changed rules so people of faith can serve with beards.
Famous faith and identity face guides
Further reading
🇲🇲 MyanmarTattooing in Myanmar
Traditional body art of Myanmar's ethnic groups, marking strength and identity.Marking
WorldFace tattoo
Ink designs on the face or head from traditional customsMarking
🇳🇿 New ZealandTā moko
Traditional permanent facial and body markings of the Māori people of New Zealand.Marking
🇮🇳 IndiaKesh
Uncut hair kept as a religious symbol in Sikhism, part of the Five Ks.Marking · 1699
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreYoruba tribal marks
Scarification patterns used by the Yoruba people for identity and beauty.Marking
🇨🇦 CanadaKakiniit
Traditional facial and body tattoos of Inuit women in the North American Arctic.Marking
🇩🇿 Algeria and 4 moreAfrican scarification
Traditional skin marking practices across Africa for identity and status.Marking
🇳🇬 NigeriaIchi
Ritual facial scarification of the Igbo people marking nobility.Marking
🇺🇸 United StatesTavlugun
A traditional chin tattoo worn by Indigenous Iñupiaq women.Marking
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreYidiiltoo
Traditional face tattoos of Hän Gwich’in women from Alaska and Canada.Marking
🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreTeeth blackening
A traditional custom of dyeing teeth black to signify adulthood and beauty.Makeup
🇹🇷 Turkey and 2 moreDeq
Traditional permanent tattooing among Kurds and YazidisMarking
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreGodna
Traditional tribal face and body tattooing from IndiaMarking
WorldScarification
Permanent skin markings created by cutting or burning for cultural identity.Marking
🇪🇬 Egypt and 4 moreKohl
A traditional eye cosmetic made from crushed minerals or soot, used across Africa and Asia for thousands of years.Makeup
WorldUrna
A spiral mark on the forehead in Buddhist art.Adornment
🇮🇳 IndiaIndigenous Tattoos of the Indian Subcontinent
Traditional body marking for identity and protection in South Asia.Marking
WorldPrayer callus
A forehead mark from repeated ritual prostration in prayer.Marking
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePayot
Sidelocks worn by Orthodox Jewish men as a religious observance.Beard
🇲🇲 MyanmarChin facial tattoos
Traditional facial ink patterns worn by Chin women in Myanmar.Marking
🇹🇼 TaiwanAtayal facial tattoos
Traditional markings of the Atayal people in Taiwan, signifying skill and spiritual passage.Marking
🇯🇵 JapanAinu lip tattoos
Traditional facial markings worn by Ainu women to mark maturity and protect the spirit.Marking
🇩🇿 Algeria and 3 moreAmazigh facial tattoos
Traditional geometric skin markings of North African Amazigh women.Marking
🇮🇳 IndiaApatani facial tattoos
Facial tattoos and nose plugs of Apatani women in IndiaMarking
🇲🇽 MexicoDía de los Muertos face paint
Skull-style makeup worn during Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations to honour ancestors.Makeup · Most faces · 1913
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Tattooing in Myanmar: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Face tattoo: Gottfried Lindauer, Public domain, source
- Tā moko: Gottfried Lindauer, Public domain, source
- Vibhuti: Vinoth Chandar, CC BY 2.0, source
- Tilaka: Robert Vane Russell (1873-1915), Public domain, source
- Kesh: Carl W. Damman, Public domain, source
- Yoruba tribal marks: User:FA2010, Public domain, source
- Kakiniit: Henry Busse, Public domain, source
- African scarification: Kathy Gerber (kathleen.gerber), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Yidiiltoo: Internet Archive Book Images, No restrictions, source
- Teeth blackening: momo, CC BY 2.0, source
- Deq: Dûrzan cîrano, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Godna: Shivangi Lokras, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Scarification: John Atherton, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Kohl: Camila Zanon., CC BY 2.0, source
- Urdhva Pundra: Abhisek Sarda, CC BY 2.0, source
- Urna: Iudexvivorum, CC0, source
- Tripundra: Vivek Kondur, CC BY 2.0, source
- Prayer callus: Mohammed Tawsif Salam, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Payot: Mark Neyman, CC BY-SA 3.0, source