Bedouin women and children from the North of Palestine with tattooed faces c.1890s
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Facial and Body tattooing, called Deg in the Middle East, was common practice for many Middle Eastern women (and men on occasion, who tattooed their arms). Fellaha (farmers), Bedouin, Kurdish, Assyrian and Yazidi communities have practised it for hundreds of years. A lot of the meanings behind deq have been lost. Still, chin tattoos - specifically a line from lip to chin - were meant to symbolise fertility and beauty, Muslim and Christian women would often adorn themselves with a Crescent or Cross-shaped tattoo - sometimes after or during a pilgrimage, some tattoos were meant for protection from the evil eye, during battles, or spirits and a lot demonstrated tribal affiliation. Info via: Palipunk tumblr