"Mine's bigger!"
A tattoo is a mark or design that is placed on the skin. They are usually permanent, but can be removed.
After Chris Brynner met Jadzia Dax in 2024 San Francisco, he thought her Trill spots were a type of tattoo from Japan. Brynner himself had a Maori tattoo done in the 1990s, but had it removed. (DS9: "Past Tense, Part I")
Chakotay had a Native American tattoo (Star Trek: Voyager), as did his father Kolopak. (VOY: "Tattoo", "Basics, Part I")
When Q tried to impress Kathryn Janeway in order for her to mate with him, he briefly appeared with Chakotay's tattoo, only much more elaborate. (VOY: "The Q and the Grey")
Chakotay, as he appeared in Quarren's holographic representation of the USS Voyager crew also had a much more elaborate tattoo. (VOY: "Living Witness")
The holographic Bajoran character Katanay in the holoprogram Photons Be Free, who was based on Chakotay also had a tattoo. His tattoo was more colourful, however, and depicted the Bajoran logo surrounded by a snake. (VOY: "Author, Author")
When Chakotay and Seven of Nine were stranded in a Ventu village on Ledos, the natives imitated Chakotay's tattoo. (VOY: "Natural Law")
Races with tattoos
- The tattoos featured on several Ferengi on Star Trek: The Next Generation are apparently only temporary as both Arridor and Kol had them in the episode "The Price" but when they reappeared in the Star Trek: Voyager episode "False Profits", their tattoos were gone.