Unlike other services, the U.S. Navy has a long tradition of tattoos. Learn about 19 popular nautical tattoo designs including what they mean and how a sailor earned the right to wear each symbol.

On this MH-60S, many traditional Navy tattoos are present, such as the swallow, dragon or pig and the rooster. The swallow represents that a sailor has traveled several thousand nautical miles, ...

Javier Hinojos, now a Navy recruiter in Pomona, says his superiors have frowned on tattoos, especially politically incorrect designs, including the traditional image on a sailor’s arm: a nude woman.

Sailors discuss the history of tattoos in the Navy on board the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). Sailors adorning their bodies with tattoos is a well-established Navy tradition ...

In 1775, the Continental Congress, foreseeing war with England, signed into existence an army, a navy and a marine landing force. This week, the 2025 Virginia International Tattoo, in Norfolk, cele… ...

On this MH-60S, many traditional Navy tattoos are present, such as the swallow, dragon or pig and the rooster. The swallow represents that a sailor has traveled several thousand nautical miles, ...