If you have been kicking around on social media for a while, you may have started to notice that many members of the LGBT community have started to talk about snake tattoos. They believe it to be a symbol of their sexuality. This is a relatively new type of tattoo to get. This often leaves people wondering, what does the snake tattoo mean to LGBT?
The truth is that the snake tattoo is such a newish concept that people haven’t really decided exactly what it means. Although, the general consensus is that if you wear a snake tattoo, you could be a lesbian. Some bisexuals will use the snake too, although that is much rarer.
Let’s explain this in a bit more depth. We also want to tell you about some of the other tattoos that you may encounter in the world of LGBT.
What Does the Snake Tattoo Mean to LGBT?
The snake tattoo is a tattoo used by some lesbians. There are also some bisexual people that see it as a symbol of their sexuality too, although this is going to be much rarer.
As we said before, there is no agreed consensus on what the snake tattoo actually means in LGBT culture. In fact, there are some lesbians who have a silent chuckle (and sometimes a not-so-silent chuckle) over the whole idea of a snake tattoo. They seem to believe that it is a joke that started on TikTok and expanded from there. As a result, it is more likely to be the younger lesbians that have a snake tattoo, while the older generation is fine without it.
Because nobody can really agree on why the snake tattoo has come to represent lesbian people, there is also not a whole lot of agreement about the meaning behind the tattoo. We have found three distinct reasons that have been discussed, although we are sure others would give you different answers.
The Snake Tattoo – LGBT symbol of their sexuality
Just Because
Sometimes there is just no reason why the snake tattoo is being used. If a prominent lesbian had a snake tattoo and said that it was a symbol of her lesbianism, then chances are that others would follow in her stead.
In the past, there were symbols that were meant to highlight lesbians to other lesbians but, as far as we can tell, snakes were never one of these tattoos. It is a very, very recent trend.
Honestly, we’re sure that even the lesbians who have a snake tattoo got it for no reason other than the fact that it looks incredibly cool. Later on, they claimed that it was to show off their sexuality. They then told other lesbians this, and many of them ended up getting the same tattoo.
We believe there is no major backstory about how the snake tattoo became a symbol of lesbians in the LGBT community other than the fact a few lesbians have it.
The Snake Goddess
In Minoan culture, a lost culture that existed in Greece thousands of years ago, the civilization was said to be very female-dominated. While there is no real archeological evidence, historians believe that females were at the center of Minoan culture. One of the top Goddesses in Minoan culture was the Snake Goddess (we do not know her name, just the fact that she appears in a few statues that were found in this part of Greece).
As a result, some people have come to believe that the Snake Goddess is a symbol of womanhood. It is a symbol of power in women. As you can imagine, some lesbians have taken this idea and got tattoos of it.
That being said, we haven’t seen many lesbians claim that this is the reason behind their snake tattoo. The vast majority of lesbians who have a snake tattoo claim that they are just following the trend, or perhaps have it due to the final reason.
Symbol of Strength & Rebirth
The snake is a powerful creature in many cultures around the world. While the meaning of the snake can differ from culture to culture, most seem to believe the snake to be a symbol of strength and rebirth.
Many of the lesbians that have a snake tattoo claim that it is a symbol of them coming out, and becoming who they want to be. So, we suppose this plays into the rebirth aspect a little bit. We have also seen many transgender people get the tattoo for the same reason.
The Problem with The Snake Tattoo in LGBT Culture
As we said before, tattoos are often used as a way for homosexual people to indicate that they are homosexual to others. Or, at least indicate who they are as a person. For example, transgender have long used the moth as a symbol of who they are. The problem? Tattoos no longer work the same way.
This whole page is about discussing the use of a snake in LGBT culture. However, let’s be honest, the snake is a pretty cool animal. The animal has a ton of meaning behind it. This means that it is not going to be limited to lesbian people. In fact, we reckon that the majority of people who have a snake tattoo are not going to be gay at all. They just have a snake tattoo for the coolness factor of it.
We are sure that this goes without saying, but just because you see somebody with a snake tattoo, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are a lesbian or bisexual. In fact, chances are that it doesn’t mean that in the slightest.
What Does The Snake Tattoo Mean LGBT
Where Did The Snake Tattoo Trend Start?
This is the big question, really. There doesn’t seem to be any agreement as to where the snake tattoo trend started.
Most people seem to believe that it is a trend that started on TikTok since the idea of a snake tattoo being the symbol of lesbianism is mostly spread there. However, there does not seem to be any agreement as to where on TikTok the idea of the snake started.
We have poured a lot of research into the whole idea of a snake tattoo in the LGBT community, but the vast majority of people are just asking what it means and many lesbians dismiss it as a bit of a joke. It is not really meant to be seen as a serious tattoo, and those who do have the snake as a tattoo are much more likely to be part of the TikTok generation.
Even outside of the snake as a tattoo, there seems to be little discussion about the use of the snake symbol to symbolize lesbians. There is some evidence that the snake has been used by transgender people to represent them in the past, but this no longer happens. Honestly, the snake is a symbol that just popped out of nowhere.
Where Do Lesbians Get Their Snake Tattoos?
When a lesbian does get a snake tattoo to show off her sexuality, it is likely to be in one of two different places:
On the forearm
On one of the fingers (a smaller tattoo).
In our experience, lesbians who see the snake tattoo as a symbol of their sexuality are much more likely to get a smaller tattoo on one of their fingers. This is due to how tattoos were used as an identifying mark of sexuality in the past.
The exact art style of the snake tattoo will vary from person to person. Most of the time, it is going to be a simple black & white image without a whole lot of detail. However, we have seen some lesbians and bisexual people have much more elaborate artwork. Although, in the latter case this is more likely down to the fact they love the tattoo rather than showing off their sexuality.
Alternative LGBT Tattoos
While the snake isn’t an especially common tattoo in the LGBT community, mostly because it doesn’t really mean anything, there are some tattoo symbols that are used as identifiers in the LGBT community. These are symbols that are rarely used by any straight person, which makes them great for showing off a person’s personality:
The pink triangle is often used for gay men. This is due to the pink triangle being used as a badge of shame in Nazi Germany. Gay men now wear it as a symbol of pride in who they are.
The nautical star tattoo was originally used by lesbians in the 40s and 50s to show off their sexuality. Many have continued to use the symbol.
The Lambda is the 11th character in the Greek alphabet. This is said to indicate homosexuality.
The circle tattoo is used by intersex people.
Final Thoughts
The snake tattoo is a fairly new tattoo to LGBT culture. It is said to represent lesbians, although some bisexual people also see it as a symbol of their sexuality. This is a tattoo style that originally gained prominence on TikTok, and then many people just went with the idea of it being the tattoo of lesbians. It will probably be a few years before there is any sort of agreement on the meaning of the snake tattoo, if it ever happens.
Hello, my name is Gay Worlley - no, really - and I love learning about all things queer. I am also a qualified gardener and enjoy traveling in my spare time.
I love sharing my travel stories with anyone who will listen, and now I want to share them with the world through my new website! Not only that, but I want to inspire others and teach you about LGBTQ+ travel, queer media, pride, and much more.
Enjoy my website and, more importantly, enjoy learning about important subjects that need more educational attention. Thanks for stopping by!
![Can You Wear Black To Pride? [What To Wear]](https://pridelygay.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Can-You-Wear-Black-To-Pride-What-To-Wear.jpg "Can You Wear Black To Pride? [What To Wear]")
