Scarification

Scarifying (also scarification modification) involves scratching, etching, burning / branding, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification. In the process of body scarification, scars are formed by cutting or branding the skin by varying methods (sometimes using further sequential aggravating wound healing methods at timed intervals, like irritation), to purposely influence wound healing to scar more and not scar less. Scarification is sometimes called cicatrization (from the French equivalent).

Within anthropology, the study of the body as a boundary has been long debated. In 1909, Van Gennep described bodily transformations, including tattooing, scarification, and painting, as rites of passage. In 1963, Levi-Strauss described the body as a surface waiting for the imprintation of culture. Turner (1980) first used the term "social skin" in his detailed discussion of how Kayapo culture was constructed and expressed through individual bodies. Inscribed skin highlights an issue that has been central to anthropology since its inception: the question of boundaries between the individual and society, between societies, and between representation and experiences.

There are currently 4 competing hypotheses behind the behavior ecology of scarification: (1) a rite of passage, (2) a hardening/trauma procedure, (3) a nonadaptive sexually selected character, or (4) an adaptive pathogen-driven sexually selected character. There are also aesthetic, religious, and social reasons for scarification. For example, scarification has been widely used by many West African tribes to mark milestone stages in both men and women's lives, such as puberty and marriage. It is also used to transmit complex messages about identity; such permanent body markings may emphasize fixed social, political, and religious roles. Tattoos, scars, brands, and piercings, when voluntarily acquired, are ways of showing a person's autobiography on the surface of the body to the world.

Tribe members unwilling to participate in scarification were generally not included in the group's activities. According to anthropologist Grace Harris, group members lacking the normal characteristics consistent of the group are not considered as acquiring the full standings as agents in their society, they would also lack the capacity for meaningful behavior, such as greeting, commanding, and stating. Therefore scarification can transform partial tribe members into normal states entirely accepted by the group. Scarification a form of language not readily expressed, except through extensive and intricate greetings, gives the ability to communicate fully which is a key element for being considered as a normal member of the group.

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