What Is the Origin of Nose Rings?
Dating back to ancient times, the practice of nose piercing has existed in many societies for a variety of different reasons. In some cultures, nose piercings had religious significance, while others used nose rings made of gold or precious jewels as beautiful adornments to show off wealth and status. Does this Spark an idea?
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Biblical Reference
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In the Bible, Genesis has a passage about a "golden earring" that is given as a present to Rebekah, the future wife of Isaac. The original Hebrew word used in the Bible was Shanf, which is translated as "nose-ring."
India
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The Mughal emperors, who came from the Middle East, brought the custom of nose piercing to India in the 16th century. Indian women traditionally wear a ring in the left nostril, which is related to the female reproductive system, and some believe that it helps ease the pain of childbirth.
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Aztecs and Mayans
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The Aztec and Mayan people often pierced the septum with rings of gold and jade for adornment. This practice is continued in modern times by the Kuna people of Panama.
Warrior Tribes
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Warrior tribes from New Guinea and the Solomon Islands would often use nose piercings in order to appear fiercer to their enemies. They would put pig tusks, feathers, wood and pieces of bone through the septum.
The Nez Perce
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One group of Native Americans is known as the "Nez Perce," which is literally interpreted to mean "Pierced Nose." They were given this name by the French Canadian fur trappers who encountered them in the early 1800s because some were wearing nose pendants.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Sukanto Debnath
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Comments
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stevenjklein
Oct 06, 2010
There is an error in this article. Ms Sayers writes: "In the Bible, Genesis has a passage about a 'golden earring' that is given as a present to Rebekah, the future wife of Isaac. The original Hebrew word used in the Bible was Shanf, which is translated as 'nose-ring.'" First, let me say that I've never heard of the word Shanf; I promise you it's not in the Biblical account of Rebecca's betrothal. The relevant Biblical passages are Genesis 24:22, 30, and 24:47. In verse 22, the Hebrew phrase is "Nezem Zahav," which means "gold ring." In verse 47 the Hebrew says "Vaasim hanezem al-afah" which means, "And I put the ring on her nose." The only translation I can find that uses the word "earring" is the King James Version. The translators rendered Nezem as "earring." But they must have known it was wrong because just a few versus later he "put the ring on her nose." They fixed the...
