Tribal tattoo designs are perhaps one of the original tat images, it has been around for years and the trend is still very much alive. The most common body parts for this particular theme are the shoulder, arm and lower back because they are areas that have contours that can best enhance the styles and strokes of tribal art.
Tribal designs are very much part of the tattoo history as it originated way back during pre industrial times when ancient people cluster in tribes and tattoos are used to reflect their social status and religious values. 
Tattoos during the early times have a much different purpose as compared today. They were done as part of the rite of passage to adulthood status or for religious or magical purposes as means of identification. It is also used as a talisman to insure the bearer's good luck or used to charm the opposite sex.
Nowadays, tribal tattoo designs are executed and incorporated in a variety of ways. They are typically characterized by stark, black, arching lines and mirror-image patterns. They can be lines or curves that may run parallel or intersecting each other starting thick on one end and then coming to a point. Popular tattoo images such as flowers, butterflies, sun and skulls are some of the favorite design that are accentuated with tribal styles.
Tribal tattoos designs are obtained because the wearer wants to achieve a certain look while some still maintain that desire to portray ancestral tribal heritage. Because of its creative and abstract feel and flexibility as a tattoo design, it will always be one of the top choices for people who are thinking of getting inked.
Source : http://ezinearticles.com/?Tribal-Tattoo-Designs-For-Shoulder,-Arm-and-Lower-Back-Tattoos&id=2552567
