Yesterday I saw a guy with an old tattoo midway down his right forearm. It was in blue ink, and was of a sparrow in flight. I’ve seen this tattoo on other people. I don’t know or I don’t remember, but I think the guys I’ve seen it on are ex-Navy.
Does anyone know the significance of the flying sparrow tattoo?
I believe you are correct about the Navy angle. The sparrrow tattoo was used to signify that a sailor had logged some large number of miles at sea in his life.
I found this page. It offers a number of opinions, some of which say that the sparrow (or swallow) tattoo is obtained after completing 5,000 sea miles. That doesn’t seem like enough to warrant a tattoo though, and the tattoos are put on the chest instead of the arm.
From the previous link, here are some of the ideas:
[ul][li]Miles covered[/li][li]The totem will ensure the sailor returns, as the swallows return to Capistrano[/li][li]If the sailor drowns, the bird will take his spirit to Heaven[/li][li]Identify with mutineers, either to throw authorities off the trail, or to falsely claim association with a significant event, etc.[/li][li]Sailing of all Seven Seas[/li][li]Sailing around both Horns[/li][li]Wealth[/ul][/li]Most of these seem plausible, but not authoritative.