Harry Styles’ 55 Tattoos & Their Meanings

Edward Harry Styles, popularly known as Harry Styles is an English Singer, Songwriter, and Actor. His career as a singer began when he had returned to form the boy band One Direction, after being eliminated once from the auditions of British singing competition The X Factor. Harry Styles seems to love getting inked, he is known to have received his first ink at the age of 18years. He has more than 50 intricate inks on his body, which hold great importance for him. Let’s explore his tattoos and their meanings.

1. ‘Two Swallows’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Two Swallows facing each other inked on his chest.

Meaning: The two swallows inked on Harry’s chest have their face inked in the same direction. This tattoo was used as the symbol by the sailors to represent their sailing experience usually tattoed on the chest, hands, or neck. Swallows are the symbol of love and travel and it was believed that after the death of the sailor, the swallows would carry their soul to heaven. Harry as per his profession travels a lot, and thus he was encouraged to get this inked.

Harry said, “[the swallows] symbolize traveling, and we travel a lot.” Harry also said, “I like that kind of style of tattoos, like the old sailor kind of tattoos.”

2. ‘Skeleton in a suit’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Skeleton dressed in a suit inked on his left upper arm.

Meaning: In 2013, Harry got this tattoo inked, which is a creepy skeleton dressed up in a suit wearing a fedora hat. He had received it during the time of Halloween and had revealed it during One Direction’s Take Me Home Tour.

3. ‘Rose’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Rose inked on his left forearm.

Meaning: Rose Tattoo is the symbol of love and romance. It is believed that Harry got this rose inked right under his ship tattoo on his forearm which he got inked along with his Ex-Girlfriend Taylor Swift. Thus, this rose is a tribute to his lost love since they are no more connected.

4. ‘The old-school Handshake’ Tattoo

Tattoo: The old-school Handshake inked on his left bicep.

Meaning: The tattoo is the symbol of equality.

5. ‘The Naked Mermaid’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Naked Mermaid inked on the outside of his left forearm.

Meaning: The naked mermaid tattoo on Harry’s forearm was done by Liam Sparkles in the United Kingdom. Mermaid tattoo represents rebirth, danger, and seduction. Harry was captured saying that he received this tattoo because he thinks he is a Mermaid.

6. ‘Eagle’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Eagle inked on his right arm.

Meaning: Eagle Tattoo symbolizes courage and freedom. Harry got this ink to cover up his previous ink which included the words “Thing’s I Can”. He got this tattoo at the time when he began to reach the highest success level of his singing career. Thus, Eagle being a majestic bird, he was inspired to get it inked on his body representing the achievement of his solo career.

7. ‘Three Nails’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Three nails inked on the inside of his left bicep.

8. ‘A Coat Hanger’ Tattoo

Tattoo: A coat hanger on the inside of his left bicep.

9. ‘A Star’ Tattoo

Tattoo:  A star inked in black on the inner side of his left bicep.

10. ‘Green Bay Packers Logo’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Green Bay Packers Tattoo inked on the inside of his left forearm.

Meaning: Harry Styles is a huge fan of Football, during one of their matches, Harry bet with his friend Cal that if Green Bay Packers won, he would get their symbol tattooed the next day. He reassuringly asked Cal if they were going to win, he still said yes. Harry got the tattoo inked the same day without even waiting for the match to end, and being unlucky enough, the Green Packers lost the game.

11. ‘A Cross’ Tattoo

Tattoo: A tiny cross inked near the thumb of his left hand.

12. ‘Anchor’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Anchor inked on his left wrist. This anchor tattoo is the cover-up to Harry’s previous tattoo which included the words, “I Can’t Change”.

13. ‘Late Late’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Late Late inked on his left upper arm.

Meaning: During his appearance on the popular Late Late Show, Harry turned out to be the unlucky one. James Corden had One Direction band members pick out random boxes, Harry ended up with the Tattoo box and had to get the show’s logo tattooed on him.

14. ‘Giant Heart’ Tattoo

Tattoo:  Huge anatomical heart inked on his left inner bicep inked by Tattoo artist Liam Sparkles.

Meaning: It is believed that Harry got this tattoo after being inspired by his rumored girlfriend’s identical anatomical heart tattoo.

15. ‘YOU BOOZE, YOU LOSE, and a liquor Bottle’ Tattoo

Tattoo: YOU BOOZE YOU LOSE, and a liquor bottle tattoed on his left forearm. Harry got this tattooed from his favorite tattoo artist, Liam Sparkles in The United Kingdom.

16. ‘The Holy Bible’ Tattoo

Tattoo: The Holy Bible inked Harry’s left arm.

Meaning: Harry’s connection to Catholicism and thus his strong religious belief and love for his religion is an inspiration behind getting this tattoo.

17.  ‘A’ Tattoo

 Tattoo: A inked on his left arm.

Meaning: The letter A inked on Harry’s Left-arm represents the initials of his mother’s name, Anne Twist.

18. ‘Hi’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Hi inked in the inner side of his left bicep.

19. ‘Iced Gem Cookie’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Iced Gem Cookie inked on the inside of his left arm.

Meaning: Harry Styles got a tattoo inked in the honor of his older sister, Gemma whose nickname is Gem. The tattoo includes an iced gem cookie inked on the inside of his left bicep. Iced Gem is the British popular biscuit known as Iced Gem.

20. ‘Can I stay Tattoo

Tattoo:  “Can I Stay” tattoo is inked on the upper part of his left arm, right above the pirate ship tattoo and below the Hebrew tattoo of his sister Gemma’s name.

21. ‘NY, LA, and Lon’ Tattoos

Tattoo: NY, LA, and Lon inked on his left bicep.

22. ‘Butterfly’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Huge Butterfly inked across his stomach.

Meaning: Butterfly represents transformation. Harry got this inked to symbolize his transformation of life through different stages. He had received it from tattoo artist Liam Sparkes.

23. ‘Birdcage’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Birdcage inked on Harry’s left ribcage.

24. ‘Two Theater Mask’ Tattoos

Tattoo: Two tragedy theatre masks inked next to the birdcage.

25. ‘SMCL’ Tattoo

Tattoo: SMCL inked directly under the Tragedy Theatre Masks.

Meaning: SMCL stands for Smile Now Cry Later. it also includes an X inked along with it.

26. ‘Guitar’ Tattoo

Tattoo: A tiny guitar inked on Harry’s left shoulder.

Meaning: Harry got this tattoo inked as a tribute to his musical background.

27. ‘The Pirate Ship’ Tattoo

Tattoo: The traditional Pirate ship inked on Harry’s left bicep.

Meaning: Harry in one of the interviews said that this tattoo is just a reminder for him of traveling homeward when he’s off on his tours around the globe.

28. ‘Gemma written in Hebrew’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Gemma inked in the Hebrew language on his upper left arm.

Meaning: Harry got this tattoo from Tattoo Artist Isaiah Negrete. Gemma is the name of Harry’s older sister.

30. ‘JACKSON’ Tattoo

Tattoo: JACKSON inked on Harry’s left arm.

Meaning: Jackson is the name of Harry’s photographer, Calvin Aurand, who was the official photographer and archivist for One Direction. Jackson is Harry’s godson.

31. ‘SILVER SPOON’ Tattoo

Tattoo: SILVER SPOON tattooed on the back of his left arm.

Meaning: This tattoo is the symbolism of the success of Harry’s band, One Direction.

32. ‘Arlo’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Arlo inked on his left arm.

33. ‘R’ Tattoo

Tattoo: R inked on the left forearm.

Meaning:  “R” inked on Harry’s left forearm is the tribute to his stepfather, Robin Twist, who had helped Harry’s mother raise him and his sister, Gemma after she split from Desmond Styles (Harry’s Biological father).

34. ‘Key’ tattoo

Tattoo: Miniature key inked on his left wrist next to padlock tattoo. This tattoo is similar to the tattoo of Harry’s Co Band member, Louis Tomlinson, who also has the same key inked on his right ankle.

35. ‘Padlock’ Tattoo

Tattoo: A padlock is inked on Harry’s left wrist. This tattoo was done by Ed Sheeran on Harry’s body on August 13, 2012.

36. ‘Shamrock’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Shamrock inked on his left wrist.

Meaning: The shamrock symbol inked on Harry’s body is a tribute to L.A.’s Shamrock Social Club Tatto Parlor, from where Harry is said to have received more than 40 tattoos.

37. ‘Aquarius’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Aquarius zodiac sign inked just below shamrock tattoo.

Meaning: The waves inked in a pattern on the left wrist of Harry represent his birth zodiac sign.

38. ’99p’ Tattoo

Tattoo: There are multiple propositions as to what inspired Harry to get this tattoo. Harry was born and raised in the UK, 99p means 99 pence, the British monetary sign.

39. ‘NEVER GONNA DANCE AGAIN’ Tattoo

Tattoo: NEVER GONNA DANCE AGAIN inked on Harry’s feet.

Meaning: NEVER GONNA DANCE AGAIN are the lyrics from George Micheal’s famous song

40. ‘G’ Tattoo

Tattoo: G inked on his left shoulder.

Meaning: G tattoo is the symbol of Harry’s love for his older sister, Gemma.

41. ‘Birth Year of his parents’ Tattoo

Tattoo: 1957 and 1967 inked on his left and right collarbones respectively.

Meaning: 1957 represents the birth year of his father and 1967 symbolizes the Birth year of his mother.

42. ’17Black’ Tattoo

Tattoo: 17 BLACK inked near his left armpit.

Meaning: Harry is a huge fan of James Bond. Thus, he got “17 BLACK”, the famous lucky bet of 007 inked on his body.

43. ‘Cross with B’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Cross with a B tattoo inked on his right shoulder.

Meaning: Harry is known to get inks in the love of his family members. This cross with B is supposedly in love with his maternal Grandfather, Brian Selley, or Paternal Grandmother, Beryl German.

44. ‘Broken Heart’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Broken Heart inked near his left chest.

45. ‘Two fern leaves’ Tattoos

Tattoo: Two fern leaves inked on each side of his abdomen.

Meaning: Fern Leaves are the symbol of growth, endurance, and strength. Harry, in the pursuance of all his struggles through his life journey, got this ink has done which covers a huge part of his body. This tattoo is the cover-up of his previous ink which said, “Might as well”.

46. ‘Brasil!’ Tattoo

Tattoo: Brasil inked on his left upper thigh.

Meaning: During One Direction’s tour to Rio de Janeiro, Harry was inspired by the city to such an extent that he had got this permanent tattoo etched on his skin.

47. ‘Tiger’ Tattoo 

Tattoo: Huge Tiger inked on Harry’s left thigh.

Meaning: Tiger tattoo is the symbol of Pride, Passion, and Courage.

Harry had revealed the real identity of this tattoo during BBC Radio show when he was asked a question about his new ink. He said, “Roaaar!”

48. ‘Two Cross’ Tattoos

Tattoo: Two small crosses on his left chest with K and M written under them respectively.

Meaning: The cross with K tattoo represents the initials of his Paternal Grandfather, Keith Fredrick Styles whereas the Cross Tattoo with M represents the initials of his Maternal Grandmother, Mary Smith.

49. ‘PINGU’ Tattoo

Tattoo: PINGU has written on his left inner bicep.

Meaning: PINGU tattoo holds great relevance for Harry. This is a “bro tattoo” with Ed Sheeran since he has a similar tattoo with a difference that Pingu character is inked on his body. Both of them had decided to get these tattoos inked in love for the famous character PINGU (Penguin character of the children’s claymation series- PINGU).

50. ‘Little Things’ Tattoo

Tattoo: This tattoo is inked in honor of one of the band’s recent tracks – “Little Things” from their Take Me Home album released in 2012.

51. ‘X’ Tattoo

Tattoo: X inked on Harry’s right ankle.

52. ‘Big’ Tattoo

Tattoo: The word ‘Big’ is inked on Harry’s right toe.

53. Black Heart on Bicep

In December 2012, Harry decided to permanently get himself a back heart onto his left bicep. Although some believe it serves as a reminder of his family back home, we believe it’s merely a clever play on the phrase “wearing your heart on your sleeve.”

54. Olivia Tattoo on Thigh

Styles displayed what seems to be the word “Olivia” tattooed in an italic font on his thigh. While some fans immediately associated Wilde as the source of inspiration for Styles’ tattoo, others speculated that its significance could be linked to the One Direction song “Olivia” from their 2015 album “Made in the A.M.”

55. ‘Colazione’on Thigh

The term “colazione,” meaning breakfast in Italian, seemed to be tattooed on his leg as well