A bear is a type of animal that when provoked causes a great deal of damage to the people and its surrounding environment.

For long, bears have been a symbol of confidence and masculinity. Just like the great wind of the north, the bear has a wild nature that is completely ready to defend its space from any possible danger.

You can easily find different kinds of bears roaming around the wild forests of America. From grizzly bear to the polar bear of North America, there are many kinds of bears in the forests of South America, Asia, and Europe.

Even though it will be a daunting experience to encounter a bear today, you will be shocked to know the meanings and symbolism associated with the bear in ancient prehistoric times.

For example, in ancient Siberia, people looked at the karhu or bear as the spirit of their forefather’s. Korean Mythology believes that bears are their ancestors from the past. In Chinese cultures, a lot of people worshipped bears as it brought a great deal of prosperity in the region, and for the people of the Sioux, bear signs are all about honoring a successful hunt or a healing medicine.

Bears in Modern Times

Today, the bear is the national animal of Finland, while in the United States, grizzly and black bears have been considered state animals. If you carefully observe the seal of Missouri or California, you will come across a unique animal there too.  Also in the United Kingdom, the bear is at times placed on the arms of Warwickshire County.

In simplest terms, a bear stands as a symbol of confidence and strength. It might be an animal that can be domesticated, yet when it gets aggressive, it is difficult to stop.

The bear, as a symbol, is the most common form of art in tattoos these days as they portray different meanings. Tattoos are all about revealing your identity, the type of person you are, etc. People use bear tattoos to show a sign of strength and masculinity while others believe it has the power to heal.

In recent times, bear tattoos have become increasingly popular among both genders. Men go for a more rough design to showcase the strength and vigor, while the women go for teddy bears and panda designs to highlight the softer image.

Today, we will be talking about 125 unique bear tattoo designs showcasing power and strength. If you haven’t got a tattoo yet, bear tattoos will surely entice you to get one.

Here are some of the exciting bear tattoo designs to help you get started.

1) The Grizzly Bear Tattoo

The grizzly bear tattoo is the most common tattoo that you will find in many tattoo parlors. Popular among males, this particular type of tattoo is also known as the brown bear highlighting the face or complete body of the bear. It depends on the type of design you are rooting for while getting a bear tattoo. Most of the people go for the face or muzzle of the bear, while some like minimalistic bear designs. Shading and coloring depend on the design, and this is added to create a finishing look. The fur is textured with black colors to add more depth and detail.

2) Bear Claw Tattoo

Many people believe that bear claws highlight agility and strength, which is why bear claw tattoo is popular among the people. The concept for this tattoo design is unique with just brown color showcasing the bear’s face in the center of the claw. The nose, ears, and eyes ensure shadows. This type of design is unique and not used by many people.

3) Polar Bear Tattoo

This tattoo design portrays a polar bear howling and balancing itself on a piece of iceberg. The silhouette of the polar bear with icebergs, decorated with facets and transformed in blue ink. Designs like these portray the changing environment and its effect on the animals. This tattoo is the best fit for people showcasing love for the environment and nature. This tattoo looks even better in its simplest form.

Also See:

• 125 Unique Bear Tattoo Designs – A Sign of Diversity
• 125 Unique Turtle Tattoos with Meanings and Symbolisms That You Can Get This Winter!
• 125 Best Mountain Tattoos! Lets Climb High
• 155 Extremely Adorable Cat Tattoos You Should Get This Year
• 155+ Saint Michael Tattoos: Everything You Need to Learn! (with Meanings)

4) Tribal Bear Tattoo

The tribal bear tattoo is all about flaunting delicate artwork. The tattoo shows a bear’s torso through different strokes in a tribal context. The strokes show the angry side of the bear with its claws raised to attack. People with an aggressive mentality normally want the bear claw tattoo as it matches with their identity.

5) Geometrical Shaped Bear Tattoo

A tattoo with a unique design, a geometrically shaped bear tattoo is the most popular among the females with its lush, colorful design and delicate artwork. The outline of the bear is segregated into different segments and shaded with different colors to provide a prism-like effect. The tattoo is shaded with different colors to give an appealing look.

6) Teddy Bear with a Balloon Tattoo

This design is the smallest among all the designs highlighting a teddy bear holding a balloon. Suitable for ankle or wrists, this tattoo design is most popular among females showing a stuffed teddy bear catching a butterfly or balloon with its paws. This design is easy to make, with no extra colors other than brown.

7) Panda Tattoo

Panda is considered to be the cutest animal in the world. Endangered and adored by many, this particular tattoo is all about panda chewing a bamboo. This tattoo is popular among people having a love for pandas and wildlife.

8) Bear with Cub Tattoo

This tattoo highlights the importance of a father and son relationship that is strong on the outside but soft on the inside. This tattoo depicts the parent bear holding the paw of the baby bear showing immense love and affection towards each other.

9) Maple Leaf and Bear Tattoo

The ‘maple leaf and bear’ tattoo boasts about a bear in a crushed maple leaf. The leaf is surrounded by trees that you can observe easily in the background. The tattoo itself presents a unique, poetic environment.

10) Winnie the Pooh Tattoo

The most adorable tattoo out there, Winnie the Pooh is a famous character among teens. The tattoo is all about Pooh bear holding onto a balloon as it flies off in the sky. The best part about this tattoo is that the balloon is in the shape of a heart with different colors fitting together to make it look like a puzzle.

11) Dotwork Bear Tattoo

This tattoo is depicting an intricate design for a wide range of tattoos out there. This tattoo is created by making dots into a picture form. It is describing the head of the bear protecting its family from all the dangers around them. The tattoo shows the darker side of bears and how wild they are. People hunt them for skin and meat usually because their hunting is rare and carry a large amount of money.h

A dotwork bear tattoo is the best fit for people having immense love and gratitude towards animals and wildlife species.

12) Small Outline Ankle Bear Tattoo

If you are that type of person that doesn’t like the big artwork on his or her body, this tattoo is perfect for you. This ankle-based tattoo is an outline of a bear designed in a manner that it is painting a complete image of the bear.

Representing strength and power, the eyes of the bear is in green color depicting the softer side of the bear.

Outline ankle bear tattoo is immensely popular with adventure lovers enjoying outdoor activities. It is also suitable for people that don’t like a lot of artwork on their body.

13) Ink Bear Tattoo

Bear tattoos are so much popular among people that you can design it in many ways. One way you can design a bear tattoo is by crafting the entire face of the bear howling like a beast. Mostly popular among people liking aggressive and wild stuff, this type of ink-based tattoo looks great on your thighs or the back of your body.

14) Arctic Night Landscape Bear Tattoo

This particular type of tattoo is suitable for people with an artistic mind. This tattoo is showing an outline of a bear with a starry night and landscape carved inside the animal. This ink-based tattoo is shaded with blue and green colors to create that artistic effect while mountains and forests show the natural side of the design.

This tattoo is suitable for people with a creative mind and popular among both genders. You can make it anywhere on the body.  

15) Roaring Bear Landscape Art Tattoo

Nature and wildlife elements are prevalent among bear tattoos. Bears live in the forests surrounded by nature and landscape. From the jungles of Canada and America to the European side of Germany, Switzerland, and United Kingdom, bears portray masculinity and strength, which is the reason why people love them.

This bear landscape tattoo is depicting a roaring bear in the forest. The outline of the bear is shaded with different colors of grey, dark green, light green, greenish blue; and showing forests and wildlife. A unique design is showing the artistic skills of the designer; this tattoo is a favorite among males.

Different Symbols and Meanings of Bear Tattoos

Tattoos are not just about artwork and design. They are also about different symbols and meanings. These symbols and meanings resonate differently with different people and their cultures all over the world. Before selecting these tattoos, you should understand what they are about. Let us take a look.

Beauty – A bear tattoo is all about beauty. This fact can be explained in a manner that not all bears are aggressive and dangerous. Some of them are cute, adorable, and very friendly. This is one of the reasons why most women opt for bear tattoos because of their cuteness¬.

Strength–Without a doubt, bears are a symbol of strength, which is why people choose them. One of the factors why people like bear tattoos is because of their size in comparison to the other animals. Most of the animals respect bears because they are dangerous when triggered to a great extent.

Healing – This may seem a bit strange, but in different parts of the world, bears symbolize healing. In the past, Native Americans believed that bear possessed healing qualities which is why they are considered sacred and religious.

Aggressiveness – Of course, bears are very aggressive when provoked. If you come across a bear in a jungle or forest, try to keep low and stay away from it as much as possible. Majority of the bear species are friendly, and not aggressive like black bears. They are kept as pet animals by many people in different parts of the world.

Loyalty – Despite being one of the dangerous species in the world, bears are extremely loyal to animals that are loyal to them. A bear will never betray another animal unless it feels betrayed. Loyalty is one major reason why people go for bear tattoos. If you are a loyal person then this tattoo is definitely for you.

Celebrities with Bear Tattoos

Just like any other person, celebrities also like having tattoos. Most celebrities have tattoos on their body besides having a bear designed one. Keeping this in mind, some noteworthy stars with bear tattoos are as follows:

• Maria Brink – A renowned singer and songwriter from the USA, Maria Brink has a bear tattoo on her arm.
• Melanie Martinez – Melanie Martinez is an iconic pop star from the USA with a teddy bear tattoo on her arm.
• Bethany Cosentino – Another famous artist from the USA, Bethany Cosentino absolutely loves bear art.

While there is a considerable variety of tattoos, bear tattoos are among those that stand out for showing power, confidence and many other attributes apart from being cute or stylish.