Tattoo is a loanword from the Samoan word "tatau", meaning "to strike". The "Oxford English Dictionary" gives the etymology of tattoo as "In 18th c. tattaow, tattow. From Polynesian (Samoan, Tahitian, Tongan, etc.) tatau. In Marquesan, tatu." Before the importation of the Polynesian word, the practice of tattooing had been described in the West as painting, scarring or staining. The etymology of the body modification term is not to be confused with the origins of the word for the military drumbeat or performance — see "military tattoo". In this case, the English word "tattoo" is derived from the Dutch word "taptoe".
Tahitian Dog the Tuamotuan varieties of dogs, to decorate the fringes of the "taumi –" a traditional breast ornament often called a gorget – which were worn by priests and high chiefs. The Tuamotuan breed were described as similar to their Tahitian counterparts distinguishable by their longer hair. Historian Margaret Titcomb noted that Tuamotuan varieties may not have been a separate breed that developed in isolation, arguing that the people of the Tuamotus could have eaten their short hair varieties and kept their longer haired dogs for exports to the Society Islands. The Tahitian Dog became extinct in the Society Islands some