In an era where most forms of identification come through expression, one colorful technique has started to resurface.

The word tattoo comes from the Tahitian word tattau, which means “to mark.”

According to a Smithsonian museum article, tattoos have been around since 2000 B.C. where they were first found on mummies in Egypt. They were drawn on the body as protective symbols, marking out political and religious groups or through self-expression.

Today’s tattoos, although more common, still hold the same attention-grabbing allure.

“No matter where I go, people read my tattoo all the time,” Julia Lepidi, a broadcasting major, said. “A few words stick out from the top of my shirt, and they see that and ask what the rest of it says, and it’s people I don’t even know.”

Lepidi has a tattoo on her lower neck/upper back with the phrase ‘an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.’

In  2000, National Geographic found that 15 percent of Americans, which is approximately 40 million people, had at least one tattoo. In 2003, a Harris Poll found that the number had increased by one percent. By 2006, 36 percent of those ages 18 to 25, and 40 percent of those ages 26 to 40, had at least one tattoo.

“In the years that I’ve been tattooing, you definitely see more and more young people each year,” Mark Edwards, a tattoo artist at Rock Star Tattoo in Roseville, said. “The amount of people that we generate in general has definitely gone up.”

The rise of the tattoo industry poses the question of what draws so many millions of Americans to the art of tattoos.

“I think part of the reason I was drawn to tattoos is that it is a form of art, and it separates you from people,” Justine Roy, a sophomore, said. “My entire life I have always liked being different, kind of out there. That’s just who I am. Tattoos were a way for me to become more different and unique.”

Of those asked, it was nearly unanimous that it was a form of self-expression, a way to stand out, and a way to commit to something.

“I’m creative with ideas, but I am not artistic in any way, so I like to get tattoos to show off other’s creativity. In some way, their art becomes my art,” Lepidi said.

With many other forms of art to chose from, tattooing still attracts artists.

“For me, honestly it was the cash,”  Kevin Lepire, a tattoo artist at Rock Star Tattoo in Roseville, said. “Tattooing is one of the more promising jobs for an artist out there now a day. It was a way for me to persue art and make a decent living.”

According to a 2010 Pew Research Center study, 23 percent of the 2,100 people interviewed had tattoos, leaving 73 percent of people without tattoos.

While tattoos can be costly, the prices are determined by the size of the tattoo, detail of the image and the time it takes for them to be completed, Lepire said.

“On average most places charge one hundred dollars per hour, and its 50 percent commission and the rest is the shop fee,” Lepire said.

— Nichole Seguin contributed to this report.