Among China's ethnic minorities, several ethnic minorities have inherited tattoo customs from their ancestors, such as Drung, Dai and Li, but only the women of the Li and the Drung have the custom of tattooing the face.

    The tattoo customs of the Drung ethnic minority originated in the late Ming Dynasty (about 350 years ago) when they were attacked by other ethnic groups and when the women were captured as slaves. To escape rape, the Drung women tattooed their faces to make themselves less attractive to the perpetrators. Although Drung women are not currently threatened by any other ethnic minorities, they have retained their tattoo custom as a powerful symbol of maturity.

    Nobody knows when or where it began, even themselves.