Bioluminescent Markings - Theories
 

The Avatar book states

What other purposes do you suppose they have? Are they determined by genetics, etc?

Post/discuss theories in here.

They are determined somewhat by genetics, it will be a combination of the parents patterns. When a pair mates, their spots may shift to become more similar to one another. They also come in handy to identify Na'vi from a distance at night because of the luminescent spot patters and because each Na'vi has a unique pattern.

This is all I know.

is this in the book? or ?? I haven't read it all yet tbh ahhaha

Looks liekly to be determined by genetics, and the characteristics of the individual.

Genetic markings give place and status, and people can make relations to other family members, prehaps those that have the most prominent markings, are the ones that are most dedicated and loyal to eywa.

I don't have it either, however that is pretty much a compilation of what I've heard on the internet about them. Sorry I can't me more of a help =p

All I can say is that I loves them

Tru dat.:D

I heard they are bacteria or something that attach to the Na'vi or something and its equivalent to acne in humans (except unlike acne every na'vi has it and they serve a purpose hahha)

I don't think there is any actual detail of how they occur. It could be a symbiotic relationship I guess, but I'd bet it's more likely to be specially adapted cells (the markings all have a similar pattern, and every lifeform on Pandora has some, to varying degrees)

^^This, and:

LOL! That was me joking about it XD. What I know (and I'm pretty darn sure about this) is that they are genetically determined and random, like a fingerprint (although I wonder about Mo'at's... I personally think it was just to make her look "mystical"), they are said to change color but they actually don't in the movie (probably cut out), and the spots do not rearrange, that is from a fanfic/s.

I also remember reading in the Activist Survival Guide that they're all unique, like our fingerprints (I think it was the ASG, I remember reading that somewhere, and I own the ASG so that seems to be where, but I'll check when I get home just to be sure)

Also, they are sexy! I'm getting a black light tattoo in a design like the Na'vi, on my back, chest, arms, maybe legs. :D still designing, I have pages of designs

Really? I always thought of them as pretty much the bioluminescent equivilent to freckles.

tennyo..oh i didnt know you were joking! hahahahaha but tbh its actually a good theory.

I remember reading somewhere that different clans have different colors and/or patterns...

I found this:

Source

maybe they could be bite marks from Pandoras versions of mesquitoes lol XD
and Stan.....no...just no...

I suppose the marking are a bit like veins under human skin. I have pretty transparent skin and my veins REALLY stand out on parts of me. Obviously the veins are the circularity system so the Na'vi spots follow or maybe have something to do with the workings of important bodily functions on them. I'd imagine that every human doesn't have every vein follow the exact position on every human body, but they do follow a general area. So the layout of my veins is a combination of genes from both parents same as Na'vi markings would be. Or maybe I just went in totally the wrong direction with that theory!