scarification

Meaning

Noun

• The act of scarifying: raking the ground harshly to remove weeds, etc.
• A medieval form of penance in which the skin was damaged with a knife or hot iron.
• The scratching, etching, burning / branding, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification.

Origin

• From Old French scarificacion, from Late Latin scarificatio.