The definite origins of body piercing are less than exact, but evidence exists that at least ear lobe piercing was practiced and perhaps common as far back as the height of the Egyptian empire. The book of Genesis makes reference to ear piercing in passing, and native peoples in Central America have for centuries practiced different piercings of the ears and face. Indigenous peoples in Polynesia and other regions of east Asia have incorporated the practice into tradition, indicating what is likely a long history of the practice. It has also been common in India for many centuries that women pierce their left nostril, a practice supposed to ease the pain of labor.

Ear piercing has been common for many centuries in European culture, but the practice has been limited in scope by the social confines of the times. For the most part, piercing was restricted to women and to one hole in the lobe of each ear, and even then earrings were prevalent only in the noble class. Some instances of male ear piercing exist in lines of European nobility, but earrings have been considered a sign of effeminate vanity not becoming of the common European male for most of the past millennium.

Since the late 1960s this trend has begun to reverse itself, and ear piercing, along with more extravagant facial and non-facial body piercing, has become increasingly acceptable to mainstream society. In many regions it is considered acceptable for a male to have a piercing in one or both ear lobes, even in traditionally formal professions, and multiple piercings in males and females are no longer rare. Ear piercings not on the lobes are now considered scarcely more risque than the traditional variety, and body piercing, while perhaps "exotic", is now often seen as something harmless, rather than an indicator of moral infirmity.

The emergence of body piercing as a common practice in American culture came largely as a result of the various subcultural (or counter-cultural) movements of the late 1960s, especially those on the west coast. The Gauntlet (Gauntlet Enterprises), founded in 1975, is commonly considered to be the first body piercing store-front. Founder Jim Ward is credited as a pioneer of North American body piercing in that his enterprise and newsletter (Piercing Fans International Quarterly, or PIFQ) and the culture that came to surround them helped to establish with permanence the notion of body art as part of a social identity. Originating with a clientele in the South California gay community, The Gauntlet established for itself a reputation for producing quality body art. With the expansion of the phenomenon, its business and its influence expanded.

The Gauntlet closed in the late 1990s, but since the '70s the body art profession has expanded so that services are available in even the most rural, more conservative locations. Its rising availability and perceived legitimacy as a medium for expression for both the artist and the canvas have allowed millions to take part in this new and fulfilling form of personal expression, one which, by all evidence, would seem ready to continue for decades to come.