Kiss

Lore & Background

Anthropologists disagree on whether kissing is instinctual or learned. Those favoring instinct cite similar behaviors in other animals, such as bonobos kissing after fighting to restore peace. Others argue it is learned, evolving from suckling or premastication, noting that not all human cultures kiss—only around 90% of the human population practices it. The earliest reference to kissing-like behavior comes from the Vedas, Sanskrit scriptures around 3,500 years ago, according to anthropologist Vaughn Bryant. However, recent studies challenge a single point of origin, with evidence from ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt documenting kissing as early as 2500 BCE. Figurines suggest kissing may have been practiced in prehistory, and it has been suggested that Neandertals and humans kissed.

In ancient Mesopotamia, kissing appeared in both romantic and familial contexts but was subject to social regulation, discouraging public display of its sexual aspect. Kissing also had a role in rituals. The act may have unintentionally facilitated the transmission of orally transmitted microorganisms, potentially leading to disease. Ancient Mesopotamian medical texts mention a disease called bu'shanu, possibly related to herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1). Both lip and tongue kissing are mentioned in Sumerian poetry, and kissing is described in surviving ancient Egyptian love poetry from the New Kingdom. The earliest reference in the Old Testament is in Genesis 27:26, and the first man-woman kiss in the Bible appears in Genesis 29:11. During the later Classical period, affectionate mouth-to-mouth kissing was first described in the Hindu epic the Mahabharata. Anthropologist Vaughn Bryant argues kissing spread from India to Europe after Alexander the Great conquered parts of Punjab in northern India in 326 BCE.

In Medieval Europe, kissing was not always an indication of romantic love but could show respect and rank, as nobles would finalize legal or diplomatic agreements by kissing each other. Contemporary views held that breaths contained aspects of a person's soul, so a lip-to-lip kiss was believed to lead to the two souls intermingling. The study of kissing, called philematology, started in the nineteenth century and has been studied by Cesare Lombroso, Ernest Crawley, Charles Darwin, Edward Burnett Tylor, and modern scholars such as Elaine Hatfield.

Reader's Guide

The kiss is a significant cultural and historical gesture, documented across millennia and continents. Its meanings range from romantic love and sexual arousal to familial affection, greeting, respect, and religious devotion. The earliest written references appear in the Vedas around 3,500 years ago, with archaeological evidence from Mesopotamia and Egypt dating to 2500 BCE. The practice is not universal—only about 90% of human populations kiss—which supports the view that kissing is a learned behavior rather than purely instinctual. The act has also played a role in disease transmission, as advances in ancient DNA extraction have revealed pathogen genomes in human remains, including those transmitted through saliva. The shift in dominant lineages of herpes simplex virus 1 during the Bronze Age implies that cultural practices like romantic-sexual kissing could have contributed to its transmission. Kissing has been used in legal and diplomatic contexts in Medieval Europe, where it symbolized respect and rank. The study of kissing, philematology, emerged in the nineteenth century. Overall, the kiss remains a complex, cross-cultural phenomenon that reflects deep social, emotional, and biological dimensions of human life.