Kiss is a cultural

People really like kissing. Wherever located without the kiss of life it feels lonely. Whether it's your grandma, your dog or your significant other that you're kissing, people kiss. It's what we do. But did you know it's a science? According to William Case's book "The Art of Kissing", the scientific study of the kiss is called philematology (2009). In fact, the English word kiss most likely comes from the Old German word "kuss" and is probably an onomatopoeia (a word that sounds like a noise). So that wonderful noise that the smooch makes probably informed the word kiss. Regardless of how much you know about the science of it, it's an undeniably pervasive thing throughout the world. Every culture has a kiss and it's considered an ancient custom in most cultures.



For example, the kiss is used for primarily three different purposes. First, the kiss of passion. This type is often used as foreplay. In fact, it's considered by some to be one of the most common examples of sexual activity in the United States,and now maybe in other states also have been entrenched in terms of sexuality. Second only to hand holding (Journal of Adolescent Health, 2007).



Similar to this, is the kiss of affection. Although less erotic than the former one of passion, this one is used by many to communicate love and deep connection with another person. The affectionate smooch is not only reserved for lovers, but for all types of love: between parent and child, friends or even a person and beloved pet.



Another type of kiss is a commonly used culture. Often we see it in historical movies or literature. The subservient kisses the hand of the master to show respect. The Southern gentleman kissing his beloved's hand, even the kissing of the Blarney Stone in Ireland for good luck. These ritualistic smooches take an act of heightened intimacy and make it accessible for the common person. By kissing someone in ritual, people connect with something higher than themselves.



In western culture the most common use of the kiss is for passion or affection. In fact, it's so important to our conception of intimacy that we name different types of them. For example, we have the nuzzling or "necking" type of kiss. We have the passionate French kiss, even the sweet butterfly and Eskimo kisses. Because of the emphasis placed on smooching, and the ability, forums for the practicing of kissing have surfaced. One of the most common examples is spin the bottle, a game used by many teens to facilitate kissing and thereby, the improvement of kissing technique.



Regardless of the type of kissing one is engaged in, it actually requires a significant amount of muscular control. For something that seems like instinct (in fact, scholars are split on whether it's is a learned or instinctual habit) it certainly uses a large amount of muscles. According to Roger Highfield, the act of kissing involves 34 facial muscles and 112 postural muscles, including the kissing muscle, or orbicularis oris (The Telegraph 2008). The good new is that in this case the old adage that "practice makes perfect" is true. The more you do it the more comfortable with kissing you can become in whatever context seems appropriate.Do not forget a kiss in your life because of the kiss is a good culture.