When did people start kissing – and why do they do this

Scientists believe that the world's first known kiss occurred 4,500 years ago in the Middle East. This is evidenced by studies of ancient texts that scientists managed to decipher. Previously, it was believed that people first kissed 3,500 years ago.

Daily Mail reported.

Dr. Troels Pank Arboll, an expert on ancient Mesopotamia from the University of Copenhagen, and biologist Dr. Sophie Lund Rasmussen, of the University of Oxford, have published a new study suggesting that the first known kisses may have originated in Mesopotamia - now modern-day Iraq and Syria. They managed to decipher the texts on clay tablets written in the ancient Sumerian language.

Babylonian clay model showing a nude couple on a couch engaged in sex and kissing. Date: 1800 BC. Source: © The Trustees of the British Museum

Kissing has been described in ancient Mesopotamian texts from 2,500 BC. However, scientists note that it is likely that people from other regions could also kiss.

In one of the texts, it was said that kissing may have been an activity enjoyed after sex. Another describes how a married woman was almost led astray by a kiss from another man.

Scientists emphasize that bonobos also kiss to determine how healthy their partner is. They determine this by whether they have bad breath.

"Kissing is something we take for granted, which feels like it has always been around, but it had to start somewhere, and we think it is older than previously believed. The evidence from our closest relatives, the bonobos and chimpanzees, suggests we do it to create feelings of intimacy and bonding in our relationships. But it also could help us evaluate a potential partner, because bad breath suggests something is wrong and they may not be healthy," Dr. Sophie Lund Rasmussen says.

Scientists are also convinced that kissing was practiced by priests and it was common in the family circle.

The researchers also say kissing may have had a long-lasting effect on the transmission of viruses such as herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), which causes cold sores.

A disease known as buʾshanu in ancient medical texts from Mesopotamia may have referred to the cold sore virus.

It had previously been suggested by scientists that the earliest evidence of human lip kissing came from South Asia 3,500 years ago.