Scientists discover earliest record of human kissing, dating back to 4,500 years

Researchers have recently discovered that the earliest record of kissing in human civilisation dates back about 4,500 years, with evidence suggesting its existence in the ancient Middle East.

The evidence has been highlighted by scientists which suggests that people in the earliest Mesopotamian societies practised kissing, which was documented in ancient texts dating back to 2500BC. The texts were earlier overlooked.

The article, which was published in the journal Science, stated that evidence has been cited by the researchers which proves that kissing led to the spread of orally transmitted diseases like cold sores.

Although it was suggested in the research that familial or friendly kissing was a common behaviour practised among humans hailing different periods and geographies, romantic-sexual kissing was not believed to be culturally universal.

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As per the new findings, kissing is believed to be an ordinary part of romantic intimacy among humans in ancient times across various cultures and did not originate from any specific region, stated the researchers.

According to ancient Mesopotamian texts, kissing was practised among married couples and was also seen as a part of the desires of an unmarried person when in love.

Dr Troels Pank Arboll, an expert on the history of medicine in Mesopotamia at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, said, “In ancient Mesopotamia, which is the name for the early human cultures that existed between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in present-day Iraq and Syria, people wrote in cuneiform script (wedge-shaped marks) on clay tablets."

“Many thousands of these clay tablets have survived to this day, and they contain clear examples that kissing was considered a part of romantic intimacy in ancient times, just as kissing could be part of friendships and family members’ relations,” he added.

“Therefore, kissing should not be regarded as a custom that originated exclusively in any single region and spread from there but rather appears to have been practised in multiple ancient cultures over several millennia,” the expert further stated.

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Kissing led to the transmission of pathogens, suggest researchers

Researchers further suggested that kissing may unintentionally have led to the transmission of pathogens like herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), which leads to cold sores and diphtheria.

“There is a substantial corpus of medical texts from Mesopotamia, some of which mention a disease with symptoms reminiscent of the herpes simplex virus 1,” stated Dr Arboll.

However, researchers added that the texts cannot be considered at face value because they may be influenced by different cultural and religious concepts of the time.

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