World Kissing Day: the history of the holiday

World Kissing Day, which was invented in the UK in the 19th century, is celebrated annually on July 6th. There are several theories of its origin. One of them is very material. According to a number of data, it is known that a certain British dentist decided to draw attention to the importance of oral care. The dentist thought that if people began to kiss more often, then this would be the motivation for going to the doctor. Which means he can make more money.

But there is also a more romantic version. Since ancient times, people have believed in the power of a kiss. They believed that the soul is concentrated in the breath of a person. And at the moment of contact of the lips, the souls of the partners merge into a single whole. The society decided to emphasize the importance of this process with the help of a holiday.

It is impossible to determine who owns the authorship of the first kiss. As well as analyze the occurrence of the very word "kiss". But this is not so important. It is much more exciting to find out what moves people to such close contact. But historians, philosophers and anthropologists have not yet reached a consensus on this issue.

In 1960, Desmond Morris (a zoologist from Britain) suggested that the primary cause of the kiss is the need of great apes to chew food for their cubs and feed offspring from mouth to mouth. The scientist believed that pressing the mother's lips calms the child. And people experience something similar. One of the factors that shape people's desire to touch each other's lips is based on propaganda. Every day we see people kissing on TV screens, on billboards, books, etc.

Interest in the influence of kisses on the human body has led to the development of a special direction in science, which is called "philematology". The discipline studies both the psychological aspects of kisses and the physiological ones. But these topics are of interest not only to scientists.

Humanity has always been fascinated by this mystery of energy exchange. So, for example, in 1942, Life magazine analyzed how to perform this action correctly. The editors offered their readers recommendations on how to kiss most comfortably. The issue featured comfortable and uncomfortable positions for kissing couples. The magazine also showed a series of shots in the spirit of the 40s to inspire people to such romantic emotions.

On our website, you can enjoy old photographs, as well as modern ones, in the "Photos" section.