Why do we kiss?

Question

K, see, I realise I am probably going to get answers such as 'because it's fun' or 'because it shows affection'. I KNOW that, ok? I am looking for the REAL reason. Like, the reason we have sex is based on the primal need to procreate and the reason men like big breasts is because big breasts = more milk for the young. The reason we like muscular men is because it represents strength which would both be passed onto the young and also, women see it, deep down, as an aid in protecting the family. Men get jealous because they are competing to be the Alpha Male. Now, I want to know what is the biolical need for kissing?

SERIOUS ANSWERS ONLY PLEASE!

Answer 1

Putting ones lips on another person (or animal) is one of the commonest behavior pattern in the animal kingdom, and stems from early infant years of suckling. We tend to repeat behavior that we found pleasurable in those years. It's also a tactile form of communication, and many studies of primates show that it's frequently used for conflict resolution and/or submission. Here's an excerpt from a study on chimpanzees, listed under "tactile communication":

kissing: There is one individual presses the lips or teeth to the body (usually the lips or face) of another (Estes, 1991). This is done by submissive individuals to more dominant ones and can occur with bowing, and also kisses on the groin (Estes, 1991). This is also the response by a dominant individual to a kiss or bowing (Estes, 1991).

Humans have expanded the utility of kissing to include erotic activity, partly because human societies have evolved to curtail intimate physical contact between persons other those interested in sexual play. Anything that is curtailed always excites humans, so that's why we kiss passionately during the business of love.

Answer 2

I saw one theory that said that prehistoric infants probably got their food from their mother's mouth (after she chewed it to make it soft, of course). This theory would assume that infants were French kissing their mothers to get chewed food from her mouth!

So, according to this theory, we kiss as a sub-conscience way of repeating the warm,supporting feeling that we had when we were infants.

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For the person who gave me the thumbs down, I wasn't joking:

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The Evolution of Kissing
By Daniel Hong

...In a recent Seattle Times article, "Kissing: Nature's Cure-All, for Most," Gina Kim explores the evolution and benefits of kissing. She says that while some cultures in Africa and the Himalayas don't believe in it, “kissing is largely universal, with 90 percent of the world’s population engaging in some form of it."

So, where exactly does it come from?

No one knows for sure how kissing started. In Andrea Demirjian’s book "Kissing: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about One of Life’s Sweetest Pleasures", she discusses several theories. One theory is that kissing developed from cavewomen passing along already-chewed food to their babies. Some believe that this very tender act might have turned into what we now know as kissing. Demirjian also thinks that cavemen used to smell the breath of their potential cavewomen partners as a test to see if they were healthy and clean, and that may have evolved into today’s act. And she says that Roman men practiced kissing their wives when they returned home to check if they had been drinking wine while they were away. ...

Answer 3

Prehistoric women liked to smell their mates and taste their saliva to see if they smelled or tasted "sick" before they wasted their energy mating.

Then along came those crazy French people who invented French Kissing and the act took on a new life of its own!

Answer 4

here's an explanation for french kissing...
in the 18th century or something (can't quite remember) France was over populated and the government had banned sex to halt reproduction for a while. so the french began kissing in a really intimate and more 'aggressive' way as a substitute for sex.

Answer 5

Well i heard that before we were fully evolved that the mother used to chew up food and the young would reach inside the mothers' mouth and eat it....i think...not sure

Answer 6

There are many theories, but its not really well understood. A general overview can be read in the link.

Answer 7

i don't know any fancy answers why... but the mouth is very sensitive to touch & theres no doubt about it that kissing is very arousing... why that is, i dont know, but peopel may just do it because it feels good.

Answer 8

i fink its all in the mind, a way of showing afection, basically it has no purpose at all, but i like it very much