Studying Mouth-to-Mouth
In a paper published in the American Anthropologist, Jankowiak, Volsche, and Garcia found that, of the 168 cultures that they studied, only 46%, or 77 of them, had any traces of romantic kissing. The remaining 91 cultures that were studied had no hard evidence of romantic kissing. Previously, it was assumed that most cultures practiced romantic kissing, as many anthropologists and psychologists argued that lip kissing had an evolutionary purpose, in that it could be used to assess a potential mate's health and genetic compatibility, as well as test their romantic interest and sociosexual prowess, as Jankowiak, Volsche, and Garcia noted in their study.
The study found that romantic kissing is most common among Middle Eastern and Asian cultures, and least common among Central American cultures. In northern Asia and North America, kissing is seen as not just a private matter, but also a public matter, and is a commonly accepted public display of affection. None of the ethnographers, or researchers that study culture in-depth, found any instances of romantic kissing in Sub-Saharan Africa, New Guinea, or the Amazonian rain forest.
"They Eat Each Other's Saliva and Dirt"
In some cultures, the idea of romantic kissing is completely foreign to them, and, upon having the custom explained to them, or witnessing it, they either note that it is amusing, disgusting, or that they are simply not interested in the practice. Additionally, in some cultures, kissing, romantically or platonically, is seen as strange, because, in their culture, kissing carries other meanings, such as ritual worship or respect. For example, the Amhara people, who live in Ethiopia, kiss each other on the cheek after a long period of separation, with older or superior in terms of status kissing the other first. The Nahua people of Central America strictly use mouth-to-mouth kissing in religious ceremonies.
The Tapirapé people of Central Brazil do not use kissing to display a romantic affection for their partner. Instead, a husband may walk with his wife around the village with his arm draped over his wife's shoulder, and, during a conversation with other's, the husband may have his arm draped over his wife's shoulder while his wife has her arm wrapped around his hips. When the idea of romantic kissing was introduced to the Tapirapé, they found it both strange and, to a point, disgusting. The Trobriand people, who live on an island in the Pacific Ocean, first witnessed the practice among Europeans, and found it rather amusing. A member of the Tsonga tribe, which lives in Southern Africa, upon seeing Europeans kiss romantically, said "Look at these people! They suck each other! They eat each other's saliva and dirt!"
What one culture sees as romantic and beautiful, another culture may see as strange and ugly. Thus, people around the world use a variety of different methods to express physical and emotional intimacy. Just ask the Inuit, who rub their noses together to express affection for one another. As Duncan Pryde, who spend time researching Inuit tribes during the early 1970s, said: "The Perry Island people didn't engage in kissing, but they certainly knew how to rub noses, and rubbing noses can be very exciting if it is done the right way with the right noses."
Information Collected From the Following Sites:
http://hraf.yale.edu/romantic-or-disgusting-passionate-kissing-is-not-a-human-universal/, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aman.12286/full#aman12286, and http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=nd08-037
