What is a French kiss and where did it come from?
The urban legend is that servicemen in France during World War I were struck by the more passionate way French women kissed. On their return home they introduced “French kissing” to their home countries.
What is a French kiss?
Basically a French kiss is open-mouth with tongues intertwining and the tongue of one person is manipulated by the tongue of the other. First known as the maraichanage, it was practised by the Maraichins, inhabitants of Brittany, France and it dates back to the early 1900’s. The “French kiss” promotes the idea that the French are sexually liberated and open-minded.
There is a book on this topic, “The Science of Kissing: What Our Lips Are Telling Us,” writer Sheril Kirshenbaum posits that the term “French kiss” entered the English language around 1923 (the year noted in the Oxford English Dictionary).
She writes:
The precise reason we use this term is unknown, but it’s possible that “French kiss” was adopted because American travelers were impressed by the affectionate nature of French women, who were more comfortable with open-mouthed kissing than their counterparts. According to anthropologist Vaughn Bryant, this led to a popular saying: “While in France get the girls to kiss you,” which later turned into “get a French kiss.”
How Do You French Kiss?
Your first French kiss can be intimidating but below are some guidelines.
The main thing is to go with the flow by relaxing and closing your ideas. Part your lips slightly and caress those of your partner softly. Let the kiss progress naturally by light kissing and sucking before introducing your tongue, slowly and gently,
There’s nothing specific that you have to do with it, just whatever feels good and right.
If you’ve never had a French kiss before, you probably have A LOT of questions about what it’s like. In the video below we followed along as four people had their very first French kiss to find out firsthand what it’s really like.
Ready for your French kiss?
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