Changes

==Origin==

==Origin==

[https://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=English#ca._1100-1500_.09THE_MIDDLE_ENGLISH_PERIOD Middle English] obeisaunce obedience, obeisance, from Anglo-French obeisance, from obeissant, present participle of obeir to [[obey]]

[https://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=English#ca._1100-1500_.09THE_MIDDLE_ENGLISH_PERIOD Middle English] obeisaunce obedience, obeisance, from Anglo-French obeisance, from obeissant, present participle of obeir to [[obey]]

*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]

*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]

==Definitions==

==Definitions==

*1: a [[movement]] of the [[body]] made in token of [[respect]] or submission : bow

*1: a [[movement]] of the [[body]] made in token of [[respect]] or submission : bow

*2: acknowledgment of another's [[superiority]] or importance : [[homage]] <makes obeisance to her [[mentors]]>  

*2: acknowledgment of another's [[superiority]] or importance : [[homage]] <makes obeisance to her [[mentors]]>  

==Description==

==Description==

An '''obeisance''' is a [[gesture]] not only of [[respect]] but also of submission. Such gestures are rarer in [[cultures]] that do not have strong [[class]] [[structures]]; [[citizens]] of the [[Western World]], for example, often react with [[hostility]] to the idea of bowing to an [[authority]] figure. The distinction between a formally [[polite]] greeting and an obeisance is often hard to make; for example, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proskynesis proskynesis] ([[Greek]] for "moving towards") is described by the Greek researcher [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herodotus Herodotus] of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halicarnassus Halicarnassus], who lived in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/500_BC 5th century BC] in his ''Histories'' 1.134:

An '''obeisance''' is a [[gesture]] not only of [[respect]] but also of submission. Such gestures are rarer in [[cultures]] that do not have strong [[class]] [[structures]]; [[citizens]] of the [[Western World]], for example, often react with [[hostility]] to the idea of bowing to an [[authority]] figure. The distinction between a formally [[polite]] greeting and an obeisance is often hard to make; for example, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proskynesis proskynesis] ([[Greek]] for "moving towards") is described by the Greek researcher [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herodotus Herodotus] of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halicarnassus Halicarnassus], who lived in the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/500_BC 5th century BC] in his ''Histories'' 1.134:

<blockquote>When the Persians meet one another in the roads, you can see whether those who meet are of equal rank. For instead of greeting by [[words]], they kiss each other on the mouth; but if one of them is inferior to the other, they kiss one another on the cheeks, and if one is of much less [[noble]] rank than the other, he falls down before him and [[worships]] him.</blockquote>

<blockquote>When the Persians meet one another in the roads, you can see whether those who meet are of equal rank. For instead of greeting by [[words]], they kiss each other on the mouth; but if one of them is inferior to the other, they kiss one another on the cheeks, and if one is of much less [[noble]] rank than the other, he falls down before him and [[worships]] him.</blockquote>

After his conquest of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Empire Persia], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great Alexander the Great] introduced Persian [[etiquette]] into his own [[court]], including the [[practice]] of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proskynesis proskynesis]. [[Visitors]], depending on their [[Social Status|ranks]], would have to prostrate themselves, bow to, kneel in front of, or kiss the [[king]]. His [[Greek]] country men objected to this [[practice]], as they considered these [[rituals]] only suitable to the gods.

After his conquest of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Empire Persia], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great Alexander the Great] introduced Persian [[etiquette]] into his own [[court]], including the [[practice]] of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proskynesis proskynesis]. [[Visitors]], depending on their [[Social Status|ranks]], would have to prostrate themselves, bow to, kneel in front of, or kiss the [[king]]. His [[Greek]] country men objected to this [[practice]], as they considered these [[rituals]] only suitable to the gods.

In countries with recognized [[social classes]], bowing to [[nobility]] and [[royalty]] is customary. Standing bows of obeisance all involve bending forward from the waist with the eyes downcast, though variations in the placement of the arms and feet are seen. In western European cultures, women do not bow, they "curtsey" (a contraction of "courtesy" that became its own [[word]]), a [[movement]] in which one foot is moved back and the entire body lowered to a crouch while the head is bowed.

In countries with recognized [[social classes]], bowing to [[nobility]] and [[royalty]] is customary. Standing bows of obeisance all involve bending forward from the waist with the eyes downcast, though variations in the placement of the arms and feet are seen. In western European cultures, women do not bow, they "curtsey" (a contraction of "courtesy" that became its own [[word]]), a [[movement]] in which one foot is moved back and the entire body lowered to a crouch while the head is bowed.

In [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Asia South Asia] [[traditions]], obeisance also involves prostrating oneself before a [[king]].

In [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Asia South Asia] [[traditions]], obeisance also involves prostrating oneself before a [[king]].

[[Category: Sociology]]

[[Category: Sociology]]

[[Category: Anthropology]]

[[Category: Anthropology]]