Dating, and the search for love, has been an integral part of the human experience ever since Adam lost a rib.

And ever since he and Eve were busted for fooling around in the garden, the methods of courtship have reflected the attitudes of the ages.

To find the first recorded marriages, you have to peer back in time all the way to 3200 BC and the reign of the ancient Egyptians.

There may not have been a hieroglyphic to represent "dinner and a movie" back then. But where there was a wedding there was a courtship to precede it. Rather than turn to friends or personal ads, denizens of the Nile would beseech the gods and goddesses to help set them up. Modern introduction services would no doubt do very well to have such omniscient staff.

Love poems, many of them as steamy as the Starr Report, are believed to have first been written during this period and attention to romance is surely why women - as well as men - first took a shine to wearing makeup during this era. Inscribed jewelry is commonly found in tombs as a souvenir of the deceased's love in the land of the living.

Bad dates, but at least she served pomegranates
History has had its share of disastrous dates and Cleopatra, played by Elizabeth Taylor in the movies, shared the actress' inability to stick with the same man for very long. But, unlike Ms. Taylor, Cleo was notorious for killing her suitors after a night of lovemaking. "Safe sex" in her royal court no doubt involved full-body armor.

Historians disagree on the initial impetus for her legendary romance. But whether it was lust or politics that led to their initial night together, it was certainly one of the more memorable first dates in history.

After Cleopatra received word that Antony was an eligible man who had interests in her, she set sail to meet him - on a scented barge of purple and gold dressed as Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexual love. As might be expected, Antony rather enjoyed the display and, fully smitten, confessed love at first sight. Unfortunately, assassins would later ruin their "happily ever after" love story.

The Grecian way
The ancient Greeks viewed women as merely a vehicle for continuing their bloodline. Because these relatonships had little to do with love and everything to do with producing children, young wives were often kept in the vault with the valuables.

'Make sure to have her home by the Renaissance…'
During the Middle ages parents took a more active role in finding suitable mates for their children. Dowries were a common enticement for marriage and a way to sell men on what was considered a burdensome fact of life. Fathers established a dowry of land, armies and jewels to be presented to the groom as a reward for marrying their daughters. Livestock and food were used to attract suitors for less affluent peasant women.

Gradually, some young men and women rebelled against such arranged partnerships and fought for the right to let their hearts, not their family fortune, guide them to true love. "Romeo and Juliet," Shakespeare's play about western civilization's best known couple, has this issue as its core theme.

Matchmaker, matchmaker…
In time, professional matchmakers entered the scene to take over where the practice of dowries left off. By the 1600s, matchmaking was a highly regarded profession throughout Europe.

Fast forward to the American colonies where singles had a surprising amount of freedom in choosing a mate. Even the Puritans felt that a marriage should involve affection and caring for one another. But, as in the past, a woman with land-owning next of kin land still stood the best chance of being courted.

Even so, dating in the colonies bore a certain resemblance to the more modern dating of teenagers. Where today we have college campuses, they had one-room schoolhouses, community dances, church suppers and "neighboring" between families.

By the mid-1700s, parents had grown more "liberal" with their marriage aged children. During the harsh winter months, when both travel and heating a house were difficult, couples would go to bed together, fully clothed of course, for a night of what might be considered verbal intercourse. Parents who lacked sufficient trust, employed the most effective of birth control devices - a bundling board down the middle of the bed.

But even with these measures, more than one-third of all Puritan brides were less than puritanical - approximately one-third of them were pregnant at the time of marriage.

By the early 1800s, couples were freed by society to seek love on their own. Courtship, rather than dowry bargaining, was the preferred way to approach marriage.

Moving into high gear
That is pretty much how it was until the 1920s when the popularity of Henry Ford's new automobiles made dating a (gasp) fun activity and not just a way to reel in a marriage partner.

Prior to that time, a night alone with another single person had meant a commitment to marriage that was agreed upon. With the freedom of the automobile, an evening out now had no such baggage.

As flappers struck up their battle for both new dance steps and equal rights for women, advertisers began to focus on how women looked to men. The cosmetic industry began promising romance, popularity and love with every bar of soap and bottle of shampoo. Unlike ever before, the relationship between men and women became a marketing strategy.

It wasn't until after World War I that dating became a part of the growing up process and a way to "play the field" the searching for an eligible mate. World War II presented a totally different set of issues. Not only were couples marrying the night before "Johnny" set off for war - but many of those who didn't marry, declared their love by going steady or waiting for their loved one.

Being in love, and going steady, were a popular part of our culture through the 1960s.

The late 60s and early 70s saw the "sexual revolution," and the women's movement redefined dating. With the bundling board removed from the bed and birth control more accessible, couples found a freedom not found in other times. Women also became more career-minded than willing to live life searching for Mr. Right. The women's movement created a code of anti-compromise and anti-commitment when it came to relationships and involvement with men.

As the new millenium draws near, the singles boom has reached astronomical proportions.

Between 1970 an 1996 the number of women living alone doubled and the number of men living alone tripled. With a focus on careers, many men and women are either putting relationships on hold or, more often, too busy to hit the singles scene. This has led to a rise in the popularity of introduction services, personal ads and - a concept once unimaginable - online love connections.

As to how we date in the not-so-distant future, only time will tell. So save your purple plaid and don't throw away that bundling board just yet.