To show excessive respect or obedience, often in a humiliating way; to bow so low your head touches the ground.
From Cantonese 'kowtow' (literally 'knock head'), a traditional Chinese gesture of respect. The word entered English in the 1800s during increased Western contact with China, often used critically by colonial powers.
The kowtow was literally the most respectful gesture possible in ancient China—you'd knock your forehead on the ground multiple times—but Western nations saw it as humiliating, creating cultural clash that affected diplomacy for centuries!
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