Funeral - Final disposition of the dead

A funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from the funeral itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor. These customs vary widely between cultures, and between religious affiliations within cultures. In some cultures the dead are worshipped; this is commonly called ancestor worship. The word comes from the Latin funus, which had a variety of meanings, including ...

Including:

• Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America
• Funeral - Traditional funerals
• Funeral - Private services
• Funeral - Memorial services
• Funeral - Non-traditional funerals
• Funeral - Funerals in East Asia
• Funeral - African funerals
• Funeral - Ancient funeral rites
• Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome
• Funeral - Funerals in Scotland
• Funeral - Final disposition of the dead
• Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral
• Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia - Funeral

Some cultures place the dead in tombs of various sorts, either individually, or in specially designated tracts of land that house tombs. Burial in a graveyard is one common form of tomb. In some places, burials are impractical because the ground water is too high; there tombs are placed above ground, as was the case in New Orleans, Louisiana. Elsewhere, a separate building for a tomb is usually reserved for the socially prominent and wealthy. Especially grand above-ground tombs are called mausoleums. Other buildings used as tombs include the ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Final disposition of the dead

Funeral - Traditional funerals. Within the United States and Canada, in most cultural groups and regions, the funeral rituals can be divided into three parts: At the visitation (also called a "viewing" or "wake") the embalmed body of the deceased person (or decedent) is placed on display in the coffin (also called a casket). At the viewing, the friends and relations greet the more distant relatives and friends of the dead person(s) in a social gathering with little in the way of ritual. The vi ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America

Another way of avoiding some of the rituals and costs of a traditional funeral is for the decedent to donate some or all of her or his body to a medical school or similar institution for the purpose of instruction in anatomy, or for similar purposes. Students of medicine and osteopathy frequently study anatomy from donated cadavers; they are also useful in forensic research. Making an anatomical gift is a separate transaction from being an organ donor, in which any useful organs are removed from the unembalmed cadaver for medical tran ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Anatomical gifts

In law in the United States, the deceased have surprisingly little say in the manner in which their funerals can be conducted. The law generally holds that the funeral rituals are for the benefit of the survivors, rather than to express the personal whims and tastes of the decedent. The decedent may, in most U.S. jurisdictions, provide instructions as to his funeral by means of a Last Will and Testament. These instructions can be given some legal effect if bequests are made contingent on the heirs carrying them out, with alternative g ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral

The most simple and natural kind of funeral monuments, and therefore the most ancient and universal, consist in a mound of earth, or a heap of stones, raised over the ashes of the departed: of such monuments mention is made in the Book of Joshua, and in Homer and Virgil. The place of burial amongst the Jews was never particularly determined. We find that they had burial-places upon the highways, in gardens, and upon mountains. We read, that Abraham was buried with Sarah, his wife, in the cave of Macphelah, in the field of Ephron, and Uzziah, King of Judah, slept with his fathers in the ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Ancient funeral rites

In most East Asian and many Southeast Asian cultures, the wearing of white is symbolic of death. In these societies, white or off-white robes are traditionally worn to symbolize that someone has died and can be seen worn among relatives of the deceased during a funeral ceremony. Contemporary Western influence however has meant that dark- or black colored attire is now often also acceptable for mourners to wear (particularly for those outside the family). When a coffin is lowered into the ground the mourners will bow their heads and must no ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - Funerals in East Asia

The custom of burying the dead in the floor of dwelling-houses has been to some degree prevalent on the Gold Coast of Africa. The ceremony is purely animist, and apparently without any set ritual. The main exception is that the females of the family of the deceased and their friends may undergo mournful lamentations. In some instances they work their feelings up to an ostentatious, frenzy-like degree of sorrow. The revelry may be heightened by the use of alcohol, of which drummers, flute-players, bards, and singing men may partake. The funer ...

See also:

Funeral, Funeral - Funerals in contemporary North America, Funeral - Traditional funerals, Funeral - Private services, Funeral - Memorial services, Funeral - Non-traditional funerals, Funeral - Funerals in East Asia, Funeral - African funerals, Funeral - Ancient funeral rites, Funeral - Funerals in ancient Rome, Funeral - Funerals in Scotland, Funeral - Final disposition of the dead, Funeral - Control by the decedent of the details of the funeral, Funeral - Anatomical gifts

Read more here: » Funeral: Encyclopedia II - Funeral - African funerals