Funeral traditions from around the globe

 Indonesia – Tana Toraja

Funerals may take place years after physical death. Until that moment the dead relative is referred to
as a “person who is sick,” or “one who is asleep.”. They are laid down in special rooms in the family
home, where they are symbolically fed, cared for and taken out — very much still a part of their
relative’s lives. Funerals are really expensive – families save up for long periods of time to raise the
resources for a funeral. They’re loud, they involve the whole village and they last from days to weeks.
The people of Tana Toraja don’t see death the way that we do. When someone dies, they are not gone,
just changed.

 New Orleans, Louisiana

Funerals are balanced between joy and grief – mourners are led by a marching band. The band plays
sad hymns till the body is buried, and then they shift to an upbeat note. The important part of the event
is also cathartic dancing honouring the life of the deceased.

 South Korea

In South Korea, a law passed in 2000 requires anyone burying a loved one to remove the grave after
60 years. Cremation has become much more popular. It resulted in people starting companies that
compress remains into gem-like beads in turquoise, pink or black. „Death beads” are displayed in the
home.

 Philippines

Many ethnic groups in the Philippines have unique funeral practices: some of them blindfold their
dead and place them next to the main entrance of the house, others dress bodies in their best clothes,
sit them on a chair and place a cigarette in their lips. Caviteño bury their dead in a hollowed-out tree
trunk. When someone becomes ill, they select the tree where they will eventually be entombed. Apayo
from the north bury their dead under the kitchen. 

 Mongolia and Tibet

Many people in Mongolia and Tibet believe in the transmigration of spirits after death — the soul
moves on, while the body becomes an empty vessel. To return it to the earth, the body is chopped into
pieces and placed on a mountaintop, which exposes it to the elements — including vultures.

 United States

People from US often choose environmentally friendly burials – they get biodegradable, woven-
willow caskets, which decompose into the ground. Another option is to become a memorial „reef ball”
– the company compresses remains into a sphere that is attached to a reef in the ocean, providing a
habitat for sea life.

 Ghana

In Ghana, people are buried in „fantasy coffins” - coffins that represent their work or something they
loved in life. They may be shaped like a Mercedes-Benz (for a businessman), fish (fisherman) or Bible
(someone who loved going to church).

 Madagaskar
Inhabitants of Madagascar have a ritual called “the turning of the bones”. Once every 5/7 years
families have a celebration where they’re dancing with the bodies, wrapped in cloth. They’re also
exhumed and sprayed with wine or perfume. Often, they ask for the blessings from the deceased and
telling stories of the dead. This ritual is meant to speed up decomposition and push the spirit of the
dead toward the afterlife.

https://ideas.ted.com/11-fascinating-funeral-traditions-from-around-the-globe/
https://www.britannica.com/list/7-unique-burial-rituals-across-the-world
https://www.avalonfuneralplans.com/blog/traditional-funerals-around-the-world/
https://matadornetwork.com/read/death-rituals-around-world/