How Different Cultures Say Goodbye: Funeral Practices Around the World

Death is something that every human society in history has had to deal with, but the ways we say goodbye to our loved ones couldn’t be more different depending on where you live around the world. Beliefs about the afterlife, death, and practicality influence these customs and make them so different, and also tell anthropologists (and us) something about the views of their culture. While a typical American funeral might involve a viewing at a funeral home followed by a burial in a cemetery, other cultures have developed rituals that may seem shocking to outsiders but hold deep meaning. That’s the beauty of this world and anthropology, it constantly makes you rethink your perspective. The American way could seem extremely strange and creepy to any other culture and yet theirs feels the same way to this. By studying funeral practices across cultures, anthropologists can also see how people find meaning in one of life’s universal experiences.

One of the most striking examples of the diversity is the Tibetan sky burial, which many outsiders may find shocking at first. In this ritual, practiced mainly by Tibetan Buddhists, the deceased body is taken to a special site in the mountains where it’s cut into pieces by trained workers (rogyapas) and then left for vultures to eat. The first reaction of many people unfamiliar to this ritual, could be that it seems extremely revolting and brutal, but for the Tibetans it represents something completely different. According to Tibetan Buddhist beliefs, when someone dies, their spirit immediately leaves their body and gets reincarnated. Therefore, the body is nothing but an empty vessel that has no particular purpose. The vultures, which Tibetans call Dakinis or “sky dancers” are considered sacred creatures, almost like angels. By feeding these birds, the deceased is performing a final act of compassion and generosity (two important values in Buddhism). The origin of the ritual is unclear, but some say it follows a specific example. It is said that Buddha himself offered his own body to save a tigress and her cubs from starvation. According to research about 80% of Tibetans still choose sky burials today even though there are more modern choices. No tourists or photography are allowed to witness the ritual, as Tibetans believe that it could affect the soul’s journey to the afterlife. 

On the other side of the world, funerals are not as solemn as you might expect, but focus on celebrating the deceased’s life. In New Orleans, Louisiana, jazz funerals turn death into a party that reflects the city’s cultural blend of West African, French, and African-American traditions. Here, the funeral procession is led by a marching band that starts off with a sad tune, and then transitions to upbeat music once the body is buried, with mourners often breaking into dance in the streets to celebrate the deceased person’s life. This tradition shows how different cultures express grief differently and don’t view death as purely tragic. Similarly, in many Filipino cultures, funeral practices differ greatly. The Benguet people blindfold their dead and place them by the front door, the Tinguian people dress bodies in fancy clothes, sit them in a chair, and even place a cigarette in their lips. The Caviteno choose the tree they want to be buried in and when they die their bodies are placed in the hollowed-out trunk. These diverse practices within a single country show that even neighbouring communities can develop completely different approaches and vary in their specific beliefs and environment. 

What really stands out about funeral practices is that they often reveal a society’s deepest values and beliefs in a way that few other events can. As anthropology research emphasizes, you can’t really understand these customs from the outside looking in, until you realize how they connect to everything else in the culture- the economy, politics, family relationships, religion, and moral values all play a role in how societies handle death. The sheer amount of different practices around the world remind us that there’s no single “right” to deal with death. Whether it’s Tibetan sky burials, New Orleans jazz funerals, or Filipino tribes’ delicate handling of the deceased body, each tradition reflects the culture itself. While death is a universal ending, the ways we make sense of it and find comfort in it are beautifully unique. 

Works Cited

“7 Unique Burial Rituals Across the World.” Britannica, http://www.britannica.com/list/7-unique-burial-rituals-across-the-world. Accessed 6 Jan. 2026.

“Death and Dying – Beliefs: An Open Invitation to the Anthropology of Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion.” Open Educational Resources, oer.pressbooks.pub/beliefs/chapter/death-and-dying/. Accessed 6 Jan. 2026.

“Death is not the end: Fascinating funeral traditions from around the globe.” TED Ideas, 25 July 2024, ideas.ted.com/11-fascinating-funeral-traditions-from-around-the-globe/.

“Sky burial.” Wikipedia, 16 Nov. 2025, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_burial.

“Tibetan Sky Burial and Other Funeral Practices.” Wonders of Tibet, 10 Mar. 2021, http://www.wondersoftibet.com/about-tibet/tibetan-sky-burial/.