Afrikaans begrafnis | ||
Albanian funerali | ||
Amharic የቀብር ሥነ ሥርዓት | ||
Arabic جنازة | ||
Armenian հուղարկավորություն | ||
Assamese অন্তিম সংস্কাৰ | ||
Aymara phunirala | ||
Azerbaijani cənazə | ||
Bambara jɛnɛja | ||
Basque hileta | ||
Belarusian пахаванне | ||
Bengali অন্ত্যেষ্টিক্রিয়া | ||
Bhojpuri अंतिम संस्कार | ||
Bosnian pogreb | ||
Bulgarian погребение | ||
Catalan funeral | ||
Cebuano lubong | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 葬礼 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 葬禮 | ||
Corsican funerale | ||
Croatian pogreb | ||
Czech pohřeb | ||
Danish begravelse | ||
Dhivehi ޖަނާޒާ | ||
Dogri दाह्-संस्कार | ||
Dutch begrafenis | ||
English funeral | ||
Esperanto funebro | ||
Estonian matused | ||
Ewe tsyɔ̃ | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) libing | ||
Finnish hautajaiset | ||
French funérailles | ||
Frisian begraffenis | ||
Galician funeral | ||
Georgian დაკრძალვა | ||
German beerdigung | ||
Greek κηδεία | ||
Guarani manoha | ||
Gujarati અંતિમ સંસ્કાર | ||
Haitian Creole fineray | ||
Hausa jana'iza | ||
Hawaiian hoʻolewa | ||
Hebrew הַלוָיָה | ||
Hindi अंतिम संस्कार | ||
Hmong kev pam tuag | ||
Hungarian temetés | ||
Icelandic jarðarför | ||
Igbo olili ozu | ||
Ilocano pumpon | ||
Indonesian upacara pemakaman | ||
Irish sochraid | ||
Italian funerale | ||
Japanese 葬儀 | ||
Javanese panguburan | ||
Kannada ಅಂತ್ಯಕ್ರಿಯೆ | ||
Kazakh жерлеу | ||
Khmer ពិធីបុណ្យសព | ||
Kinyarwanda gushyingura | ||
Konkani अंतयात्रा | ||
Korean 장례 | ||
Krio bɛrin | ||
Kurdish binerdkirin | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) تازیە | ||
Kyrgyz жаназа | ||
Lao ງານສົບ | ||
Latin funus | ||
Latvian bēres | ||
Lingala matanga | ||
Lithuanian laidotuves | ||
Luganda okuziika | ||
Luxembourgish begriefnes | ||
Macedonian погреб | ||
Maithili क्रिया कर्म | ||
Malagasy fandevenana | ||
Malay pengebumian | ||
Malayalam ശവസംസ്കാരം | ||
Maltese funeral | ||
Maori tangihanga | ||
Marathi दफन | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯑꯔꯣꯏꯕ ꯃꯊꯧꯃꯉꯝ | ||
Mizo invuina | ||
Mongolian оршуулга | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) အသုဘ | ||
Nepali अन्त्येष्टि | ||
Norwegian begravelse | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) maliro | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଅନ୍ତିମ ସଂସ୍କାର | ||
Oromo awwaalcha | ||
Pashto جنازه | ||
Persian مراسم خاکسپاری | ||
Polish pogrzeb | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) funeral | ||
Punjabi ਸੰਸਕਾਰ | ||
Quechua panpay | ||
Romanian înmormântare | ||
Russian похороны | ||
Samoan falelauasiga | ||
Sanskrit अन्त्येष्टि | ||
Scots Gaelic tiodhlacadh | ||
Sepedi poloko | ||
Serbian сахрана | ||
Sesotho lepato | ||
Shona mariro | ||
Sindhi ڪفن دفن | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) අවමංගල්යය | ||
Slovak pohreb | ||
Slovenian pogreb | ||
Somali aas | ||
Spanish funeral | ||
Sundanese pamakaman | ||
Swahili mazishi | ||
Swedish begravning | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) libing | ||
Tajik дафн | ||
Tamil இறுதி சடங்கு | ||
Tatar җеназа | ||
Telugu అంత్యక్రియలు | ||
Thai งานศพ | ||
Tigrinya ቀብሪ | ||
Tsonga nkosi | ||
Turkish cenaze | ||
Turkmen jaýlanyş çäresi | ||
Twi (Akan) ayiyɔ | ||
Ukrainian похорон | ||
Urdu جنازہ | ||
Uyghur دەپنە مۇراسىمى | ||
Uzbek dafn marosimi | ||
Vietnamese tang lễ | ||
Welsh angladd | ||
Xhosa umngcwabo | ||
Yiddish לוויה | ||
Yoruba isinku | ||
Zulu umngcwabo |
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word "begrafnis" also has a more extended meaning, referring to a memorial event in remembrance of someone who has died. |
| Albanian | The Albanian word "funerali" likely originates from the Latin word "funus" meaning "funeral procession". |
| Amharic | In addition to the meaning of "funeral procession or ritual," "የቀብር ሥነ ሥርዓት" can also mean "funeral eulogy" or "memorial service." |
| Arabic | The Arabic word "جنازة" is derived from the root "جنز" which means to "accompany or carry". |
| Azerbaijani | The word "cənazə" is derived from the Persian word "janāzah" which means "corpse". |
| Basque | The Basque word "hileta" derives from the Latin word "collatio" (a coming together), which also gave rise to the Spanish word "colada" (a meal shared by the funeral guests). |
| Belarusian | The word "пахаванне" can also be used to refer to the cemetery or other burial ground. |
| Bengali | অন্ত্যেষ্টিক্রিয়া derives from the Sanskrit words 'antyesti' and 'kriya' meaning 'last rites' and 'action' respectively. |
| Bosnian | The word 'pogreb' in Bosnian comes from the Proto-Slavic word 'pogrebiti', which means 'to bury' or 'to inter'. |
| Bulgarian | The word “погребение” (“funeral”) in Bulgarian is cognate to Russian “погребать” (“to bury”), derived from Proto-Slavic “pogrebati”, meaning “to bury, hide”. |
| Catalan | The Catalan word "funeral" can also refer to a funeral oration or sermon. |
| Cebuano | "Lubong" also refers to the place or tomb where a dead person is buried. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 丧礼 is made up of two characters: 丧 (sàng) meaning death or mourning and 礼 (lǐ) meaning ceremony or ritual, so it translates directly to 'death ceremony' or 'mourning ritual' |
| Chinese (Traditional) | The word "葬禮" is also used to describe a ceremonial burial of a coffin or urn containing the ashes of a deceased person. |
| Corsican | "Funerale" in Corsican also refers to a type of traditional polyphonic dirge sung during funerals. |
| Croatian | The word "pogreb" is derived from the Old Slavic word "pogreti", meaning "to bury" or "to inter." |
| Czech | The word "pohřeb" comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "pogrebъ" (literally "burial"), which is itself derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵʰrebʰ- ("to dig"). |
| Danish | The word "begravelse" is derived from the Old Norse word "grafa," meaning "grave". It can also be used to refer to a burial or interment. |
| Dutch | Fun fact: 'begrafenis' (Dutch for 'funeral') is etymologically linked to the words 'graf' ('grave') and 'grafmaker' ('gravedigger'). |
| Esperanto | The word "funebro" is derived from the Latin word "funus", meaning "corpse" or "funeral procession". |
| Estonian | "Matused" is a rare word in Estonian that has been used historically to refer to burial sites, funerals, and mourning ceremonies. |
| Finnish | Hautan hauta, josta sana hautajaiset juontuu, tarkoitti 'paikkaa, johon ruumis pannaan'. |
| French | The word "funérailles" derives from the Latin "funus" meaning corpse and originally referred to all parts of a burial. |
| Frisian | The Frisian word "begraffenis" derives from "begrafenisse" in Middle Dutch and Old Frisian meaning "bury". |
| Galician | In Galician, "funeral" also means "party" or "celebration". |
| Georgian | The word |
| German | The word 'Beerdigung' originally meant 'burial' and is related to the word 'Berg', meaning 'mountain'. |
| Greek | "Κηδεία" can also refer to "care" or "concern" and is derived from "κήδομαι" (I care). |
| Gujarati | The word "antichem" in Gujarati means "funeral" and comes from the Sanskrit word "antim" meaning "last" and "sanskar" meaning "rite." |
| Haitian Creole | Some believe 'fineray' comes from the English 'finer' meaning 'better', reflecting the idea that a funeral is a way to honor the deceased and give them a better afterlife. |
| Hausa | The word "jana'iza" in Hausa also means "corpse" |
| Hawaiian | "Hoʻolewa" is derived from the verb "hoʻolei," meaning "to cast away, to let go," and thus refers to the release of the deceased's body and spirit. |
| Hebrew | }הלוויה is based on the verb ליוות (livyot), which means 'to escort' - in this case, it refers to escorting a deceased person to their final resting place. |
| Hindi | In Sanskrit, अंतिम संस्कार literally means "final rites" or "last journey". |
| Hmong | Kev Pam Tuag is also a euphemism for 'going home' because Hmong people believe their souls return to the heavens upon their deaths. |
| Hungarian | Temetés shares its root with the words 'temet' ('to bury') and 'temető' ('cemetery'), hinting at its close association with the act of burial. |
| Icelandic | "Jarðarför" literally means "earth-journey" in Icelandic, suggesting the belief that death marks the beginning of a new passage in the deceased's existence. |
| Igbo | The Igbo world “olili ozu” (funeral) has its roots in the words “oli” (to cry) and “ozu” (corpse). |
| Indonesian | "Pemakaman" comes from the word "makam" which means grave, and "upacara" can refer to any kind of ceremony |
| Irish | Sochraid is a compound word of uncertain, possibly Scandinavian origin, with a possible connection to the name of the god Loki. |
| Italian | In Italian, "funerale" can also refer to a large quantity of something, emphasizing its abundance. |
| Japanese | It comprises the characters 葬 (sou) meaning “bury” and 儀 (gi) meaning “formality” - thus representing the formal ceremony of burial. |
| Javanese | The word "panguburan" in Javanese shares the same root with "ubur-ubur" (jellyfish), which suggests a connection between the concept of funerals and the aquatic realm. |
| Kannada | The word "ಅಂತ್ಯಕ್ರಿಯೆ" (funeral) in Kannada literally means "final rites" or "last ceremonies". |
| Kazakh | The Kazakh word "жерлеу" is cognate with the Turkic word "yir" meaning "earth." |
| Korean | The word "장례" can also refer to a "funeral procession" or a "coffin." |
| Kurdish | Its other spellings include 'binerdkir', 'benerdkir', 'benerdkar', 'penerdkir', 'penertkar' and 'penerkir'. |
| Kyrgyz | The word "жаназа" in Kyrgyz likely comes from the Arabic word "جنازة" or the Persian word "جانماز," both meaning "prayer rug". |
| Lao | In the Thai language, the equivalent word for "funeral" is "งานศพ", which is also pronounced "ngansop". |
| Latin | In Roman religion, the 'funus' referred to a religious festival commemorating the dead, rather than a funeral. |
| Latvian | Bēres, meaning "funeral" in Latvian, is derived from bērs, referring to an ancient funeral rite involving a raised platform on the grave where mourners would weep and mourn the deceased. |
| Lithuanian | The word "laidotuvės" is derived from the verb "laidoti," meaning "to bury." |
| Luxembourgish | "Begriefnes" derives from Middle High German "begrafen" and literally means "to bury." |
| Macedonian | Derived from Old Church Slavonic погребъ, likely related to Proto-Slavic *pogrebti, meaning "to bury". Also used to refer to a cellar or basement. |
| Malagasy | The Malagasy word fandevenana (funeral) literally translates to "the turning of the year," implying the cyclical nature of life and death. |
| Malay | The word "pengebumian" can refer to "burial" or "earthly life" in Indonesian, due to its root in the word "bumi" (earth) |
| Malayalam | The word "ശവസംസ്കാരം" in Malayalam is derived from Sanskrit and can also mean "cremation". |
| Maltese | Maltese "funeral" means "funeral" in English too, but comes from "funerale" in Italian or "funeraux" in French instead of "funeralia" in Latin. |
| Maori | The word "tangihanga" also refers to the period of mourning and rituals surrounding a death. |
| Marathi | The term "दफन" derives from the Persian "dafan" and can also signify concealment or burial. |
| Mongolian | Mongolian оршуулга "funeral" etymologically means "to send off to the next world". |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | The word 'အသုဘ' in Myanmar (Burmese) is derived from the Sanskrit word 'aśubha' which means 'inauspicious' or 'unlucky'. It can also refer to death or mourning. |
| Nepali | Antyesti is a compound word that combines "anta" (end) and "ishti" (religious rite), signifying the last rites performed for a deceased person according to Hindu tradition. |
| Norwegian | The Norwegian word "begravelse" literally means "to bury something green", indicating the connection between funerals and the natural cycle of life and death. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | Maliro was originally a song to honor chiefs and important people when they died; the word also refers to the mourning period. |
| Pashto | In Pashto, "جنازه" (janaza) also means a bier or stretcher used to carry a corpse. |
| Persian | مراسم خاکسپاری (funeral) comes from “خاک” (soil), meaning the action or ceremony of placing the remains of a person who has died in the ground. |
| Polish | "Pogrzeb" comes from the Old Polish verb "grześć" (to bury) with the prefix "po-". Originally, its meaning was "the action of burying", it gained its contemporary meaning of "funeral ceremony" later, under the influence of the Christian rite. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | Do latim "funus", "fúnebre", de "foras", "fora". Pode significar "o que está fora", "o que ficou de fora" ou "o que foi posto para fora", aludindo à expulsão do cadáver de casa, ou ao seu acompanhamento para fora, no enterro. |
| Punjabi | The word "ਸੰਸਕਾਰ" in Punjabi has multiple meanings and can refer to not only funerals, but also to rituals and ceremonies associated with life events such as birth, marriage, and initiation. |
| Romanian | The word "înmormântare" comes from the Old Slavonic word "inmorti", meaning "death". |
| Russian | The word "похороны" derives from "хоронить," meaning to hide or bury something (e.g., a treasure). |
| Samoan | The word 'falelauasiga' in Samoan also means 'the house of weeping' and refers to both the place where funeral services are held and the extended period of traditional mourning observed by the family of the deceased. |
| Scots Gaelic | The etymology of "tiodhlacadh" refers to the gathering (tiodh) and departure (lacadh) of people attending a funeral procession. |
| Serbian | The word "сахрана" derives from the Slavic root "*xran-/*xron-", meaning "to protect" or "to keep safe". |
| Sesotho | Lepato, when used in isolation or without the plural form "malapato", refers to the burial ceremony and the mourning period following it. |
| Shona | The word 'mariro' in Shona also refers to the spirit of a deceased person that is believed to guide and protect the living. |
| Sindhi | The Sindhi word "ڪفن دفن" has an alternate meaning of "to be buried". |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | In Sinhala, the word "අවමංගල්යය" (avamangallaya) means "inauspicious event", and is specifically used to refer to funerals. |
| Slovak | Pohreb can also mean 'burial' or 'interment,' and is related to the word pohrebisko, meaning 'cemetery' or 'burial ground'. |
| Slovenian | The word 'pogreb' is thought to derive from the verb 'grebsti', meaning 'to scratch', referring to the act of digging a grave. |
| Somali | "Aas" is originally used in reference to the funeral of a noble man or queen |
| Spanish | **Spanish:** "funeral" (funerary procession) can also mean "funeral service" or "funeral home". |
| Sundanese | The Sundanese word "pamakaman" also refers to the grave, burial ground, or cemetery where a funeral takes place. |
| Swahili | The word "mazishi" in Swahili comes from the Arabic word "mawt," meaning "death." |
| Swedish | "Begravning" derives from "be" (by) and "grav" (grave), reflecting the placement of the deceased in the grave. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | Tagalog "libing" may originate from an Indonesian term, "kubeng," meaning "enclosure" or "fence" possibly because graveyards were originally fenced off |
| Tajik | The word "дафн" also means "burial" in Tajik. |
| Telugu | 'అంత్యక్రియలు' literally means 'final rites', but also refers to the post-death rituals that ensure the deceased attains moksha (spiritual liberation). |
| Thai | The word "งานศพ" literally means "work of the corpse" and is a euphemism for "funeral" in Thai, reflecting the belief that death is a time of great effort for the deceased and their family. |
| Turkish | "Cenaze" means "coffin" in Turkish and derives from the Persian word "janaza". |
| Ukrainian | The Ukrainian word 'похорон' ('funeral') has the same origin as 'хорониться' ('to hide') |
| Urdu | "جنازہ" is thought to have originated from old Persian "janazah" which meant "corpse." |
| Uzbek | In Uzbek, the word "dafn marosimi" also means "the act or ceremony of burying a dead person". |
| Vietnamese | The word "tang lễ" can also refer to the Buddhist rituals and ceremonies performed during a funeral. |
| Welsh | The word 'angladd' is derived from the Old Welsh 'angladd', meaning 'sorrowful' or 'mourning'. |
| Xhosa | Umngcwabo is a Xhosa word that means 'funeral' and is also used to refer to a traditional Xhosa funeral rite. |
| Yiddish | The word "לוויה" also means "accompaniment" and "entourage" in Yiddish. |
| Yoruba | The word "isinku" also means "a place of mourning" in Yoruba. |
| Zulu | The Zulu word "umngcwabo" can also refer to a burial ground or cemetery. |
| English | The word 'funeral' comes from the Latin word 'funus', meaning 'a torch', as torches were often used in ancient Roman funeral processions. |