Funeral Terms
| Arrangement Room | A room of the funeral home where you and your family can make funeral arrangements. |
| Autopsy | Medical procedure used to determine the cause of death. |
| Bereaved | The family of the deceased who are suffering from the death of a loved one. |
| Burial | Placing the deceased person in a grave. |
| Columbarium | A structure with small spaces (niches) for placement of cremated remains in urn containers. |
| Casket | A receptacle of wood, metal or plastic into which the deceased is placed for burial. |
| Cemetery | An area of ground set aside for burial or entombment of the deceased. |
| Chapel | A room in the funeral home, church, cremetorium or cemetery,
or other building used for farewell/viewing/memorial services. |
| Commital Service | The final portion of the funeral service at which time the deceased is interred or entombed. |
| Coroner | A government official whose duty it is to investigate the cause of death if it appears to be from other than natural causes. |
| Cortege | The funeral procession led by a hearse. |
| Cremation | Reduction of the body to ashes by fire. |
| Death Notice | A notice placed in the newspaper classifieds, radio or on the Internet, publicising the death of a person and providing funeral service details and listing the names of the relatives of the deceased. |
| Deceased | A person whose physical life has ended. |
| Embalm | The process of preserving a deceased person by means
of circulating preservative and antiseptic through the veins and arteries
to delay decomposition and allow the body to be presented for viewing
and prevent transfer of infections. Embalming is normally required
for above ground interment (crypts or vaults) as well as for transportation
overseas. |
| Ethics | The moral code, which guides the members of the funeral profession in proper conduct of their duties and obligations. |
| Eulogy | A brief speech that offers praises and celebrates the life of the deceased. |
| Final Rites | Communication offered to the sick prior to death. |
| Funeral Arrangements | Funeral director's conference with the family for the purpose of completing service details and financial arrangements of a funeral. |
| Funeral Director | A professional who prepares for the cremation, burial or other disposition, supervises such disposition and maintains a funeral establishment for such purposes. |
| Funeral Home | A building used for the purpose of embalming, arranging and conducting funerals. |
| Funeral Service | The religious or other rites conducted immediately before final disposition of the deceased. |
| Grave | An excavation in the earth for the purpose of burying the deceased. |
| Mausoleum | A public or private building designed as an above ground resting place for the dead. |
| Mortuary | A building designed and constructed for the caring of the deceased. |
| Niche | A compartment that holds cremated remains of the deceased |
| Obituary | A death notice placed in a newspaper or on the radio
or Internet, containing a biographical sketch of the deceased. |
| Pre-Arranged Funeral | Funeral arrangements completed by an individual prior to his or her death. |
| Pre-Arranged Funeral Fund | A method by which an individual can prepay for his or her funeral expenses. |
| Urn | A metal, wood or stone container in which cremated remains of a deceased are placed. |
| Vault | A wholly or partly underground burial chamber, or an outside metal or concrete casket container. |
| Viewing | A private time for mourners to visit the deceased in an open casket to pay final respects in a special room or chapel within the funeral home. |