The Language of Funerals

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The Language of Funerals Funeral Homes in Dayton OH 002

When discussing funerals at funeral homes in Dayton, OH, there is a language that is unique to the funeral industry and to the services they provide. It can be helpful to know and understand some of the more common words and terms you will hear, especially when you’re grieving and making funeral arrangements, and you can’t absorb new or unfamiliar information.

Burial is the act of placing a dead body underground.

A columbarium is a structure made up of niches where urns with cremation remains are stored. Small gravestones or grave markers identify each person.

Cremation is the act of burning a dead body and returning cremation remains in a sealed urn to the family of the deceased. Before cremation happens, the body is positively identified by the family. Only one body is cremated at a time. The cremation process takes two to three hours.

A crematory is where cremations are performed.

Crypts are burial chambers that are partially or completely underground. Double crypts are designed for two caskets to lie side by side.

Death is the end of life.

Donations in memory of (in Memorium) deceased people are financial gifts given to either a charity of their choice or a charity that the donor chooses.

Embalming is a process that preserves a body with preservatives and antiseptics. It also includes grooming and dressing the body for funeral viewings.

A full couch casket is a casket with a one-piece cover that opens completely.

Funerals are one type of ceremony to honor the deceased. Funerals are usually religious events, but they can also be secular. No two funerals are exactly alike.

A funeral cortege or funeral procession can refer to either mourner who follows a casket as it is brought in or taken out of the place where the funeral service is held or to a convoy of mourners in vehicles who follow the hearse to the cemetery where burial will take place.

Funeral monuments are also known as gravestones, headstones, or grave markers. They include information about the deceased person, including things like name, date of birth, date of death, and tributes or epithets. If a gravestone stands upright, it is usually referred to as a funeral monument.

A funerary recess is a receptacle in a mausoleum (an indoor cemetery) that is the casket’s final resting place. The receptacle is sealed and covered with a white marble plaque that is engraved with information about the deceased.

Graves are excavations of the earth where caskets will be buried as their final resting place. Graves are dug and covered using backhoes.

A half-couch casket is a casket with a two-piece cover. Only the top half of the casket opens to display the body of the deceased.

Hearses are specially-built vehicles designed to carry caskets from funerals to cemeteries.

The internment of a casket refers to the burial or placement of a casket in the ground or into a funerary recess in a mausoleum.

Inurnment refers to burial or storage of cremains in an urn. This could be an underground burial, or it could be stored in a columbarium.

Plots are measured pieces of land in a cemetery where a casket is buried.

Prearrangements or preplanning refers to making – and possibly paying for – funeral arrangements before someone dies.

A viewing or visitation is an event (which usually takes place just before the funeral service) where mourners can pay their final respects to the deceased and provide comfort and support to the deceased’s family.

If you’d like more information about funerals at funeral homes in Dayton, OH, our compassionate and experienced staff at Glickler Funeral Home & Cremation Service can help.

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