Discover death and funeral practices of different countries

Are you interested in expanding your business into new markets? A solid understanding of customs can be very helpful. Where to get the knowledge from? The book series “Routledge International Focus on Death and Funeral Practices” under the editor Julie Rugg, University of York, UK, provides essential information on death and funeral practices in countries throughout the world.

So far the series covers Japan, Portugal, Russia, and Poland. There are new books coming out in the next few months: New Zealand, Finland, Northern Indian states. Under an earlier imprint with Emerald Publishing, texts were also produced on England and Wales, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Serbia.

Each book in the series constitutes an essential primer on funerary activity in the country under review. This means that it's useful generally as a source book for people who may be new to the industry, and explains aspects that might be less familiar.

Each book has the same basic structure, which incorporates:

• historic, contextual background to understand how funeral practices have developed;
• burial and cremation rates, and change over time;
• an outline of key legislation guiding death registration, the funeral industry and cemetery and crematorium provision;
• what happens in the event of a death;
• an overview of the funeral industry including the ways in which funeral directing services are delivered and the
• balance of state/private involvement in funeral directing business;
• the cost of funerals and how they are paid for;
• church involvement in funerals and arrangements made for minority religious groups;
• a full and detailed description of a typical funeral;
• the provision of cemetery and crematorium services;
• patterns of commemoration.

Fully referenced, and supported by relevant images, figures and tables, books in the series provide an essential research resource on practices, the law, and funeral-related procedures around the world. Collectively, the series provides an invaluable framework for international comparison.

As the next FIAT-IFTA I.C.D. Meeting 2025 will be held in Yokohama, Japan, we sincerely recommend starting the lecture with "Death and funeral practices of Japan" publication.