Funeral Foods From Around The World

1. Ireland - Wake Cake

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Wake Cakes date back to the 7th Century and are still traditionally served at wakes in Ireland and some other areas of the UK.  These cakes tend to be tailored with ingredients and shapes in order to represent the unique interests and likes of the person who has passed away.

2. Jamaica - Goat Curry

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It is traditional for a goat curry to be served at any Jamaican family gathering and is also often served during funeral traditions.  In Jamaican tradition, it is believed that it takes nine nights after a person has died to reach their final resting place and on the final night, the deceased is believed to pass through by midnight.

3. USA: Pennsylvania - Amish Funeral Pie

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Amish Funeral Pie is a sweet pie made from common pantry staples and tends to still be a common tradition at funeral gatherings of the Amish in Pennsylvania.  In the past, the pie was supposed to be easy to rustle up in a hurry and got its name because of its presence at memorial gatherings.

4. Hard-Boiled Eggs

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In Jewish tradition, mourners would return home from the burial service of a loved one and share the meal of consolation,

or the seudat havra'ah.

  This traditionally consists of symbolic foods, including hard-boiled eggs which typically represent new life and also act as a metaphor for resilience.

5. Vegetable Samosas

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In many branches of Hinduism, tradition states that mourners of the deceased do not eat for a certain amount of time after their loved one has passed away.  And because of this, food isn't usually eaten during the ceremony but vegetable samosas are commonly given as a sympathy gift.

6. Mexico - Pan de Muerto

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In Mexico, Pan de Muerto is traditionally made in preparation for the Dia de los Muertos.  It is a type of sweet soft bread that is decorated with symbolic shapes including bones which represent the dead and a single teardrop that is said to represent Chimalma's tears for the living.

7. Korea - Yukgaejang

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Yukgaejang is a spicy beef and vegetable soup that has become a traditional dish served at memorial gatherings in Korea.  The mourning ceremonies usually last two to three days and the family of the deceased begin to receive visitors just before the funeral.

8. Estonia - Cabbage Rolls

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During Estonian funeral ceremonies, there are usually multiple feasts with the first one taking place at the burial service in the cemetery.  Here, they would share pastries and bread and leave the leftovers by the deceased's headstone. Then they will return to their home for another meal which usually includes cabbage rolls.

9. Kyrgyzstan - Borsok

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In Kyrgyzstan, Borsok is present at every special event, including weddings, holidays, and funerals.  These fried dough balls are not only part of the memorial ceremony but they are traditionally made every Thursday for a whole year after someone has passed away.

10. Japan - Sushi

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In Japanese culture, it is traditional to eat symbolic food as part of traditional funeral ceremonies and sushi is a very common choice of dish.  This is because the typically round shape of sushi is said to represent the circle of life while the white color of the rice is associated with Japanese funerals.

11. Spain - Tapas, Bread & Cured Meats

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In Spain, the burial of a person after their death is often done as soon as possible and no later than 2 days after they pass, and following the burial ceremony, there would usually be a wake, or a velorio,

where people would gather to share memories and feast on dishes that typically include Tapas, bread and cured meats.

12. China - Chicken & Duck

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Like in many Asian cultures, people in China also traditionally prepare and eat symbolic foods during ceremonies like funerals. And the mourners eat them and they also make ceremonial offerings that they set up in front of the casket. Typically, chicken is often served at the Chinese memorial service because it is thought that the chicken symbolizes the ability to 'fly' to heaven while the duck provides protection.

13. England - Ham Salad

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In the late 19th Century in England, being able to serve ham at your funeral was a sign of wealth.  But nowadays, in both England and America, rather than it being a display of wealth, serving ham is still very popular and is a favorite in a person's wake.

14. Middle East - Halva

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Halva is very popular in the Middle East and the Balkans and can be enjoyed at any time.  But it is traditionally served at funerals across the world, particularly in Iran, Armenia, and Turkey, and is said to provide comfort to mourners because of its sweetness.

15. Jamaica - Mannish Water

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During what is known as the Nine Nights

in Jamaica, mourners will spend lots of time together sharing stories, playing games, and eating.  Mannish Water is a goat soup that is said to symbolize vitality because of its apparent aphrodisiac qualities and provide a contrast to death.

16. USA - Funeral Potatoes

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In Utah, they are insanely proud of the comforting dish of Funeral Potatoes that is made from pantry staples such as cream of chicken soup, cubed potatoes, cream, butter, and cheese and is supposed to be easily whipped up at a moment's notice when someone dies.

17. USA - Baked Mac & Cheese

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Comfort food is often served at memorial gatherings in the USA and dishes like fried chicken and baked mac & cheese are often served to provide mourners with comfort in their time of grief.  These particular dishes are popular in the South and can usually be found at gatherings, including funerals.

18. Japan - Beans

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In Japan, during the mourning period, as well as sushi, beans are also a popular funeral food.  This is because they are typically thought to bring good luck and fortune.  Sea bream is also often served at Japanese funerals too as a symbol of long life.

19. Greece - Koliva

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Koliva is a dish that is used in the Eastern Orthodox Church to honor a deceased loved one and it is a very traditional dish in Greek memorial services.  It is made from wheat, raisins, honey, and pomegranate and has a mouldable texture that is used to sculpt a grave with the dead's initials in it.

20. Cambodia - Num Om Saum

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There is a tradition in Cambodia called On Pchum Ben

which means Ancestors' Day.  And on this day, it is believed that the spirits of dead relatives return to Earth.  They, therefore, offer their relatives Num Om Saum

which is a satisfying sticky rice cake that is wrapped up in banana leaves.  In return, they hope their relatives will bless their rice fields.

21. Poland - Kasza Porridge

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In Polish tradition, the memorial ceremonies involve a feast where they traditionally serve Kasza Porridge, which is made from nutty buckwheat groats, and they also serve vodka with honey.  Traditionally, they will also share a feast on the one-year anniversary of their loved one's death.

22. Alaska - Potlatch

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In Alaskan native culture, they traditionally gather for three days for the Koyukon Athabascan memorial potlatch.  This is a memorial ceremony used to remember loved ones who may have died in the past 1-3 years and they generally share a feast and gifts are shared with family and friends that attend the ceremony.

23. Hawaii - Lau Lau

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Lau Lau is a steamed dish that contains meat or fish wrapped in luau or taro leaves.  And this dish is a traditional native Hawaiian dish that has been served at many family gatherings including being a traditional dish served at funeral memorials as well.

24. Ukraine - Kolachi

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Kolachi is a traditional sweet bread in the shape of a ring and these are popular in Ukraine, Romania, and Russia too.  They usually make their appearance at many gatherings and important feasts, including at funerals and even on Christmas Eve.

25. Japan - Kyrui Una & Nasu Ushi

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There is a Japanese Buddhist festival called Obon and this is quite similar to other festivals around the world where dead relatives are believed to visit the Earth.  Offerings are traditionally laid out on Buddhist altars of cucumber shapes like horses (kyuri uma) at the start of the festival and at the end, they offer them aubergines shaped like cows (nasu ushi).

26. Funeral Cookies

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In many areas of the world, it is traditional to serve mourner funeral cookies, or biscuits, during the wake.  Sometimes these biscuits are shaped into certain symbols to represent certain significant elements, like the deceased themselves.  And they're flavored with different traditional spices and eaten in different ways.

27. Victorian Funeral Biscuits

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During Victorian England, funeral biscuits became a staple of the bakery business and many of the richer population preferred to display their opulence by buying these biscuits from a high-end baker rather than making them themselves.  And the wrappers were adorned with advertisements, as well as more uplifting biblical quotes.

28. Corpse Cake

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The corpse cake

is a tradition that dates back to the Middle Ages in Germany and it was generally a spongy cake that was made by the women of the house.  They'd make the cake and then during the ceremony, it would be placed on the deceased's chest to absorb their virtues.  And it was believed that those virtues would then be transferred to the eater.

29. Doot Coekjesor

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Doot Coekjesor, or dead cookies

, were historically made by Dutch communities and they were usually prepared for funeral ceremonies.  These traditional cookies were said to be the side of a saucer and they were traditionally dipped into hot spiced wine.

30. Italy - Bones of the Dead

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In Italy, these traditional funeral biscuits were made in the shapes of bones which are said to represent the deceased.  These particular cookies are still made in some regions of Italy and are known as ossi di morti

which literally translates to bones of the dead

.  Sometimes they are even shaped like organs!