When you attend a funeral, there are many traditions that are typically followed, from the type of service one has based on their religious beliefs to the rituals performed at the burial site.
There is a prescribed funeral etiquette that one follows when attending a funeral or memorial service, and one of the most common is to wear black to a funeral.
But why is it that we dress in black for a funeral? Simply put, at this point in history, we wear black to a funeral because it's what's always been done, but the history behind the color's involvement in the grieving process dates back over a millennium.
In fact, dating back to ancient Rome, one sees the use of black in the mourning process.
Romans would wear specific clothing called a toga pulla, which was a cloak made of dark wool, while they were grieving.
It's thought that this is the origin as to why we wear black to a funeral.
The reasons why this tradition continued through the ages, despite regime changes and shifts in cultural beliefs and notions of death, is likely due to the symbolism behind the color.
Where white signifies the presence of life, purity and clarity, black is its opposite.
Black symbolizes darkness.
It is the absence of light and color, thus the color is a manifestation of the feelings of grief people experience when a loved one dies.
We dress in black to a funeral to show that we feel the absence of life in our lives.
However, the tradition to wear black to a funeral is beginning to shift.
These days, many people specifically request that people not wear black to their funeral because they don't want it to be a somber affair.
Some people choose to have bright, vibrant colors at their funeral because they want it to be a celebration of the life they lived, not a day spent mourning the loss of a loved one.
Of course, grief is natural, but the trend of bucking the need to dress in black to a funeral represents a shift in the way society views death.
Not as something to be feared, but as a fundamental part of life.
Next time you're asked to wear black to a funeral, when you're putting on your attire, take time to reflect on what exactly the action of wearing black means more than just something that you're doing because you were told to do so.
There is a prescribed funeral etiquette that one follows when attending a funeral or memorial service, and one of the most common is to wear black to a funeral.
But why is it that we dress in black for a funeral? Simply put, at this point in history, we wear black to a funeral because it's what's always been done, but the history behind the color's involvement in the grieving process dates back over a millennium.
In fact, dating back to ancient Rome, one sees the use of black in the mourning process.
Romans would wear specific clothing called a toga pulla, which was a cloak made of dark wool, while they were grieving.
It's thought that this is the origin as to why we wear black to a funeral.
The reasons why this tradition continued through the ages, despite regime changes and shifts in cultural beliefs and notions of death, is likely due to the symbolism behind the color.
Where white signifies the presence of life, purity and clarity, black is its opposite.
Black symbolizes darkness.
It is the absence of light and color, thus the color is a manifestation of the feelings of grief people experience when a loved one dies.
We dress in black to a funeral to show that we feel the absence of life in our lives.
However, the tradition to wear black to a funeral is beginning to shift.
These days, many people specifically request that people not wear black to their funeral because they don't want it to be a somber affair.
Some people choose to have bright, vibrant colors at their funeral because they want it to be a celebration of the life they lived, not a day spent mourning the loss of a loved one.
Of course, grief is natural, but the trend of bucking the need to dress in black to a funeral represents a shift in the way society views death.
Not as something to be feared, but as a fundamental part of life.
Next time you're asked to wear black to a funeral, when you're putting on your attire, take time to reflect on what exactly the action of wearing black means more than just something that you're doing because you were told to do so.
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