Professional Mourners Have Been Around Since Ancient Times, Paid To Cry, Grieve, And Cause A Scene At Someone’s Funeral
Did you know that people can be paid to cry at someone’s funeral? This occupation is known as a professional mourner, and it dates back to ancient times. The practice is even mentioned in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible.
One modern-day example of a professional mourner is Hu Xinglian, who is known as Dragonfly. She is famous for her dramatic performances at funerals, which consist of crying, crawling, and shouting to honor the loss. She is one of the most sought-after mourners in China.
Her role is essentially the same as the duties of the “wailing women” in the Christian Bible. References to the female mourners can be found in the Book of Amos and the Book of Jeremiah.
They are the opposite of somber and reserved. Instead, they were described as making a scene with loud screams.
“Thus said the Lord of hosts, Consider you, and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning women, that they may come” (Jeremiah 9:17).
The professional mourners in the Bible are more similar to the ones from Rome than Egypt. The best-documented cases of professional mourning in ancient times come from Rome.
Like most other cultures, Roman funerals were rites of passage that represented the transition between life and death.
Deceased individuals of high status and wealth would have noisier and flashier processions with mimes and musicians.
People from lower classes may have only had a few flute players at their funerals. Professional mourners were also an important part of funeral processions, and they were exclusively women.
David L/peopleimages.com – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual people
In Rome, they were present as displays of the deceased’s wealth and power. They would wail loudly, scratch their faces, and rip out their hair to show their grief. Men were not allowed to be professional mourners, as it was inappropriate for them to cry in public.
Ancient Egypt practiced similar funerary customs. Only childless women without hair on their bodies could be professional mourners.
It was also required that they had the names of the goddesses Isis and Nephthys tattooed on their shoulders.
Funerary rituals could not be completed without the presence of at least two mourners to play the roles of Isis and Nephthys. The women had to stand at opposite ends of the body and could not be related to the dead.
In Greece, the ancient practice of professional mourning still exists today. The tradition goes all the way back to at least the 8th century B.C.
The rituals involved displaying the deceased’s body on a bed. Family members surrounded the body and tore their hair out in grief.
The modern practitioners of professional mourning in Greece are known as “moirologists.” They behaved similarly to their ancestors.
They are still exclusively women and sing songs to help families say goodbye to their loved ones. They also make offerings to the dead, including locks of hair, oil, perfume, wine, honey, and garlands.
The tradition is likely to disappear within a few years since the last moirologists are nearly 100 years old now and will depart from the world themselves soon enough.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:Freaky
Read This Next
