Earth, Death, and Fire in Eastern China Musings on an Ethnographic Note of 1868

• A communication from 1868 tells us that in theeastern Chinese provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu it was common for people to cremate their dead. Being a rather unusualpractice in a Chinese environment, this particular custom isdiscussed here from an anthropological perspective, a numberof suggestions being made to form an experimental holisticexplanation of this variation in traditional funeral procedure.The use of coffins, fire and ceramic urns is profiled against abackground of the cultivation of rice, the production of silk,cross-cousin marriage and the position of women in this area.Women are seen as a key element in this cultural complex.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Sociologi -- Socialantropologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Sociology -- Social Anthropology (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Eastern China

funerals

marriage

women

ancestors

rice

silk

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