Anthropological Study on Changes in Funeral Practices in Contemporary Urban Jamaica

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K13291
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 04030:Cultural anthropology and folklore-related
• Research Institution: Kurume University
• Principal Investigator: Kamimoto Shuji 久留米大学, 文学部, 教授 (30732622)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 葬送 / アフリカ系ディアスポラ / 視覚表現

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study was to clarify how the dead are mourned in Jamaica's capital Kingston and Spanish Town, where funerals involving funeral directors are common. This study analyzed materials obtained through literature research and field surveys. In the literature research, I focused on reading about the history and current state of funerals in the African diaspora, including Jamaica. During the field survey conducted in 2022 and 2023, I mainly collected data on the actual state of funeral service providers and the popular forms of graves. The research results that have been published so far suggest that the tendency to emphasize visual perception, as represented by SNS, has had a major impact on the transformation of funerals in recent years.

Free Research Field

文化人類学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

大西洋奴隷貿易の「被害者」であった奴隷およびその子孫の葬送について、カリブ海地域では考古学的研究を含めほとんど記録の蓄積が進んでいなかった。本研究の社会的意義は同時代的な状況を資料として整理し日本語だけでなく英語でも発表した点にある。本研究の学術的意義は、ジャマイカ黒人の人種的アイデンティティ（黒人性）に関する文化人類学的・社会学的議論に葬送の事例を通じての貢献をおこなうことができた点にある。