“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me, your ears. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones; so let it be with Caesar”.
The printing houses have certain formats. So one goes there, tells them the activity he intends to perform and presto, a format is laid before him. The newspapers have something similar: You go to the advertisement section, explain the intended activity, and a format is spread out for you. We have already discussed ‘lying-in-state’ as an idiomatic phrase, unchangeable and immutable, subject to its own rules as an idiom, and not to the general rules of language.
As a funeral activity, the family of the dead man may lay the body on the bed: The body will be laid on a very beautiful bed, and their efforts will be acknowledged by the thousands of mourners who will throng to see the body lying in state.
After some wailing, church service, traditional ceremonies, the pouring of libation and the firing of musketry (if the person is a chief of some sort), the body will be interred. ‘Inter’ should not be confused with ‘intern’. Neither should ‘interment’ be confused with ‘internment’.
‘Interment’ is the act of putting a dead body into a grave or a tomb. The word ‘interment’ also refers to ‘burial’.
‘Internment’ is the noun for the verb, ‘to intern’ which means to confine within the limits of a country or a place, e.g. At the outbreak of the war, some German troops were interned in France as enemy aliens.
An ‘intern’ is a student in a professional field who receives in-service-training under experienced supervision.
There is so much phraseology that announces the death of people: At Rest; Home Call; Obituary; In Loving Memory of; Gracious Home Call; Transition; In Gloriam, Celebration of Life; Call to Glory; Called to Glory; Call into Glory; Glorious Home Call; Funeral Invitation; Funeral Announcement.
As part of the programme line-up, one would expect to see ‘interment’ (not: ‘internment’). Almost all the newspapers in Ghana are guilty of this, using ‘internment’ (wrongly) for ‘interment’. The word ‘internment’ has no business in funeral announcements. Whereas ‘inter’ and ‘interment’ deal with dead bodies, ‘intern’ and ‘internment’ deal with living persons.
‘Wake’ is an occasion when people gather, traditionally held at night (or at dawn) to remember the dead person; it is an occasion for the singing of ‘dirges’ and the narration of ‘funeral oratory’. According to Annor Nimako (Mind Your Language: 2004), the expression is ‘wake’ not ‘wake-keeping’ which is a loan from the ‘mother tongue’ (Akan: Pεsi; Ga, Kpεshi).
Thus, ‘wake will be held on …’ or ‘There will be no wake;
What about ‘memorial service’? Kofi Sey sees ‘thanksgiving service’ as associated with ‘memorial service’. A ‘memorial service’ will definitely include a ‘thanksgiving’. It might, therefore, be tautologous to have a ‘Memorial and Thanksgiving Service’. It would simply be ‘Memorial Service’. After the ‘Memorial Service’, the family members will be free to thank the sympathizers.
‘Thanksgiving’ means the expression of thanks or gratitude, especially to God. It is also a public celebration; marked with religious services, e.g. He offered prayers in thanksgiving for his safe arrival. ‘Thanksgiving Day’ is a holiday (originally set apart for feasting and thanksgiving to God, celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States of America and on the second Monday in October in Canada.
What about the expression of regret over the death of someone. It might be proper to say, for example, ‘We announce with regret the sudden death of Mr. XYZ which sad event occurred on …’ OR Mr. XYZ whose death we are celebrating today …’ Thus, it would be improper to say, for example, ‘We announce with regret the sudden death of XYZ whose sad event occurred on …
Some printers and newspapers say they publish the announcements as they come, without editing. Therefore, before one goes to the printer or a newspaper to have a funeral announcement made for him, he must take note of the following: Wake will be held on … (or there will be no wake). Lying in state … The body will lie in state on … Interment: (or burial) at the … Cemetery.
Memorial Service: Sunday …
By Africanus Owusu-Ansah
More:
Deaths And Funeral Messages (3)