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Old 08-22-2003, 02:38 PM   #8 (permalink)
collide
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Quote:
Originally posted by Cynthetiq
that's why it's called a WAKE... held a few days after someone is pronounced dead.
This reminds me of something I was once told about the origins of a wake, but I can't verify if it's true or not. It's something to do with watching the dead because often times they would wake up from their grave, so they'd tie a bell to them in case they accidentally buried someone alive. Here's a better explanation from word origins:

Quote:

This term for the gathering of family and friends upon the death of someone close derives from watch. Family and friends would maintain a prayer vigil over the corpse. Eventually, the term came to mean the social interactions accompanying a funeral. Other types of wakes existed as well; those about to be knighted would conduct a wake prior to their investiture. But only the funerary wake survives today as a practice.

Yet again the internet lore Life in the 1500s registers a specious explanation. It claims that lead drinking cups and alcohol would knock people out for several days. Therefore they were laid out for several days to determine if they were actually dead or if they would wake up.
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