Wednesday, October 21, 2026
Science

Japan's expensive funerals and declining birthrates are transforming ancestral traditions

Whenever I drive amid the mazelike bustle of Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, where approximately 1 million vehicles transit daily, I see billboard advertisements for all manner of businesses: dentists, hotels, car and tire companies, and affordable funerals. Lots and lots of funerals.

Japan's expensive funerals and declining birthrates are transforming ancestral traditions
Image: Phys.org
Whenever I drive amid the mazelike bustle of Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, where approximately 1 million vehicles transit daily, I see billboard advertisements for all manner of businesses: dentists, hotels, car and tire companies, and affordable funerals. Lots and lots of funerals.

Originally published at Phys.org

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