interring

Interring is the act of placing a deceased person into the ground, a tomb, or a vault, typically as part of a burial. It is synonymous with burial or interment, and contrasts with cremation, where the body is not buried, and with entombment in a mausoleum or crypt.

In many traditions, after death, a body is washed, dressed, and placed in a coffin or casket. The casketed body is lowered into a grave or placed in a mausoleum or vault, often after a funeral service or ceremony. The grave is marked with a headstone or memorial, and the plot may be owned or leased from a cemetery. Legal requirements usually include permits, registration, and adherence to cemetery rules regarding burial depth, casket type, and environmental safeguards.

Religious and cultural beliefs influence the timing, orientation, and rites of interring, including open or closed caskets, embalming, and memorial rituals. Green burials emphasize natural decomposition with minimal environmental impact, while entombment preserves remains in structures like mausoleums. In some jurisdictions, cremated remains may be interred in cemeteries or scattered in designated areas.

The term derives from Latin interrare, to bury in the earth; interring appears in English usage since the medieval period. Practices vary widely by culture and era, from ancient earth burials to modern cemetery systems with record-keeping and regulated burial methods.