Twelfth International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

Hmong Americans have been living in the United States (US) for more than four decades. Like most immigrants coming to the US, the Hmong culture has changed drastically due to acculturation. As part of the broader transformation, Hmong traditional full-service funerals are also undergoing transitions. The purpose of this paper is to examine what people in the Hmong community think of the length and cost of Hmong traditional full-serve funerals, as well as alcohol use to show gratitude to visitors who attend the funeral. It included 904 Hmong community members and 23 bereaved Hmong family members in two surveys. The results of the surveys show that most traditional full-service Hmong funerals last three days; they usually start on Saturday and end on Monday. Individuals who were born outside of the US, older than 40 years old, women, and Hmong Christians were more likely to disapprove of multiple funeral service days, the cost of funerals, and the alcohol use to show gratitude to visitors. On average, a Hmong funeral costs about $31,843 USD. The paper concludes with suggestions for including specific members of the Hmong community to be part of future planning for a more affordable Hmong funeral.