It is very common in cultures that consider disease to be the result of
malign magical influences such as witchcraft, punishment for
transgressing taboos, etc. to perceive death as a form of "sickness." It
can, therefore, like other sicknesses, be transmitted. Such a belief is
strengthened by the experience that people who come in contact with
diseased people often contract the same illness. If the illness is
lethal, such as plague, death may also ensue. Death is often considered
a state that never occurs naturally but only as the result of an outside
influence. 

This belief is almost universal among traditional Native Americans (as
it was among the Pagan Romans).  One who comes in contact with the dead
is expected to go through some sort of purification process such as a
sweat before re-entering the community, so as to avoid spreading this
contagion.

 A search through the literature of medical anthropology should be
helpful.

Martin Pickands
New York State Museum

>>> [log in to unmask] 4/5/2007 7:30 PM >>>
This inquiry was posted on another listserv, Early Americanists, but I
thought maybe some of you might be able to assist Ms. Hutter. You may
post to either listserv, or respond to Dr. Griffin directly; I can
forward your response if you'd like.
   
  Amy

Edward Griffin <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
  Date: Thu, 5 Apr 2007 14:49:33 -0500
From: Edward Griffin <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Taboo about touching corpses
To: [log in to unmask] 

One of my graduate students, Liz Hutter, brought this question to me, 
and I blush to confess that I have no answer. So I thought I'd send it

to all of you and hope that somebody will point us in the proper 
direction. I can forward replies to her. Here's Liz's query:

In my research (late eighteenth century) on preventing and saving 
individuals from accidents that could cause sudden death, I have come 
upon a couple of brief references to social taboos that prevented
people 
from touching or assisting an apparently dead body because corpses were

not supposed to be touched. I have been trying to locate other primary

and/or secondary discussions of such a taboo about corpses. Where did
it 
come from? Why was a corpse not to be touched, especially one without 
visible indications of illness? I surmised at first that the literature

on premature burial might provide some clues, but I haven't had any 
luck. I would consider anything from the 18th and 19th centuries; the 
17th century, too, if that is relevant. Do you have any ideas of
sources 
that might illuminate reasons for this taboo? Or suggestions about
where 
such information might be found?


Edward M. Griffin
Department of English
University of Minnesota
[log in to unmask] 



Amy C. Kowal, RPA 
Department of Anthropology 
Florida State University 
Tallahassee, FL 32306-7772 
(850) 644-4281 
[log in to unmask] 
 
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