Adapting to 'one-size-fits-all': constructing appropriate Islamic burial spaces in Northwestern Europe

Abstract

In this chapter, we use a comparative approach to explore the nuanced experiences of disposition in various Muslim communities in diverse social, cultural, and policy contexts. Through a sample of cases from different countries in Northwest Europe (Ireland, Scotland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Sweden and Norway), we see how Muslim communities negotiate burial space in countries where Islamic burial is framed as a ‘minority’ practice. We first outline Islamic deathscapes in this region and locate this within literature on burial practices, identity, and belonging. We then explore three specific issues within this: the choice of whether migrant Muslims are buried in their country of origin or the town they are living in; the physical segregation and experience of Islamic burial spaces; and Islamic memorial and grave aesthetics. This reveals that current Islamic burial in Northwest Europe is not simply a blending of minority and majority norms, but a much more complex, fluid, and responsive field.

Keywords

Muslim, Burial; Northwest Europe; Deathscapes; Identity; Minority burial practices

Published in

Title: New Perspectives on Urban Deathscapes : Continuity, Change, and Contestation
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

SLU Authors

• Nordh, Helena

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Human Geography
International Migration and Ethnic Relations

Publication identifier

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781802202397.00014
• ISBN: 978-1-80220-238-0
• eISBN: 978-1-80220-239-7

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/122597