Japan's Funeral Color Was Once White　#Japan #Funeral #JapaneseCulture #history #Meiji

Japanese funerals are black.
But before the Meiji era, the color of mourning was white.
White was the color of death.
Bereaved families wore white mourning clothes.
The shift to black happened in the Meiji period.
Western culture arrived, and black formal wear became the standard at diplomatic events.
The Japanese government unified official dress with Western styles.
Black funeral attire spread as part of that shift.
White has not disappeared entirely.
The burial robe placed inside the coffin is white.
Beneath the black mourning clothes, families wear white undergarments.
Black on the outside. White within.
Two eras overlap inside a single funeral.