# Do people who have afro hair and die have to get it cut off before burial? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 1, 2019, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820 "2019-11-01T02:29:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dunmurry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dunmurry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunmurry)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/1 "2019-11-01T02:29:18Z")
Well it’s just that there’s someone that I know who has a big mop of curly hair a bit like an afro haircut and I suppose it’s like a bird’s nest and there are others particularly African type people who have big hair and it’s really enormous and goes away out far farther than even the width of their face and so if they die is it the case that it has to be cut off some way so that they will fit into the coffin for burial in fact? Also wondering if anyone knows how morticians deal with this type of thing to do with an afro haircut during embalming or what happens to people with afro hair for setting the features for viewing of the body before burial and if anyone knows anything else about this? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/2 "2019-11-01T02:37:28Z")
I think you have never met a black person and have no idea what their hair is like. It is not a solid sphere. It’s no different than burying anybody else. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/3 "2019-11-01T02:53:01Z")
I also think that you are either vastly underestimating the size of a casket or vastly overestimating the size of people’s hair. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/4 "2019-11-01T02:54:01Z")
Maybe they put it in cornrows. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/5 "2019-11-01T03:32:14Z")
Bodies are prepared by cosmetologists who know how to deal with it. Lots of people don’t look their best when they die. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/6 "2019-11-01T04:18:03Z")
What? It’s just hair. Maybe lying in the coffin isn’t the best presentation of an Afro hair style but you sure don’t need a special coffin. I once knew someone who did hair for a mortuary. What a weird job, I always thought. She was kind of a weird person, too. I believe she flunked out of cosmetology school. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/7 "2019-11-01T04:27:17Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Bodies are prepared by cosmetologists who know how to deal with it. Lots of people don’t look their best when they die. At the mortuary I worked at, the morticians did the body prep, including the makeup. Sometimes friends or family members would be allowed to do the makeup themselves. Once the body is embalmed, people other than the morgue staff were allowed to touch the body. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/8 "2019-11-01T05:13:14Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I think you have never met a black person and have no idea what their hair is like. It is not a solid sphere. It’s no different than burying anybody else. [Well…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1ksvI9EsBw) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/9 "2019-11-01T05:42:04Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > She was kind of a weird person, too. I believe she flunked out of cosmetology school. Are you saying she was a Beauty School Dropout? ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/10 "2019-11-01T06:52:14Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Are you saying she was a Beauty School Dropout? Yes. But not one of the entertaining ones. I think instead of dying someone’s hair pink by mistake, she caused it to all fall out. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/11 "2019-11-01T10:39:37Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Yes. But not one of the entertaining ones. I think instead of dying someone’s hair pink by mistake, she caused it to all fall out. It’s “dyeing.” Unless it fell out because she killed it. And this thread is going into my “Strangest thread titles” list. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/12 "2019-11-01T12:08:48Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > I once knew someone who did hair for a mortuary. What a weird job, I always thought. She was kind of a weird person, too. I believe she flunked out of cosmetology school. The clients don’t move, don’t complain, and never ask you to make them look like that picture of Jennifer Aniston in a magazine. ---
**Author:** ![Isosleepy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/isosleepy/32/479_2.png) [@Isosleepy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isosleepy)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/13 "2019-11-01T13:48:22Z")
While this is only a 12 post thread, I think it can serve as an argument that the SDMB is clearly still serving a purpose that few other corners of the internet can fill. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/14 "2019-11-01T14:07:27Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > [Well…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1ksvI9EsBw) That is exactly what I was picturing as I read the (strange) OP 😛 😛 Seriously, **dunmurry** , you think their hair is made of concrete or something? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/15 "2019-11-01T16:02:07Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > That is exactly what I was picturing as I read the (strange) OP 😛 😛 > > Seriously, **dunmurry** , you think their hair is made of concrete or something? 😕 Best post/profile picture combo ever. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/16 "2019-11-01T16:11:49Z")
> [@Isosleepy](#): > > While this is only a 12 post thread, I think it can serve as an argument that the SDMB is clearly still serving a purpose that few other corners of the internet can fill. Yes indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/17 "2019-11-01T16:35:32Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I think you have never met a black person and have no idea what their hair is like. It is not a solid sphere. Yeah well, you aren’t supposed to ask to touch their hair, so I guess ignorance remains! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/18 "2019-11-01T16:44:06Z")
[Here’s](https://theyipsblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/16/lets-take-a-look-at-the-science-behind-how-colin-kaepernick-fits-his-hair-into-his-helmet/) a faintly scientific study on how an afro fits inside a football helmet. Coffins have slightly more space. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/19 "2019-11-01T16:52:59Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I think you have never met a black person and have no idea what their hair is like. It is not a solid sphere. It’s no different than burying anybody else. Exactly. Has the OP never seen a football player with an afro? They cram into helmets just fine, and then poof out when they’re off. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2019, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820/20 "2019-11-01T17:03:52Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > [Here’s](https://theyipsblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/16/lets-take-a-look-at-the-science-behind-how-colin-kaepernick-fits-his-hair-into-his-helmet/) a faintly scientific study on how an afro fits inside a football helmet. Coffins have slightly more space. I think it’s probably in poor taste of me to laugh at that but damn “He’s… well, he has a big-ass afro now. It’s huge. Kap has got himself a massive orb of righteous fury growing out the top of his head and he’s ready to unleash its entire, mysterious power on the Buffalo Bills today.” made me guffaw. Shoot, the OP made me chuckle a little (if uncomforably) but I’ve been cracking up since > [@MrDibble](#): > > Are you saying she was a Beauty School Dropout? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-people-who-have-afro-hair-and-die-have-to-get-it-cut-off-before-burial/842820.md?page=2)