UC Irvine

Death and the rituals surrounding it constitute an important cultural dom~in in. all s~ieties, and it is a particularly good domain to investigate when assessing the acculturation of Asian immigrants and refugees in southern California. Acculturation is the process of change in beliefs and practices that occurs when people of different cultures come into close and continuous contact. In the United States, the concept commonly denotes the acceptance of American customs by immigrant groups, although as we shall see acculturation is really a two-w~y process. Asian immigrants constitute a large and growing segment of the Orange County population.' and we may examine one facet of their cuJture, death ntuals, to see the processes of adaptation that are taking place.'