In Corsica, cremation is gaining ground but remains less popular than burial

In France, 46% of recent funerals were cremations. In Corsica, this figure is closer to 40%, but increases from year to year. A practice which represents, just like burial, a significant budget.

For Marjorie, in her sixties, the matter is settled: when she dies, she already knows where, in what manner and in what type of coffin she wishes to be buried. “I planned my clothes, I made files with all the important information, and I even wrote a letter that I asked my loved ones to read on the day of the funeral. For the choice of the cellar, it is not complicated, since we have a family cellar.“

Retired, Marjorie is in great shape and cannot hear “leave soon“But the choice to leave nothing to chance was imposed on her after the sudden death of her mother, around twenty years ago. “She wasn't sick, and she was still relatively young, so no one had prepared for this, least of all her. We had a traditional funeral ceremony, trying to do things in his image. But it really disturbed me to think that we would never know if everything was organized as she would have wanted.“

And to ensure that everything can go exactly as she wants, in addition to having prepared an indicative document for her loved ones, the sixty-year-old has also already saved a sum directly dedicated to this purpose. “I put about 4,500 euros aside, which, in my opinion, covers all or at least a large part of the expenses. As for the flowers and the rest, I leave them free to choose when the time comes.”

According to UFC-Que Choisir, in 2019, the total price of funerals for a burial – excluding vault and concession – stood on average at 3,815 euros, with significant differences noted, services ranging from 1,269 to 7,515 euros depending on the establishments. It is 14% more expensive than in 2014 (3,350 euros)…

The cost of a burial can vary greatly depending on the type of ceremony and the services chosen: for the transport of the body, the preparation of the deceased and the management of administrative procedures, count on average between 2000 and 4000 euros. Costs to which are added the choice of coffin – the price of which can range from simple to tenfold depending on the model chosen -; burial costs (opening of the grave, price of the funeral concession, etc.); the funerary monument, flowers and ornaments; or even the holding of a ceremony, the publication of a death notice in the press, and later, the maintenance of the grave…

In the absence of burial, relatives of the deceased have another alternative: cremation. Legalized in France since 1887, it represented only 1% of funerals in 1980. The situation has now evolved: 46% of recent funerals resulted in cremation, according to an Ipsos study from March 2024 taken up by OGF – leader in the funeral market. French – in a press kit. The sign of an evolution towards a “more secular society” notes the funeral operator, who has induced a “profound” transformation of the sector. In 1975, there were only seven crematoriums in France. There are more than 214 today, including two in Corsica, in Bastia and in Ajaccio.

But on the island, precisely, and more than on the continent, burial is still resisting, remaining – at this stage – the preferred choice of funeral. The fact of tenacious traditions and a particular respect given to the bodies of the deceased, believes Antoine, in his fifties, and firmly opposed to the idea of ​​seeing him or one of his loved ones cremated. “Even when storing the ashes in a columbarium, it is not the same thing, assures this Bastiais. We cannot collect ourselves in the same way. Everyone is free to make their own decisions, but it will never be my choice.“

If he is not the only refractory person, cremations nevertheless make their way, year after year, on the island. Responsible for the Roblot funeral directors in Bastia – which is in charge of the city's crematorium – Jean-Louis Guagnini notes: “More and more people are making this choice, and not only among younger people, but also among older people.“.

In 2024, 45.3% of funeral services carried out by the company were cremations (figures which will remain to be consolidated with the last months of the year). Or 11% less than the national average. But around 6% more – at this stage – than the figures recorded last year, with 38.7% of cremations recorded in 2023.

Those who choose cremation do not generally do so for a question of cost, indicates the professional. Because contrary to popular belief, cremation does not necessarily cost less than burial, and can even represent a larger budget. “In Corsica, the cremation tax is still 909 euros, which can be a significant additional cost, even if the price of the coffin is lower on average than that used for a funeral.“

Difficult, explains Jean-Louis Guagnini, to estimate the cost of a cremation, as the parameters that make it up can cause the price to change. “It all depends on whether there is a need for travel to recover the body, whether there is a ceremony, whether there is placement in a vault, a columbarium or a scattering of the ashes outdoors… When we makes the latter choice, this necessarily represents a reduction in costs and an easier option, since there is no need to buy a vault or a cellar in a columbarium“.

On average, he calculates, it costs between 3,500 and 4,500 euros for a cremation in Bastia. As an indication, in 2019, UFC-Que Choisir estimated the average price of a cremation at 3,986 euros, with a range going from 1,362 to 7,918 euros.

Will cremation continue to gain ground on the island, until it catches up with the national average? Although it is difficult to predict what will happen to funeral practices in the coming years, Jean-Louis Guagnini notes a certain evolution in mentalities towards the dead, with a less present practice of contemplation, in particular “among the younger generations who are less likely to visit the deceased, which makes the presence of a grave less necessary, and makes cremation a better considered alternative.“

Nevertheless, “we must not forget that we remain in Corsica, where the Catholic religion is widely practiced, tempers Jean-Louis Guagnini. Culturally, cremation remains somewhat frowned upon for a large part of the population. Some people are downright resistant and don't want to hear about it at all.“