Eufemismos fúnebres.

Abstract

The corpus of this work consists of 876 obituary notices published in the obituary section of the newspaper La Nacion, during July, August and September 2005. The euphemisms used correspond to a gracefulness taboo and reflect the different ways in which relatives and friends report the news of the death of the beloved ones, the focus of these publications. The lexeme death is replaced mostly by passing away and the most frequent verb is regret. The corpse is never mentioned, neither is the verb "bury" or "put in the ground". When the deceased are considered the doers of the actions set out by the verb, the prevailing verbal tense is present indicative, as opposed to present perfect. Language, the communicative instrument par excellence, enables speakers to build their total life experience. They use it to communicate feelings and emotions even in painful circumstances; in this way, they interact with other users, and as a social group, shape their own world view.