Spent $400 on a Korean funeral gift set and committed a huge taboo without knowing it

Terry Rodriguez · 2026-10-09T16:10:03.496001+00:00

My wife's grandmother passed away in Seoul two years ago and I had no clue what to do, so I let my mother in law pick out the funeral flowers and envelope, which ran me around $400. I thought I was being generous, but I handed the white chrysanthemum wreath to the wrong side of the family and put an even amount of cash in the envelope instead of an odd number. Her uncle pulled me aside and said even numbers mean you're wishing death on someone else in the family, which is a big deal there. I had always rolled my eyes at people who said funeral customs were complicated, because back home in Ohio you just send a card and some food. That $400 mistake taught me more about Korean mourning rules than any article could. Now I want to know, has anyone here messed up a funeral or mourning tradition in another country, and what did it cost you?

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Spent $400 on a Korean funeral gift set and committed a huge taboo without knowing it | Cultural Taboo Topics - Discusd