![Louisa lawson suffragette light box memorial greenway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Louisa_lawson_suffragette_light_box_memorial_greenway.JPG)
A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential,
deceased person or a historical,
tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or
works of art such as
sculpture
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...
s,
statue
A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...
s or
fountain
A fountain, from the Latin "fons" (genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect.
Fountains were ori ...
s and
park
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...
s. Larger memorials may be known as
monuments.
Types
The most common type of memorial is the
gravestone or the
memorial plaque. Also common are
war memorials commemorating those who have died in
wars. Memorials in the form of a
cross
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a s ...
are called
intending crosses.
Online memorials are often created on
websites
A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Wiki ...
and
social media
Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social me ...
to allow digital access as an alternative to physical memorials which may not be feasible or easily accessible.
When somebody has died, the family may request that a memorial gift (usually
money
Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money ar ...
) be given to a designated
charity, or that a tree be planted in memory of the person. Those temporary or makeshift memorials are also called grassroots memorials.
[''Grassroots Memorials: The Politics of Memorializing Traumatic Death'', eds Peter Jan Margry and Cristina Sánchez-Carretero (New York: Berghahn, 2011).]
Sometimes, when a student has died, the memorials are placed in the form of a
scholarship
A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need.
Scholars ...
, to be awarded to high-achieving students in future years.
Memorials to persons or events of major significance may be designated as ''national memorials''.
Haymarket-martyrs-memorial-Forest-Home-Cemetery-IL.jpg, The '' Haymarket Martyrs' Monument'' at the Forest Home Cemetery in Forest Park
A forest park is a park whose main theme is its forest of trees. Forest parks are found both in the mountains and in the urban environment.
Examples Chile
* Forest Park, Santiago
China
* Gongqing Forest Park, Shanghai
* Mufushan National Forest ...
, Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...
File:Fan with Shankly.jpg, alt=Fan with Shankly, Fan next to memorial statue of Bill Shankly
William Shankly (2 September 1913 – 29 September 1981) was a Scottish football player and manager, who is best known for his time as manager of Liverpool. Shankly brought success to Liverpool, gaining promotion to the First Division and winnin ...
File:Martyrs Memorial. Algiers, Algeria.jpg, Maqam Echahid in Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques d ...
, Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
File:Airport Disaster 20.06.11 Memorial near Petrozavodsk 3.JPG, The memorial monument of the 2011 airport disaster in Petrozavodsk
Petrozavodsk (russian: Петрозаводск, p=pʲɪtrəzɐˈvotsk; Karelian, Vepsian and fi, Petroskoi) is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, which stretches along the western shore of Lake Onega for some . The population ...
, Republic of Karelia
The Republic of Karelia (russian: Респу́блика Каре́лия, Respublika Kareliya; ; krl, Karjalan tašavalta; ; fi, Karjalan tasavalta; vep, Karjalan Tazovaldkund, Ludic: ''Kard’alan tazavald''), also known as just Karelia (ru ...
File:Podlaskie - Białystok - Białystok - św. Rocha - Koścół św. Rocha - Tablica ofiarom katastrofy smoleńskiej 20120428 05.JPG, Memorial dedicated to the victims of the 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash in Smoleńsk at the Church of St. Roch in Białystok
Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area.
Białystok is located in the Białystok U ...
, Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
File:Airborne Museum 'Hartenstein'.jpg, The Airborne Museum in Arnhem
Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both ban ...
, Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
commemorates the liberation of the city during World War II
File:Berlin_ghostbike.jpg, A ghost bike
A ghost bike (also referred to as a ghostcycle or WhiteCycle) is a bicycle roadside memorial, placed where a cyclist has been killed or severely injured, usually by the driver of a motor vehicle.
Apart from being a memorial, it is usually inten ...
roadside memorial in Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
File:Orthodox Cathedral of St. Andrew in South Bound Brook.jpg, St. Andrew Memorial Church
St. Andrew Memorial Church () is a Ukrainian Orthodox cathedral on Main Street, in South Bound Brook, New Jersey, United States. It is the mother church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA.
The church is dedicated as a memorial to the vi ...
in South Bound Brook
South Bound Brook is a borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,563,[New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...]
, was built in 1965 to commemorate the victims of the Holodomor
The Holodomor ( uk, Голодомо́р, Holodomor, ; derived from uk, морити голодом, lit=to kill by starvation, translit=moryty holodom, label=none), also known as the Terror-Famine or the Great Famine, was a man-made famin ...
File:Namantar Shahid Smarak Nagpur.jpg, Namantar Shahid Smarak commemorates the Namantar Andolan
Namantar Andolan (English: Name Change Movement) was a Dalit and Navayana Buddhist movement to change the name of Marathwada University, in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India, to ''Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar University''. It achieved a measure of succ ...
File:Victoria Memorial situated in Kolkata.jpg, The Victoria Memorial of Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
is an important monument of India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
File:Robison, Mathew Stanford FULL MONUMENT.jpg, The grave memorial for a ten year old disabled boy; Matthew Stanford Robison. Salt Lake City Cemetery Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...
.
File:Golconda Playground memorial.jpg, Homemade memorial in Brooklyn, NYC featuring a photo cut-out of the deceased giving the middle-finger
File:Lincoln Memorial (May 2014) crop.jpg, Lincoln Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial is a U.S. national memorial built to honor the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. It is on the western end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., across from the Washington Monument, and is in ...
in Washington, D.C., United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
.
File:Chiang Kai-shek memorial amk.jpg, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
, Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
.
File:Anıtkabir, Ankara.jpg, Anıtkabir
Anıtkabir is the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the leader of the Turkish War of Independence and the founder and the first President of the Republic of Turkey. It is located in Ankara and was designed by architects Professor Emin On ...
in Ankara
Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...
, Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
.
File:Mausoleum of the Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah medium View.JPG, Mazar-e-Quaid
Mazar-e-Quaid ( ur, , lit=Mausoleum of the Leader) is the resting place of Muhammad Ali Jinnah situated in Karachi, Sindh. The marble monument comprises a surface area of . It is surrounded by formal gardens and designed in an Islamic modernist ...
in Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...
, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
.
See also
*
Lists of monuments and memorials
This is a list of articles that are lists of monuments and memorials.
Africa
Kenya
* List of sites and monuments in Kenya
Morocco
* List of sites and monuments in Morocco
Sierra Leone
* List of National Monuments of Sierra Leone
Swazila ...
*
Ghost bike
A ghost bike (also referred to as a ghostcycle or WhiteCycle) is a bicycle roadside memorial, placed where a cyclist has been killed or severely injured, usually by the driver of a motor vehicle.
Apart from being a memorial, it is usually inte ...
*
Historical marker
A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...
*
Memorial bench
A memorial bench, memorial seat or death bench is a piece of outdoor furniture which commemorates a dead person. Such benches are typically made of wood, but can also be made of metal, stone, or synthetic materials such as plastics. Typically mem ...
*
Memorialization
Memorialization generally refers to the process of preserving memories of people or events. It can be a form of address or petition, or a ceremony of remembrance or commemoration.
Memorialization as a human right
Memorialization is a universal nee ...
*
National monument
*
Public history
*
Roadside memorial
A roadside memorial is a marker that usually commemorates a site where a person died suddenly and unexpectedly, away from home. Unlike a grave site headstone, which marks where a body is laid, the memorial marks the last place on earth where a ...
*
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is a monument dedicated to the services of an unknown soldier and to the common memories of all soldiers killed in war. Such tombs can be found in many nations and are usually high-prof ...
*
War memorial
A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war.
Symbolism
Historical usage
It has ...
*
Culture of Remembrance
''Erinnerungskultur'' (from German), or Culture of Remembrance, is the interaction of an individual or a society with their past and history.
Definition
In the strictest sense, Remembrance Culture consists of all the behavioral configuration ...
References
External links
Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina
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