Funeral reading
Mourner's Kaddish
Traditional, Aramaic
“Mourner's Kaddish” by Traditional, Aramaic is a prayer read at a funeral or memorial service. It takes about a minute and a half read aloud, usually by everyone together. It is in the public domain, but we do not set the words here — the note below says what to bring instead, and why.
Why the words are not printed here
The text is public domain and printed in every siddur, but we do not set it here: it is recited in Aramaic by the mourners, traditionally requires a minyan of ten, and the transliteration a family uses is their community’s. Ask the funeral home for transliteration cards, and ask a rabbi or cantor to lead it.
What it is about
Led by the mourners, needs a minyan. Not yours to lead — arrange it.
Read at a funeral or memorial service. Themes: kaddish · praise not grief · the mourners · minyan.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “Mourner's Kaddish” take to read aloud?
“Mourner's Kaddish” takes about a minute and a half read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “Mourner's Kaddish”?
Everyone together, rather than one reader. “Mourner's Kaddish” runs about a minute and a half and needs the words in front of the room — in an order of service, on a screen, or led line by line by the officiant.
Can “Mourner's Kaddish” be printed in a ceremony script?
Not by us. The text is public domain and printed in every siddur, but we do not set it here: it is recited in Aramaic by the mourners, traditionally requires a minyan of ten, and the transliteration a family uses is their community’s. Ask the funeral home for transliteration cards, and ask a rabbi or cantor to lead it.
Can a friend or family member lead “Mourner's Kaddish”?
Traditionally requires a minyan of ten adults, and is recited by the mourners rather than by whoever is leading. This is not a lay officiant’s to lead. Confirm with the family’s rabbi, cantor, or the Jewish funeral home.
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the life, the remembrances, the committal — and knowing what comes next. Answer some questions about them and get the whole service, written out, with this reading in its place.
Other readings that suit the same service
- El Malei Rachamima minute and a halfTraditional memorial prayer
- The Lord's Prayer40 secondsMatthew 6, King James Bible
- Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace50 secondsAttributed to St Francis of Assisi
- Words of Committal (Book of Common Prayer, 1662) — short form20 secondsBook of Common Prayer
- In the Midst of Life (Book of Common Prayer, 1662)30 secondsBook of Common Prayer
- Eternal Rest (Requiem aeternam)10 secondsTraditional Catholic prayer