OMEGA, Vol. 64(2) 157-169, 2011-2012 THE EMERGENCE OF THANATOLOGY AND CURRENT PRACTICE IN DEATH EDUCATION* LUCIANA MASCARENHAS FONSECA INES TESTONI University of Padua, Italy ABSTRACT Thanatology is a recent field that contemplates death studies and employs an interdisciplinary approach to practice. This science emerged in a his- torical context marked by intense social, economic, and political changes that contributed to the concept of death being excluded from social life. This literature review aims to outline the history and evolution of thanatology in Western society, delineating the contextual circumstances that led to its origin and drawing special attention to current works on death education. In our post-modern society, the call for studies in the field of thanatology appears to be increasing. However, although there have been significant contributions and promising research is underway, there are still many questions to be answered. Known as the study of death, thanatology is an interdisciplinary approach that encompasses various areas of study. The aim of thanatology is to construct a scientific comprehension of death, its rites, and its meanings. An alternative definition of thanatology, “the study of life with death left in,” was proposed by Kastenbaum (1993, p. 76). *This article was written as part of a Masters Dissertation in Death Studies and the End of Life from the University of Padua, Italy, 2009-2010. 157 Ó 2011, Baywood Publishing Co., Inc. doi: 10.2190/OM.64.2.d http://baywood.com