Kenya’s professional mourners help grieving families and keep tradition alive

KISUMU, Kenya (AP) — The body of Tom Ochieng Mima is dressed in formal funeral finery, casket shaded from the hot western Kenyan sun as family and friends of the late 64-year-old settle into plastic chairs beneath white tents just off the roadside.

Wails pierce the air in a mix of lyrical song and unrestrained cries; a group of mourners wave leafy branches and beat them against the ground in a rhythm. A performance like this would not seem out of place at many funerals around the world — at first glance.

But this group of men and women never knew Mima, nor are they friends of his bereaved loved ones. They are professional mourners who are hired to openly and loudly express grief in line with local Luo cultural norms.

The role is an unlikely but relatively steady and well-paid job in Kenya’s poorer western regions, where traditional beliefs blend with widespread Christianity to create a unique patchwork of religious rites.

“It is a job anyone can do,” said Francis Oyoo, who has worked as a professional mourner for the last two years. “As long as you are in touch with your emotions and can show empathy.”

Oyoo typically receives one or two jobs as a professional mourner each month, with the pay — close to $80 — modest but enough to keep him afloat.

Professional mourners say they draw on their own experiences of grief to channel emotion at others’ funeral ceremonies.

“You think of someone you loved,” said Oyoo, who began the work after his uncle died in an accident and he felt compelled to help others with loss.

James Ajowi, another paid mourner at Mima’s funeral, is a veteran of more than 20 years in the profession. His daughter died a few years ago of a lung disease, and he said his own experience with grief deepened his commitment to the work. “It’s as if she was preparing me,” Ajowi said.

Those left behind take great comfort in the professional mourners who bolster attendance at funerals, which are already loud and busy community social affairs in western Kenya.

“They support us. They show us love,” said Lawrence Ouma Angira, who was raised by the deceased Mima, his uncle. “They help fill the emptiness and they comfort us,” he added — even if they never knew the subject of their grief. “They understand loss.”

Among the Luo people who live near Lake Victoria, mourning is not only about grief but also protection, according to Charles Owour Olunga, an anthropologist. Death is seen as a transition, with crying, singing, and movement by mourners helping drive away evil spirits.

Additional, unrelated mourners — typically women — appear at funerals in traditional cultures across Africa and Asia, Olunga said, though it is relatively unusual for men to also play a role. In addition to grieving, they may also help maintain order in large gatherings.

The professionalization of mourning is relatively recent, however, the anthropologist noted. “It is linked to urbanization and commercialization,” said Olunga. “We are moving away from the authentic, but still holding on to tradition. They add color to an existing process.”

Among scholars of religion, the particular blend of Christian beliefs with even older spiritual traditions in western Kenya is also notable.

The region has a significant number of so-called African-initiated churches, according to University of Nairobi research. They are a phenomenon linked to local pushback against strict Christianity’s prohibition of Indigenous rituals.

For the mourners, both those who knew Mima and the paid strangers, the nuances of combined Christian and traditional beliefs are less important than the emotional understanding and comfort that grief builds community.

“Death is painful,” said Oyoo. “But I also find strength in knowing that one day, I too will die — and people will gather for me.”

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Family and friends shovel dirt onto the coffin of Tom Ochieng Mima on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

A woman cries during a funeral on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourners grieve alongside family members and friends of the deceased during a funeral on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourner James Ajowi, who has worked in the role for more than 20 years and says the work has taken on deeper meaning since the death of his daughter, stands on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourners from the Luo community perform a rite of farewell on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Lawrence Ouma Angira stands during his uncle's funeral and says he finds comfort in having professional mourners present on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Clergy members and mourners gather during the burial of Tom Ochieng Mima on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

A member of a church choir sings during a funeralon the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

A family member grieves at the burial of a relative on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourner Francis Oyoo draws on personal loss to enter an emotional state during a funeral on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourner James Ajowi and a relative of the deceased stand in front of the coffin on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Mourners carry a coffin during a funeral procession led by a Christian congregation on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

Professional mourners grieve alongside family members and friends of the deceased during a funeral on the outskirts of Kisumu, Kenya, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Asa Wallin)

MALE, Maldives (AP) — Divers on Tuesday recovered the bodies of two of the four remaining Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll in the Maldives last week, a spokesperson for the Indian Ocean nation said, while describing “very challenging” conditions like poor visibility and strong currents.

The bodies were located on Monday as searches resumed after a suspension following the death of a local military diver during a perilous retrieval attempt. The bodies were at a depth of around 60 meters (200 feet), twice as deep as the legal depth for recreational diving in the island nation.

Five Italian divers went missing on Thursday. The body of the Italian diving instructor was recovered earlier outside the cave. The two remaining bodies are expected to be recovered on Wednesday.

The Maldives government has said Finnish divers doing the recovery work spotted the bodies in the cave's innermost area. Government spokesperson Ahmed Shaam said the four bodies were found “pretty much together."

The five Italians had been exploring a cave in Vaavu Atoll. Initial teams had dived to identify and mark the entrance system where they disappeared.

The cave has been dived in the past by local experts and foreign divers, presidential spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef told The Associated Press.

While the divers had a permit, authorities didn’t know from their proposal the exact location of the cave they were exploring, and at least two of the dead were not on the list of researchers that had been submitted, "so we didn’t know they were part of the expedition,” Shareef said.

“Actually a very challenging dive, you know," he added. “Number one, because of the depth, number two, because of actual terrain, because that specific channel has strong currents, strong downdrafts down toward, and the conditions down there, the visibility, for example, once you enter the cave would be almost zero.”

He said the weather was challenging, with an alert having been issued, and investigators must determine whether the divers took adequate precautions.

The Divers’ Alert Network Europe, which deployed the Finnish divers, described them as technical and cave divers with experience in search and recovery missions, including operations in “deep overhead environments, confined spaces and high-risk scenarios.”

The team is using closed-circuit rebreathers, a system that recycles exhaled breathing gas and removes carbon dioxide through a chemical scrubber, allowing for “significantly longer dives,” the organization said.

Shareef said the Maldives has a strong reputation and infrastructure for safe diving and called the incident unfortunate and tragic, but noted the difference between this kind of technical diving and the recreational kind that many visitors enjoy.

The cause of death of the Maldivian military diver was still under investigation, but colleagues have suggested he may have died from nitrogen narcosis or decompression at depth.

Ganguly reported from New Delhi.

In this handout photo release by Maldives President Media Division, a Finnish diver gets ready to attempt to recover the bodies of two of the four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll earlier this month, at Alimathaa Island, in Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (Maldives President Media Division via AP)

In this handout photo release by Maldives President Media Division, a Finnish diver, left, gets ready to attempt to recover the bodies of two of the four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll earlier this month, at Alimathaa Island, in Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (Maldives President Media Division via AP)

This image released by the Maldives President's Media Division, shows divers preparing to search for the four missing Italian divers near Alimathaa Island, Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, Saturday, May 15, 2026. (Maldives President's Media Division via AP)