Unlike the studies above, which focus on people’s use and perception, we take a bird’s-eye view of the cemetery’s role in contemporary cities and explore Oslo’s and Copenhagen’s municipal perspectives on cemeteries and cemetery futures. ( 2018), inspired by Henri Lefebvre’s ideas, noted that “one can see the varied use of this cemetery as ‘the right to the city’, a struggle to ‘de-alienate’ urban space through the appropriation of space” (p. In a study of two Norwegian cemeteries, Skår et al. Some urban cemeteries in Oslo are found to accommodate recreational activities, including walking, jogging, dog walking and picnicking (Evensen et al., 2017). Previous research from Scandinavia has shown that the primary function of cemeteries – as a burial ground and place for memorialisation – often interplays with other functions (Skår et al., 2018 Wingren, 2013). But what do we know about current cemetery trends in Scandinavia, the region where this study is situated? Sloane ( 2018) explored challenges posed for the future of cemeteries by significant cultural shifts in the USA, such as secularisation, the critique of the death industry’s professionalisation, the rise of environmentalism, and the growing popularity of public and digital mourning. Davies and Bennett ( 2016) examined cemetery trends in Australia and argued that, due to lower visitation rates and changing burial practices, the social relevance of cemeteries was being challenged. The use, experience and development of cemeteries strongly depend on contextual aspects (Nordh et al., 2021 Quinton et al., 2020 Rae, 2021), such as the physical settings, culture and national institutions as well as global processes (Walter, 2020). Such an analysis of cemeteries’ transformation pathways will allow us to capture the essential characteristics of cemeteries as public spaces, which is difficult just by looking at their current status. Drawing on these findings, we focused on exploring the future of cemeteries in two Scandinavian cities, Oslo and Copenhagen. Swensen and Brendalsmo ( 2018) discovered that Norwegian cemeteries have been in an in-between area of the private–public realms for centuries. Cemeteries are especially interesting places to study over time, as they point towards eternity. Public spaces are neither permanently fixed nor defined and thus need to be examined from temporal perspectives. We aim to contribute to theories on public space and deepen the understanding of the cemetery’s role in contemporary Scandinavian cities and planning agendas. To push such debates forward, we examined how Scandinavian cemeteries are described by practitioners involved in cemetery development and what future is imagined for cemeteries, as portrayed in strategic policy documents for Oslo’s and Copenhagen’s cemetery development.
We see a need for a discussion about Scandinavian urban cemeteries as one special type of public space which helps to unpack the “nature of public space, its meanings and functions, and especially its transformations in the contemporary cities” (Staeheli & Mitchell, 2008, p. Furthermore, they are well-maintained park-like environments (Skår et al., 2018) aimed at covering all citizens’ burial and cremation needs (Cabinet of Denmark, 2020 Norwegian government, 1996). In Copenhagen (Denmark) and Oslo (Norway), the two Scandinavian cities in this study, cemeteries fulfil two basic principles of public space (Zukin, 1995): open access and public stewardship. However, little has been done to explore cemeteries as public spaces. In this growing body of literature, researchers have examined different types of space, such as squares (Whyte, 1980), parks (Neal et al., 2015), and markets (Watson, 2009).
The concept of public space is of central interest to urban studies (Mitchell, 2017). Inclusive, accessible and green public spaces are a key focus of the UN-Habitat’s New Urban Agenda, which emphasises these spaces’ critical role “in the formation and regeneration of healthy, prosperous and equitable cities” (Mehaffy et al., 2019, p.
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