An obituary is an attempt to give an account of the texture and significance of the life of someone who has recently died. It is to be distinguished from a death notice (also known as a funeral notice), which is a paid advertisement written by family members and placed in the newspaper either by the family or the funeral home.
Many news organizations have on file pre-written obituaries for notable individuals who are still alive; allowing detailed, authoritative—and lengthy—obituaries to appear very quickly after these people die.
