In the small village of Lanjarón, in Andalusia, there is a rule as bizarre as it is official: it is forbidden to die. The singular ordinance dates back to 1999, when the then mayor José Rubio was looking for a solution to a problem that tormented the country for years: the cemetery was now saturated and there was no room for new burials.
The birth of the ordinance
In a press release, the mayor invited the citizens to “take care of their health” and not to die until the Municipality had found a suitable land to expand the funeral area. With an ironic but determined tone, he officially declared that “It is forbidden to die in Lanjarón“, Transforming an urban problem into a media case. According to Rubio, the population welcomed the news with humor and even with the”strong will to respect“The norm.
A town between thermal waters and tourism
Today Lanjarón has about 4,000 inhabitants and, apart from the singular ban, is a completely normal municipality. It is famous for its mineral sources, appreciated for the beneficial properties, and for the water bottling industry. In recent years, thanks also to social media and Tiktok, it has become an alternative destination for young Gen Zs, looking for authentic places far from overcrowded tourist destinations such as Barcelona and Majorca.
Has become famous for the ban
It is not clear if Lanjarón has ever definitively solved the problem of the cemetery, but after over 25 years the town still has a single burial area. In the meantime, the curious story of the ban on dying continues to circulate online, fueled by memes and viral posts that transform this story into a sort of cultural attraction.
Not only in Spain
And if you think that Lanjarón’s is a unique case, know that it is not so: it is not the only place with a similar law. For example, also in Longyearbyen, in the Norwegian devices, dying has been prohibited since 1950. In this case, the cause is climatic: the permafrost prevents the normal decomposition of the bodies, so much so that scientific studies have found still active champions of the 1917 flu virus. To avoid health risks, the local cemetery has been closed for decades. Thus, between irony and necessity, these cities show that sometimes even death can become a question of … urban politics.
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