Headstone inscriptions: what to write, with examples

What goes on a headstone

• The name, as people knew them. A nickname can go in quotes, a maiden name in the middle.
• The dates: full dates of birth and death, or just the years.
• Who they were to you: Beloved wife and mother, Loving husband, father and grandpa, Our son.
• An epitaph, a short line or verse.
• A symbol, if you wish: a cross, a Star of David, praying hands, a rose, a fishing boat, a military emblem.
• A photo, engraved in the stone or on a small porcelain plaque.

For a couple, a companion headstone has both names, and the date of the living spouse is left to be added later.

Short epitaphs

Engraving is usually priced per letter, so the shortest lines are also the most common.

For a mother, father, husband, wife or child

For a child, many families choose only the name and one line. If you cannot decide, do not hurry. An epitaph can be added later.

Verses and classic lines

Jewish headstones often end with five Hebrew letters that stand for "May his soul be bound up in the bond of life." Muslim gravestones usually carry the name, the dates and a verse of the Qur'an or the call to recite the Fatiha. An epitaph does not have to be religious. A line from a favorite song, a saying they used, or their own words can mean more.

Before you order

• Check the cemetery rules on size, material and type. Some sections allow only flat markers.
• Check every date and spelling against documents, not memory. A mistake in stone is hard to fix.
• Send the text in writing and ask for a drawing, the proof, before engraving.
• Ask about the price of the stone, the engraving per letter, a photo and the installation. A flat marker can cost a few hundred dollars, an upright headstone usually from about a thousand to several thousand.
• For a veteran, the VA provides a headstone or marker free of charge, in a national or private cemetery.
• Ask the family. The stone belongs to everyone, and everyone will read it for years.

The headstone is usually placed several months to a year after the burial, once the ground has settled.

A QR code on the headstone

A stone holds a name, two dates and one sentence. That is why more families add a small plaque with a QR code. Whoever scans it with a phone opens a page with the whole story: photos, memories, recipes, messages from the family, and a place to light a candle. Grandchildren and great-grandchildren can stand at the grave and meet someone they never knew.

With a Voljeni page of memories you can order a QR plaque for the headstone that leads to that page. The page can keep growing long after the stone is set, so the code always shows everything the family has gathered. See an example of a page of memories.