The traditional Malagasy ceremony that reunites families with the remains of ancestors is called Famadihana.
Famadihana, often translated as the “turning of the bones,” is a Malagasy funerary tradition rather than a coming-of-age ceremony. Families may remove ancestral remains from a family tomb, wrap them in fresh cloth, celebrate with music and dancing, and return them to the tomb after a period of honoring and remembrance.
The ceremony reflects important Malagasy ideas about kinship, ancestors, and the continuing relationship between the living and the dead. It is especially associated with highland communities, although practices vary widely across Madagascar.
Famadihana is sometimes mistakenly grouped with coming-of-age customs simply because it is a major community rite. Its central purpose is ancestral renewal and family solidarity, not the formal recognition of a young person becoming an adult. This distinction separates it from ceremonies such as Kinaaldá or Jando.