thanatology

　大学で「死」について学ぶクラスが増えています。

More college students study the meaning of death

Classes in which students examine death, and in the process consider the way they have lived until that point, are becoming more common at universities and junior colleges.

Known as thanatology, this study has received more attention since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, which brought the concept of death strongly to the forefront of many young people’s minds.

Changes in family structure and other societal shifts mean people today encounter death less often. Studying death academically can help students discover benchmarks for their lives.

以下省略

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0003614753

　“thanatology” /θæ̀nətɑ́lədʒi/ に注目します。「英辞郎 on the WEB」で検索してみたところ、「死亡学、サナトロジー」という訳があてられていました。また、Merriam-Websterでは“the description or study of the phenomena of death and of psychological mechanisms for coping with them”と定義されていました。
　「死亡学」というものを知らなかったので少しだけ調べてみました。個人の死と死生観を学び、死までの生き方を考える学問だそうです(Wikipedia)。東日本大震災以降に注目されている学問であります。(Blue Sky)