A pall-bearer is one of several funeral participants who helps carry the casket of a deceased person from a religious or memorial service or viewing either directly to a cemetery or mausoleum, or to and from the hearse which carries the coffin.
A pall is the heavy cloth that is draped over a coffin. The term "pall-bearer" is used to signify someone who bears the coffin which the pall covers.
Some traditions distinguish between these two roles, with pallbearer being a ceremonial position, just carrying a tip of the pall or a cord attached to it, while casket bearers do the actual heavy lifting and carrying. There may otherwise be only pallbearers in the literal sense while the casket is on an animal, or on an animal-drawn or motorized vehicle.
In western cultures, the pallbearers are usually family members, close friends, or colleagues of the deceased. In some Asian cultures, pallbearers are not to be members of the family but are outsiders, given a tip to perform the services of pall-bearer.