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Voodoo, spelled variously as Vodou, Voudou, Vodun, Voudon, or French Vaudou, is a traditional Afro-Haitian religion. It originated with slaves brought from West Africa to Haiti, then known as Saint-Domingue, in the 18th century.
Some anthropologists estimate that voodoo's roots in Benin—formerly Dahomey—in West Africa may go back 6,000 years. The word Vodou means "spirit" or "deity" in the Fon language of the ancient African kingdom of Dahomey.
Many of these former slaves chose to settle in New Orleans, which subsequently became the center for Louisiana Voodoo.
The Haitian Revolution, effectively a slave rebellion that took place on August 21, 1791, was a successful insurrection by self-liberated slaves against French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue. Many fleeing the bloodshed arrived in Louisiana, bringing with them Haitian Vodou. But French influence in the region still prevailed.
Arguably the best-known practitioner of Louisiana Voodoo was Marie Laveau, a herbalist and midwife who was renowned in New Orleans. Her alleged tomb is a major visitor attraction. Another of the most prominent practitioners of the mid-19th century was Jean Montanée or "Dr. John," a free man of color who sold cures and other material to various clients. This painting of Laveau can be admired in the Louisiana State Museum in New Orleans.
Haitian Vodou represents a syncretism—an amalgamation of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought—of the West African Vodun religion and Roman Catholicism by the descendants of the Dahomean, Kongo, Yoruba, and other ethnic groups.
Besides the Fon in Benin, Vodou was practiced by the Ewe people, the Kabye people, and the Mina people of southern and central Togo. The Yoruba of southwestern Nigeria also embraced Vodou.
This illustration depicts a Louisiana planter showing a voodoo charm to apprehensive plantation workers in 1886. Louisiana Voodoo included white participants in its ranks.
Vodou is a worldview encompassing philosophy, medicine, justice, and religion. It teaches a belief in a supreme being called Bondyé, also known as Bonié or the Grand Mèt, and the creator god in Haitian Vodou.
In 1682, French explorer, settler, and trader René-Robert Cavalier descended the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, to claim the entire valley for Louis XIV of France and naming it Louisiana.
Baron Samedi is noted for disruption, obscenity, debauchery, and having a particular fondness for tobacco and rum. As well as being the master of the dead, Baron Samedi is also a giver of life, which is why Haitian Vodou rituals include praying at a cross—symbolic of this Haitian overlord—as he can cure mortals of any disease or wound... if he so wishes!
In Haitian Vodou, the Ioa (also spelled Iwa) serve as intermediaries between humanity and Bondyé. Pictured is one of the unique religious symbols (known as vèvè) used to identify each Ioa.
Spirit possession constitutes an important element of Haitian Vodou. The image of worshippers seemingly possessed while in a trance has played into the darker, more ambiguous side of the religion. Here, a woman takes part in a dance dedicated to the serpent god, Damballa.
Haitian rituals and ceremonies take place in a dedicated vodou temple, or hounfour. Pictured is a houngans (male vodou priest) standing outside his temple.
Although the use of the term "voodoo doll" implies that the practice is linked to Haitian Vodou or Louisiana Voodoo, it is not prominent in either. Instead, the doll is one of the more sensational aspects of an often misunderstood religion.
Amulets known as gris-gris, created to either harm or help, are ubiquitous in voodoo culture. Pictured is a black wooden cross spiked with nails and special charms. Despite its sometimes sinister appearance, gris-gris generally indicates a spell meant to influence events, rather than do bodily harm.
This 1955 photograph shows gris- gris on display at the historical Pharmacy Museum on Charles Street in New Orleans.
Louisiana Voodoo, meanwhile, has declined, though it's still possible to come across altars like this where offerings are made to the Ioa.
A vodou gathering in Haiti, where a goat is prepared as a sacrifice to the Ioa. Nourishing the Ioa is of great significance, and rites like these are often termed mangers-loa ("feeding the loa"). Haitian Vodou is still practiced widely today: this painting dates back to 1992.
Voodoo belief in zombies and animal sacrifice is real. For example, some people in Port au Prince, the capital of Haiti, believe that bodies are unearthed from the city cemetery and turned into the undead.
Remember Baron Samedi? The head of the Guédé family was famously played by actor Geoffrey Holder in the 1973 James Bond movie 'Live and Let Die.'
These are the lyrics for 'Voodoo Child,' handwritten by Jimi Hendrix and on display inside the Hendrix Flat, a London apartment where the legendary US singer-songwriter lived in 1968-69 and which was restored as a museum by the Handel House Trust, in London.
'Angel Heart' (1987) set in New Orleans finds Harry Angel (Mickey Rourke) embroiled in devil worship and the occult, practices certainly not representative of Louisiana Voodoo, or its Haitian counterpart.
This colorized engraving dates back to the end of the 19th century and shows a voodoo dance taking place in a New Orleans house. Note the Caucasians in the audience, testimony to Louisiana Voodoo's interracial appeal.
Hollywood long ago caught cinemagoers' imagination with movies themed around voodoo and the cult of the zombie.
Visitors to New Orleans can glean a better idea of voodoo religion by browsing the fascinating collection housed in the unique New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum.
In 1994, the Rolling Stones released 'Voodoo Lounge,' and subsequently toured the world to promote the album. To get into the spirit of the occasion, Mick Jagger dressed up to appear like Baron Samedi on stage.
The aforementioned Jean Montanée, or "Dr. John," was embodied by musician Malcolm John Rebennack Jr., who went by the stage name Dr. John and whose debut album was called 'Gris-Gris.'
Sources: (Live Science) (BlackPast) (Britannica)
The Guédé (also Ghede or Gede) family of loa are associated with the realm of the dead. The head of the family is Baron Samedi, or "Baron Saturday." He is usually depicted wearing a top hat and black tail coat.
Haitian Vodou followers bathe in a sacred pool during an Easter voodoo ceremony in Souvenance, a suburb of Gonaives in Haiti in April 2018.
Voodoo conjures up all sorts of bizarre and unsavory images of strange rituals celebrating the recently deceased and the undead. In fact, voodoo is a worldview encompassing philosophy, medicine, and justice, and its reputation as a sinister religion is largely undeserved. But it remains an unorthodox and misunderstood faith, and for the most part secretive.
Click through and find out more about the origins of voodoo.
Voodoo: sinister religion, or misunderstood faith?
The truth behind one of the world's most unorthodox faiths
LIFESTYLE History
Voodoo conjures up all sorts of bizarre and unsavory images of strange rituals celebrating the recently deceased and the undead. In fact, voodoo is a worldview encompassing philosophy, medicine, and justice, and its reputation as a sinister religion is largely undeserved. But it remains an unorthodox and misunderstood faith, and for the most part secretive.
Click through and find out more about the origins of voodoo.