These latter are the original zombies, occurring in the West African Vodun religion and its American offshoots Haitian Vodou and New Orleans Voodoo.

It is distinct from the various traditional animistic religions in the interiors of these same countries and is the main origin for religions of similar name found among the African Diaspora in the New World such as Haitian Vodou, the Vudu of Puerto Rico, Candomblé Jejé in Brazil ( which uses the term Vodum ), Louisiana Voodoo and Santería in Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

Milo Rigaud ( City Lights, NY ; c1969 ; " Secrets of Voodoo ") speaks of Simbi as the Vodou Mercury, the messenger of Legba ( the Sun ).

In the Vodou ( Voodoo ) religion, Sousson-Pannan is a hideously ugly loa, covered in sores, who is known for drinking copious amounts of both liquor and blood.

Voodoo dolls are not a feature of Haitian Vodou religion, but have been portrayed as such in popular culture, and stereotypical voodoo dolls are sold to tourists in Haiti.

Haitian Vodou ( also known as Voodoo in the United States ) is a syncretic mixture of Roman Catholic rituals introduced during the French colonial period, African beliefs, with roots in the Yoruba, Kongo and Dahomey mythology, and folkloric influence from the indigenous Taino Amerindians that once populated the island.

* West African Vodun and Haitian Vodou ( Voodoo ), mainly among West African and black Caribbean immigrants in the United Kingdom and France.

: See also: Afro-American religion, for a list of related religions, which are sometimes called or mistaken for Vodou / Voodoo.

Influences include: Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, Theosophy, Spiritualism, and the many Afro-Diasporic faiths like Haitian Vodou, Santería and Espiritu religion.

) In addition, many of the 41. 5 % of the population that refer to themselves as Christian practice a syncretized religion, not dissimilar from Haitian Vodou or Brazilian Cadomblé ; indeed, many of them are descended from freed Brazilian slaves who settled on the coast near Ouidah.

In the Vodou religion, Agassou ( also Ati-A-Sou ) is a loa, or deity, who guards the old traditions of Dahomey.

In Vodou, an animist, or nature-based religion, the Boum ' ba Maza are a group of powerful spirits or deities known as loa.

In the religion of Vodou, Captain Debas ( also Debard, Deebat ) is a loa of the Guédé ( or Ghede ) nation of gods, and is sent by the Barons ( Samedi, La Croix, Cimetière ) as a soul collector, guiding souls into the underworld.

Sobo is a spirit or Lwa in the Haitian Vodou religion.

Animal sacrifice is also found in the Cuban religion called Palo, which derives from African religion of the Congo, and in Haitian Vodou, a religion that derives from the Vodou religion of Dahomey.

The folk religion of Vodou commingled Catholic liturgy and ritual with the beliefs and practices of the Vodun religion of Guinea, Congo and Dahomey.

Candomblé can also be distinguished from Umbanda, a religion founded in the early 20th century by combining African elements with Kardecism ; and from similar African-derived religions such as Quimbanda, Haitian Vodou, Cuban Santería, and Obeah, which developed independently of Candomblé and are virtually unknown in Brazil.

* West African Vodun-West African religion, an antecedent of Haitian Vodou

But in 1989, BOUKMAN EKSPERYANS introduced a revolution in Haitian music that helped to revitalize interest in Haiti's traditional culture and religion ( Vodou ).

BOUKMAN was also a priest of the new Afro-Haitian religion called Vodou that helped to unify the Haitian slave to carry out the revolution.

A Vodou Houngan ( priest ), he united many of the different maroon bands.

A Vodou Houngan ( priest ), he united many of the different maroon bands.

* Gu ( god ), a god in Haitian Vodou and Yoruba ( Africa ) mythology

Gwydion brought in the name " Faery " ( later changed to " Feri " to avoid confusion with other groups using similar terms ), emphasized Celtic origins almost exclusively in his own practice, with a smattering of Vodou ; other teachers have emphasized the Hawaiian, the African-diaspora, or even traced the lineage back to the Attacotti, who were small, dark, possibly southern European settlers in Scotland thousands of years ago.

In the film, he is depicted as a practitioner of Vodou ( voodoo ), but in reality Gaetjens, like most Haitians, grew up as a Catholic.

* Mambo ( Vodou ), a Haitian Vodou priestess

However, in countries with large Vodou populations ( such as Benin, Togo or Haiti ), some Christian influence may have given homosexuality a social stigma ( see homosexuality and Christianity ), at least on some levels of society.

During Haitian Vodou ceremonies, the houngans ( priests ), mambos ( priestesses ), and hounsis ( initiates ) dance around a poteau-mitan until one of them becomes possessed by one of the Loa.

His regime is regarded as one of the most repressive and corrupt of modern times, combining violence against political opponents with exploitation of Vodou to instill fear in the majority of the population.

" Zombi " is also another name of the Vodou snake lwa Damballah Wedo, of Niger – Congo origin ; it is akin to the Kikongo word nzambi, which means " god ".

In Haitian Vodou and related African diasporic traditions, one way that those who participate or practice can have a spiritual experience is by being possessed by the lwa ( or Loa ).

According to Vodou believers, when this occurs, it is a sign that a possession is about to take place.

In the Vodou of Benin and Haiti Ayida-Weddo ( a. k. a. Aida-Wedo, Aido Quedo, " Rainbow-Serpent ") is a spirit of fertility, rainbows and snakes, and a companion or wife to Dan, the father of all spirits.

In the Vodou tradition, Papa Legba is the lwa of crossroads.

For example, Papa Legba is considered by Haitian Vodou practitioners to be closest to Saint Peter, although in Brazilian Quimbanda it is not uncommon to see Exu closely associated with demonic entities such as Lucifer, clad in Mephistophelean attire and bearing a trident.

Antigòn is noteworthy in its attempts to insert the lived religious experience of many Haitians into the content of the play through the introduction of several Loa from the pantheon of Haitian Vodou as voiced entities throughout the performance.

In Vodou and especially in Haiti, Adjinakou is an elephant loa.

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Agwé, also spelt Agoueh, is a loa who rules over the sea, fish, and aquatic plants, as well as the patron loa of fishermen and sailors.

In Vodou, especially in Benin and Haiti, Aida-Weddo ( also Ayida-Wedo, Aido Quedo, Aido Hwedo ) is a loa of fertility, rainbows and snakes, and a companion or wife to Damballah-Wedo.

In Vodou, Damballah is one of the most important of all the loa ( also spelled lwa ).

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Ayizan ( also Grande Ai-Zan, Aizan, or Ayizan Velekete ) is the loa of the marketplace and commerce.

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Azaka-Tonnerre ( also Azaca or Azacca ) is in the same " family " of Loa as Azaka Medeh-the Loa of agriculture.

In Vodou, and particularly in Haiti, Bedessy is a minor loa who holds the domain of the sky.

In Vodou, Baron Cimitière ( Baron Cemetery ) is one of the Guédé, a spirit of the dead, along with Baron Samedi and Baron La Croix.

In Vodou, Baron La Croix ( French for " Baron of the Cross "), or Bawon Lakwa in Kreyol, is one of the Guédé, a Loa of the dead and sexuality, along with Baron Samedi and Baron Cimetière.

In Haitian Vodou, Papa Legba is the intermediary between the loa and humanity.