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LOA Booth
, also called loa, are spirits in the African diasporic religion of Haitian Vodou and Dominican Vudú. They have also been incorporated into some revivalist forms of Louisiana Voodoo. Many of the lwa derive their identities in part from deities venerated in the traditional religions of West Africa, especially those of the Fon and Yoruba. In Haitian Vodou, the lwa serve as intermediaries between humanity and Bondye, a transcendent creator divinity. Vodouists believe that over a thousand lwa exist, the names of at least 232 of which are recorded. Each lwa has its own personality and is associated with specific colors and objects. Many of them are equated with specific Roman Catholic saints on the basis of similar characteristics or shared symbols. The lwa are divided into different groups, known as ''nanchon'' (nations), the most notable of which are the Petwo and the Rada. According to Vodou belief, the lwa communicate with humans through dreams and divination, and in turn ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Damballah La Flambeau
Damballa, also spelled Damballah, Dambala, Dambalah, among other variations (), is one of the most important of all loa, spirits in West African Vodun, Haitian Voodoo and other African diaspora religions, African diaspora religious traditions such as Obeah. He is traditionally portrayed as a great white or black serpent, but may also be depicted as a rainbow. Damballa originated in the city of Ouidah, Wedo (Whydah or Ouidah) in modern-day Benin. Mythology Damballa is said to be the sky father and the :wikt:primordial, primordial creator of all life, or the first thing created by the Bondye. In those Vodou societies that view Damballa as the primordial creator, he created the cosmos by using his 7000 coils to form the stars and the planets in the heavens and to shape the hills and valleys on Earth. In others, being the first thing created by God, creation was undertaken through him. By shedding the serpent skin, Damballa created all the waters on the Earth. As a serpent, he mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oricha
Orishas (singular: orisha) are divine spirits that play a key role in the Yoruba religion of West Africa and several religions of the African diaspora that derive from it, such as Haitian Vaudou, Cuban Santería and Brazilian Candomblé. The preferred spelling varies depending on the language in question: òrìṣà is the spelling in the Yoruba language, orixá in Portuguese, and orisha, oricha, orichá or orixá in Spanish-speaking countries. In the Lucumí tradition, which evolved in Cuba, the orishas are synchronized with Catholic saints, forming a syncretic system of worship where African deities are hidden behind Christian iconography. This allowed enslaved Africans to preserve their traditions under colonial religious persecution. According to the teachings of these religions, the orishas are spirits sent by the supreme creator, Olodumare, to assist humanity and to teach them to be successful on ''Ayé'' (Earth). Rooted in the native religion of the Yoruba people, most ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angel
An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in various traditions like the Abrahamic religions. Other roles include protectors and guides for humans, such as guardian angels and servants of God. In Western belief-systems the term is often used to distinguish benevolent from malevolent intermediary beings. Emphasizing the distance between God and mankind, revelation-based belief-systems require angels to bridge the gap between the earthly and the transcendent realm. Angels play a lesser role in monistic belief-systems, since the gap is non-existent. However, angelic beings might be conceived as aid to achieve a proper relationship with the divine. Abrahamic religions describe angelic hierarchies, which vary by religion and sect. Some angels have specific names (such as Gabriel or Mich ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bondyé
''Bondye'', also known Gran Maître (),Torres, Rafael Agustí. "Loas y Vèvès del Vudú", p. 19 (in Spanish) is the supreme creator god in the African diaspora religions, African diasporic religion of Haitian Vodou. Vodouists believe Bondye was responsible for creating the universe and everything in it, and that he maintains the universal order. They nevertheless deem him to be Transcendence (religion), transcendent and thus inaccessible to humans, who must instead interact with spirits called lwa, ''lwas''. Vodou developed among Afro-Haitian communities amid the Atlantic slave trade of the 16th to 19th centuries. It arose through the blending of the traditional religions brought to the island of Hispaniola by enslaved West Africans, many of them Igbo people, Igbo, Yoruba people, Yoruba or Fon people, Fon, and the Roman Catholic teachings of the French colonial empire, French colonialists who controlled the island. Bondye took his name from the French language term ''Bon Dieu'' ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert
Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert (born 1953) is a Puerto Rican academic who specializes in research of the Caribbean. She holds the Sarah Tod Fitz Randolph Distinguished Professor Chair at Vassar College. Early life and education Lizabeth Paravisini was born in 1953 in Puerto Rico to Virgenmina (née Rivera) and Domingo Paravisini. She grew up in Puerto Rico and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras in 1973 in comparative literature. Continuing her education, she moved to New York City and completed a Master of Arts degree in 1976 at New York University. Paravisini furthered her post-graduate education at New York University, earning a Master of Philosophy in 1980 and a Ph.D. in 1982. She married Gordon Gebert in 1988, a former child actor, who is a professor of architecture at City College of New York. They have one son, and she is stepmother to Gebert's two daughters from his first marriage. Career In 1981, Paravisini-Gebert began her ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Margarite Fernández Olmos
Margarite is a calcium rich member of the mica group of the phyllosilicates with formula: Ca Al2(Al2 Si2) O10(O H)2. It forms white to pinkish or yellowish gray masses or thin laminae. It crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system. It typically has a specific gravity of around 3 and a Mohs hardness of 4. It is translucent with perfect 010 cleavage and exhibits crystal twinning. It occurs commonly as an alteration product of corundum, andalusite and other aluminous minerals. It has been reported as forming alteration pseudomorphs of chiastolite along with muscovite and paragonite. The margarite in this occurrence forms preferentially along the dark graphite rich inclusions with the chiastolite crystals. Margarite is found in the emery deposits of Turkey and the Aegean islands, and with corundum at several localities in the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hispanic Studies
Hispanism (sometimes referred to as Hispanic studies or Spanish studies) is the study of the literature and culture of the Spanish-speaking world, principally that of Spain and Hispanic America. It may also entail studying Spanish language and cultural history in the United States and in other presently or formerly Spanish-speaking countries in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, such as Equatorial Guinea and the former Spanish East Indies. A hispanist is a scholar specializing in Hispanicism. It was used in an article by Miguel de Unamuno in 1908 referring to 'el hispanista italiano Farinelli', and was discussed at length for the U.S. by Hispanist Richard L. Kagan of Johns Hopkins University. The work carried out by Hispanists includes translations of literature and they may specialize in certain genres, authors or historical periods of the Iberian Peninsula and Hispanic America, etc. Origins During the 16th century, Spain was a motor of innovation in Europe, given its links to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leslie Desmangles
Leslie G Desmangles is an author and college professor focusing his research on Haiti and religion. Leslie G. Desmangles was born in Port-au-Prince (Haiti) on September 28, 1941. Professor Desmangles graduated from Eastern University (United States), Eastern University in 1964 with a B.A. in Music, from Palmer Seminary in Philadelphia with an M. Div. in Theology, and from Temple University in 1975 with a Ph.D. in Anthropology of religion, Anthropology of Religion, specializing in Caribbean and African Studies. He has been a professor at Trinity College, Hartford, Trinity College since 1978 and is currently the Charles A. Dana Research Professor of Religion and International Studies. Leslie G. Desmangles has received awards from the Connecticut General Assembly and Governor John G. Rowland for commitment and service to the state of Connecticut, the Teacher of the Year award from the Haitian American Alliance and was honored by U.S. Ambassador William Swing in recognition for contribu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Religious Studies
Religious studies, also known as religiology or the study of religion, is the study of religion from a historical or scientific perspective. There is no consensus on what qualifies as ''religion'' and definition of religion, its definition is highly contested. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing empirical, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives. While theology attempts to understand the Transcendence (religion), transcendent or supernatural according to traditional religious accounts, religious studies takes a more scientific and objective approach, independent of any particular religious viewpoint. Religious studies thus draws upon multiple academic disciplines and methodologies including Anthropology of religion, anthropology, Sociology of religion, sociology, Psychology of religion, psychology, Philosophy of religion, philosophy, and history of religion. Religious studies originated in Modern Europe, 19th-century Europe, when B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karen McCarthy Brown
Karen McCarthy Brown (August 12, 1942 – March 4, 2015) was an anthropologist specializing in the anthropology of religion. She is best known for her groundbreaking book '' Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn'', which made great strides in destigmatizing Haitian Vodou. Until her retirement in 2009 due to illness, McCarthy Brown was a professor of anthropology at Drew University. At Drew University, McCarthy Brown was the first woman in the Theological School to receive tenure and to achieve the rank of full professor. Education Karen McCarthy Brown graduated with honors from Smith College receiving her B.A. in 1964. She attended Union Theological Seminary and obtained her M.A. in 1966. She began her doctoral work in 1970, graduating from Temple University in 1976. Her dissertation was titled "The ''Veve'' of Haitian Vodou: A Structural Analysis of Visual Imagery." Field research Haitian Vodou McCarthy Brown had intermittently conducted research in Haiti since 1973. She also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melville Herskovits
Melville Jean Herskovits (September 10, 1895 – February 25, 1963) was an American anthropologist who helped to first establish African and African Diaspora studies in American academia. He is known for exploring the cultural continuity from African cultures as expressed in African-American communities. He worked with his wife Frances (Shapiro) Herskovits, also an anthropologist, in the field in South America, the Caribbean and Africa. They jointly wrote several books and monographs. Early life and education Born to Jewish immigrants in Bellefontaine, Ohio, in 1895, Herskovits attended local public schools. He served in the United States Army Medical Corps in France during World War I. Afterward, he went to college, earning a Bachelor of Philosophy at the University of Chicago in 1920. He went to New York City for graduate work, earning his M.A. and Ph.D. in anthropology from Columbia University under the guidance of the German-born American anthropologist Franz Boas. This su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean Price-Mars
Jean Price-Mars (15 October 1876 – 1 March 1969) was a Haitian medical doctor, teacher, politician, diplomat, writer, and ethnographer.Île-en-île Jean Price-Mars Price-Mars served as secretary of the Haitian legation in (1909) and as in (1915–1917), during the initial years of the occupation of Hai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
