Haitian Vodou

Vodou refers to the religious traditions of Haiti—a blend of Fon, Yoruba and Kongo traditions of Africa with French Catholicism. While Haitians do use the term Vodou, they more often speak of “serving the spirits,” the lwa, who are honored on altars and in sanctuaries and who are encountered with immediacy in the experience of possession. The term derives from the Fon name for the divinities—vodun.