Vodun and Voodoo

Vodun as a world view and religion has been practiced in parts of Western Africa for centuries. During the long period of the transatlantic slave trade, however, the religious practices and beliefs of Vodun were brought to the ‘New World’ by enslaved persons from Western Africa and became what is known today as Voodoo or Vodou.

After the Americas had been discovered in the late 15th century, the colonizing forces and settlers began to establish plantations. Certain land areas were well-suited for the cultivation of crops, and as these plantations grew in size and quantity, the need for labor did too. “The Plantation System,” National Geographic Encyclopedia, accessed September 8, 2021, https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/plantation-system/. In a very abbreviated form, of course, this is what caused the large-scale, commercial transatlantic slave trade.

Human beings from many different parts of the African continent were purchased or kidnapped and sent to the Americas to provide a work force. This meant that within the setting of a single plantation, the enslaved working together had grown up with different customs and languages, and identified with different traditions, religions, and cultures. Sidney Mintz and Michel-Rolph Trouillot, “The Social History of Haitian Vodou,” in The Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou, edited by Donald Cosentino (Los Angeles: UCLA Museum of Cultural History, 1995), 125. Furthermore, the enslaved had been forced to leave behind everything they had once known and owned. All the objects and materials that were the base of their traditions could not be brought along. But what they did bring were their beliefs, worldviews, and mindsets. On the basis of all these diverse systems of beliefs and this ‘forced’ mix of religions and the impact of Christianity, the enslaved created their own, new religions. There are many religions that developed in this way, such as Santería in Cuba, myalism in Jamaica, candomblé in Brazil - and Voodoo of course, mainly in Saint-Domingue, which is now Haiti. “Religion and Slavery,” Slavery and Remembrance, accessed September 9, 2021, http://slaveryandremembrance.org/articles/article/?id=A0059&cf_chl_captcha_tk=pmd_YQBM_6RDh2iNwI8Yg8HH4nytQwmuKx45TzJDrtM2to4-1631184958-0-gqNtZGzNAtCjcnBszQOR.

Later, Voodoo spread to other areas where local people adapted it to their own needs, such as Louisiana Voodoo. Vodun from Western Africa certainly had a big impact on the development of Voodoo - most obviously the name Voodoo. Today, Voodoo and Vodun are, however, no longer closely connected. “Ethnic Groups: Fon,” Africa Direct, accessed August 18, 2021, https://www.africadirect.com/african-peoples-art-fon.