All entries
2,161 entries so far, best known first. 3,219 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
OccasionWeddings and betrothalFestivalsBirth and childhoodDeath and remembranceHarvest, farming and weatherNew yearInitiation and coming of ageIllness and misfortuneJourneys and voyagesEveryday use
PeopleYoruba (remove)
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 3 moreCaribbean folklore
The blended tales and spirits of the Caribbean islandsTradition 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 2 moreLwa
Spirits in Haitian Vodou that mediate between people and the creator god.Being 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚚馃嚭 Cuba and 4 moreSanter铆aRegla de Ocha
An Afro-Cuban religion blending Yoruba spirits with Catholic saintsTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 2 moreHaitian VodouVodou
An Afro-Haitian religion blending West African traditions with Catholicism and FreemasonryTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚙馃嚡 Benin and 2 morePapa Legba
A loa who stands at the crossroads and opens the gate between people and spiritsBeing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚙馃嚪 Brazil and 2 moreCandombl茅
An Afro-Brazilian religion blending West African spirits with Catholic imageryTradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Healing Living
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 5 moreSoucouyant
A shape-shifting vampire spirit of Caribbean folklore that sheds its skin to fly as a fireballBeing 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 4 moreTrinidad Orisha
A syncretic Afro-Caribbean faith blending Yoruba spirit work with Christian and other traditions in Trinidad.Tradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Healing Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa
A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing 路 Power and authority 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Haitian Vodou: Sam Fentress, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Egungun: 脤峁ａ汗虁峁Assembly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Candombl茅: Andr茅 Koehne, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lwa: Hector Hyppolite, Public domain, source
- Santer铆a: Jorge Royan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Caribbean folklore: Biblioteca Juvenil Mayaguez ( talk 路 contribs ), CC BY-SA 4.0, source