Voodoo, Voudou, Vodun, and Hoodoo - an extremely brief history

After coming back from a wondrous, but regretfully brief, stay in the French Quarter of New Orleans, I have to say that I am quite smitten and inspired by the little bit of Voudou enlightenment that I received during my stay. Please note that the majority of the info I am sharing below comes from what I garnered on the Voodoo Tour I went on with Haunted History Tours. We were lucky enough to have the marvelous Kalila Smith as our tour guide. I’ll write more about the tours and the remarkable French Quarter itself in later posts, but today I’m going to focus on the basics of “What is Voodoo exactly?” to give you an idea of what I’m talking about when I reference the term.




Having a background with other Earth-based religions (Wicca and Paganism) I expected there to be a vast difference between what the pop culture representation of Voodoo is and what the religion really embraces. I assumed that, like Wicca and Paganism, it would be an early earth based religion that is tied to nature and several deities.

Interestingly, I learned that Voodoo *is* an early religion that ties deeply with nature through it's herbalistic arts, rituals, spells, and “root doctors”, but it is not a polytheistic religion as I had assumed. It is a monotheistic religion that worships one God, or one single divine creator, just as Christianity and Judaism do. With Voodoo you also get a Lwa which are a set of helpful entities or spirits akin the saints in Christian religions. This is often what makes people see it as a polytheistic religion, but in fact it is not.

New Orleans Voodoo is a mix of many things - Haitian Voodoo, Spanish traditional practices, and a dose of Catholic influence. Voodoo originated in West Africa where it is known as Vodon, Vodoun, Voudou, or Voodoo depending on the area. Vodún is the Gbe word word for spirit. According the wikipedia, Haitian Voodoo is based upon merging the beliefs and practices of West African Vodun with Arawakian religious beliefs and Roman Catholic Christianity, which was brought about as African slaves were brought to Haiti in the 16th century (for more see the wiki article here). A large group of free people of color migrated to New Orleans after the 1791 slave uprising in Santo Domingo. They brought their religion with them and were relegated to practicing it outside city limits (thanks to the Catholic Church). It was here, in Congo Park, now Louis Armstrong Park, that the New Orleans brand of Voodoo emerged – a blend of the Haitain tradition with a mixture Native American, Spanish and French traditions. My favorite place for New Orleans Voodoo necessities is Erzulies Authentic Voudou. It's a great little place run by a spirited lady who gave us a lot of information about the religion and it's origins in the city.




Now Hoodoo is something a bit different and I’m not as clear on that as I am the different types of Voodoo. As I understand it, hoodoo is more of a type of work and not a separate religion, it's a rootworker or a practitioner who works with herbs, spells, and tinctures. It is not relegated to the realm of Voodoo alone (it can be Wiccan or other religions as well), but can be used to mean anyone who works as a "Root Doctor". See Hoodoo explained in detail on the wiki. Please feel free to set me straight if I’ve muddied that one up J So that’s it. This little intro should help you understand my references to the religion in upcoming blurbs about the tours and the other wonderful ditties I will weave for you in future postings.