Vodou (Topical Term)

Web. 3 (voodooism; voodoo; voudou; voudouism; vodun, also vodoun: voodooism)

Fleurant, G. Dancing spirits : rhythms and rituals of Haitian Vodun, the Rada rite, 1996.

Haitian vodou flags, c1997.

The Columbia encyclopedia, 2008, via Credo Reference, Sept. 10, 2012 (voodoo: native W African religious beliefs and practices that also has adherents in the New World)

Merriam-Webster online, Sept. 10, 2012 (voodoo; also vodou; a religion that is derived from African polytheism and ancestor worship and is practiced chiefly in Haiti)

OED online, Sept. 10, 2012 (voodoo: also vodoo, voodu, voudon, voudoo, voudou, voudoun, vudu, and vaudoux; a form of religious witchcraft prevalent among black people in the West Indies, esp. Haiti, and the southern United States, and ultimately of African origin.)

Africana, 2005 (Vodou)

Britannica online, Sept. 10, 2012 (Vodou; also spelled Voodoo, Voudou, Vodun, or French Vaudou, an official religion of Haiti)

Encyclopedia of religion, 2005 (Vodou)

Desmangles, L.G. The faces of the gods, 1992: p. xi (There is much academic disagreement among scholars about the name of Haiti's folk religion, and about the orthography of the word vodou. The common term voodoo ... has been used by many scholars. But unfortunately, in popular literature and films the term voodoo has been misconstrued as sorcery, witchcraft, and in some cases cannibalistic practices, all of which are false and have kindled many foreigners' prejudices not only about Vodou, but about Haitian culture in general. Other scholars have used the term vodun or vodoun ... in order to dispel popular misconceptions about the religion. ... I adopt Vodou for this book because it is phonetically more correct, and because it corresponds to the nomenclature used by the Haitians themselves for their religion)

Largey, M. Vodou nation, 2006: p. 243 (Since the standardization of Haitian Kreyol orthography in the 1920s, Haitain traditional religion has been spelled "Vodou" ... Since North American depictions of Haitian traditional religion have been so overwhelmingly negative, the spelling "voodoo" has come to symbolize evil magical practices in both Haiti and Louisiana)

Vodou in Haitian life and culture, 2006: p. 35, footnote 7 (Vodou is still the most commonly used spelling by those who write on the Haitian religion though, increasingly, the more correct spelling Vodun is being introduced in scholarly publications ... some spell it Vodoun ... Haitians tend to prefer Vodou)

CIA World fact book online, Sept. 10, 2012: Haiti (roughly half of the population practices voodoo)

Religion stylebook: a guide for reporters working on journalism's best beat, online Sept. 10, 2012 (Vodou: ... Other common spellings include Vodun, Voodoo and voodoo, but generic uses of "voodoo" can be offensive to those who practice the religion. Avoid using phrases such as "voodoo economics," except in direct quotes. The Associated Press Stylebook continues to use Voodoo.)

ART; Behind the occult, vivid sacred art, article in the New York Times, Feb. 4, 1996; accessed online Sept. 10, 2012 (Vodou (or voodoo, as it is more generally known) has little to do with the images of freakish debauchery often rendered in history books and by Hollywood. Vodou offers a system of beliefs that provides both meaning and solace, qualities that are in short supply in a country with no public schools, few working sewers, no public transportation, little industry and no good roads. It is also highly eclectic: in an effort to recreate their religious culture in Haiti, African slaves expropriated a huge repertory of influences, including bits and pieces from the indigenous Taino Indians, from Roman Catholicism, Freemasonry and European mysticism.)

Wikipedia, Sept. 10, 2012 (Louisiana Voodoo is often confused with--but is not completely separable from--Haitian Vodou and southern Hoodoo. It differs from Vodou in its emphasis upon Gris-gris, voodoo queens, use of Hoodoo occult paraphernalia, and Li Grand Zombi (snake deity). It was through Louisiana Voodoo that such terms as gris-gris (a Wolof term) and voodoo dolls were introduced into the American lexicon)

Here are entered works on the major folk religion practiced primarily in Haiti and parts of the southern United States. Works on a form of cult magic practiced primarily in the southern United States are entered under Hoodoo (Cult).

Note under Hoodoo (Cult)