Search Results: Orisha

Orisha (also given as Orisa and Orishas) are supernatural entities usually referred to as deities in the Yoruba religion of West Africa, though they are actually emanations or avatars of the supreme being Olodumare. Their number is usually...

A statue of an Orisha from the Yoruba religion, Nigeria, 19th century. African Museum of Lyon.

Oshun (pronounced O-shan, also given as Osun) is a supernatural entity recognized as both a spirit and a goddess in the Yoruba religion of West Africa. She presides over fertility, love, and freshwater, is the patroness of the Osun River...

This collection presents a small sampling of the many great African kingdoms that rose and fell from the ancient period when Punt traded with Egypt up through the common era. Each kingdom developed a distinct culture and corresponding art...

Oduduwa Statue, Oduduwa Shrine and Grove, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Oduduwa is Orisha (or god) who is thought to have made the Yoruba people and established life at the city of Ife (also Ile-Ife) as well as the concept of cultural identity and kingship...

Detail of the mural by Said Musa, presenting Yemaya, an Orisha from Yoruba religion. In Catholic Central and South America and the Caribbean, Yoruba religion became syncretized with Christianity and Yemaya was associated with the Virgin Mary...

A devotee of Oshun, carved wood kneeling female figure. Yoruba people, Nigeria, early 20th century. Honolulu Museum of Art

Ife (aka Ile-Ife) was an ancient African city which flourished between the 11th and 15th century CE in what is today Nigeria in West Africa. Ife was the capital and principal religious centre of the Yoruba kingdom of Ife, which prospered...

The Oyo Empire flourished from the 17th to 19th century CE in what is today southwest Nigeria. The Oyo forged an empire thanks to their formidable cavalry units and so came to dominate other Yoruba peoples of the region. The Oyo Empire, with...

Oshun statue, Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove, Nigeria.