Vodun or Vudun (spirit in the Fon and Ewe languages, also spelled Vodon, Vodoun, Voudou, Voodoo, etc.) is a collective term for African Traditional Religions of coastal West Africa from Ghana to Nigeria. Vodun is practised by the Ewe people of eastern and southern Ghana, and southern and central Togo, the Kabye people, Mina people and Fon people of southern and central Togo, southern and central Benin and (under a different name) the Yoruba of southwestern Nigeria.
It is distinct from the various African Traditional Religions in the interiors of these countries and is the main source of religions with similar names found among the African Diaspora in the New World such as Haitian Vodou, the Vudu of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, Candomblé Jejé in Brazil (which uses the term Vodum), Winti in Suriname, and Louisiana Voodoo. All these are syncretized with Christianity to various degrees and with the traditional religions of the Kongo people of Congo and Angola. Winti, Haitian Vodou and Candomblé are also syncretized with American Indian traditional religions.
It is distinct from the various African Traditional Religions in the interiors of these countries and is the main source of religions with similar names found among the African Diaspora in the New World such as Haitian Vodou, the Vudu of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, Candomblé Jejé in Brazil (which uses the term Vodum), Winti in Suriname, and Louisiana Voodoo. All these are syncretized with Christianity to various degrees and with the traditional religions of the Kongo people of Congo and Angola. Winti, Haitian Vodou and Candomblé are also syncretized with American Indian traditional religions.
