fast facts

Vodou, not “voodoo”: Whether writing in English, French or Creole, the correct spelling of the predominant religion in Haiti is Vodou, according to the official orthography of Haitian Creole language, said Terry Rey, chair of the religion department at Temple University.

Pronunciation: Derived from the term “Vodoun” in the language of the Fon of Benin in West Africa, and signifying a company or family of spirits, the correct pronunciation is VO-doo.

Derogatory term: The name “voodoo” is viewed as a derogatory term loaded with negative connotations “associated with Hollywood portrayals of zombies, ritual bacchanalias, or a conglomeration of exotic spells related to witchcraft and sorcery,” said Leslie Desmangles, professor of religion at Trinity College.

Bit of history: “The word ’voodoo’ comes out of Hollywood in the 1920s, 30s, 40s as the United States was occupying Haiti, and it served to justify the occupation to a large extent in the eyes of Americans,” said Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, professor of Africology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Use of the term “voodoo” as a synonym for irrational behavior — “voodoo economics,” for example — is considered offensive as well.