Afro-Brazilian religions

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Afro-Brazilian religions are neo-ethnic religions practiced in Brazil that are of African origin or contain elements of African religions.

These include Candomblé , whose main area of ​​distribution is on the southeast coast, the Xangô cults in northeastern Brazil, Batuque in the southeast and the spiritually influenced Umbanda . The Afro-Brazilian religions have a lot in common and are often summarized under the term Macumba .

These religions have their origin in the time of slavery . In many cases they form a syncretic synthesis of African (especially Yoruba ), European and, in remnants, Indian religion. As in other Afro-American religions , a Christian facade often served as legitimation for the slaves in order to be able to celebrate and celebrate their own customs and rites. There were also Christian slaves, while Islamic traditions from Africa, as far as we know today, have hardly survived and their customs have been lost.

literature

  • Angelina Pollak-Eltz : Drum and Trance. The African American Religions. Herder, Freiburg 1995. ( Small Library of Religions ; Vol. 2).
  • Bettina E. Schmidt: Spirit Possession in Brazil. The Perception of the (Possessed) Body. In: Anthropos , Vol. 109, No. 2 (2014), pp. 135–147.
  • Stefania Capone: Searching for Africa in Brazil. Power and tradition in Candomblé. Duke University Press, Durham 2010.