Ghede Nibo

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Ghede Nibo
Venerated inVoodoo, Folk Catholicism
AttributesBlack coat, top hat, staff, cigar, rum, skull, obscenities
PatronageGravestones, cemeteries

Ghede Nibo is a loa who is leader of the spirits of the dead in Voodoo. Formerly human, Ghede Nibo was a handsome young man who was killed violently. After death, he was adopted as a loa by Baron Samedi and Maman Brigitte.

Overview[change | change source]

Ghede Nibo is a Rada spirit,[1] considered a great healer. He is seen carrying a bottle of white rum infused with medicinal herbs. Often he also smokes a cigar. Nibo is the special patron of those who die young. Purple is considered his sacred color, and usual offerings include black goats, black roosters, cigars, coconut and white rum spiced with African bird pepper.[2]

In popular culture[change | change source]

References[change | change source]

  1. Carole Boyce Davies (ed.), Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora, ABC-CLIO, 2008, p. 963.
  2. Randy Conner, David Hatfield Sparks & Mariya Sparks (eds), Cassell's Encyclopedia of Queer Myth, Symbol & Spirit, London and New York: Cassell, 1997.