Yoruba Pantheon

In the Yoruba pantheon orishas, Where orixás, are Afro-American deities from Africa, and more specifically Yoruba religious traditions.

They are found in several African countries as well as in many American countries, where they were introduced by the slave trade, which hit the Yoruba populations in a particularly heavy way. They are revered in Africa, especially in Nigeria and Benign. Here is the list of orishas of the Yoruba pantheon.

AJA Goddess of the forest honored by the Yoruba of Nigeria. It reigns over forests and medicinal herbs. She advises her worshipers on the use of medicinal herbs they collect in African forests.

EGBERE Small beings who live in the forest.

EHI Spirit who controls the destiny of the people he determines with Osanobua before their birth.

EJI OGBE King of the deities.

ELEDA Name of Olodumare which means "creator".

ELEMII Name of Olodumare which means "the one who possesses the life"

NDE One of the three spirits of each individual, that of the vital breath.

ERE To be with the childlike aspect which takes possession of a person during the initiation.

ESHU God of luck, chance and the unpredictable. As a master of language, Eshu is responsible for bringing the messages and sacrifices of Earth to the gods of heaven. Eshu is both good and bad and appears frequently in myths like a prankster god.

IBEJI God of twins.

IFA Prediction system given by Eshu to Men.

JAKUTA (the one who throws stones) Orisha associated with Shango and considered as a partner of Shango in the creation of thunder and lightning. In some traditions, Jakuta is simply another name for Shango.

NANA BURUKU Supreme Being in the masculine and feminine faith who created at the very beginning the structure of the universe leaving the care to his children Mawu-Lisa to complete it.

OBATALA God of Fertility and god-sculptor. He is the son of Olorun and the brother and husband of Oduduwa or Yemoja. At the request of Olorun he dispersed snail dejections which he made scratch by a hen and a pigeon to form the Earth.

ODUDUWA Deified ancestor; according to Ife tradition, the first ruler of the city of Ife. In a myth, Oduduwa was commissioned by Obatala to create the Earth and its inhabitants. Oduduwa has sometimes been seen as a woman from Obatala. Obatala and Oduduwa also represented the male and female aspects brought together in one androgynous deity.

OGUN God of iron and war and therefore the guardian deity of man whose work involved the use of iron, such as hairdressers, butchers, blacksmiths, hunters, and warriors.

OJIJI One of the three spirits of each person who follows her like her shadow.

OLODUMARE Supreme God and Creator God

OLOKUN (Owner of the sea) Goddess or god of the sea and swamps who rules over the liquid element that existed before the earth was created.

OLORUN (Owner of Heaven) Supreme God; also known as Olodumare (Owner of Endless Space). Olorun has been recognized as the owner of everything and the highest authority in all matters. In some traditions Olorun is androgynous.

OLU-IGBO (Owner of the Bush) Orisha of the bush and the jungle.

ORANYAN Son of Aganju or Oduduwa and Yemoja (In this version, Oduduwa is the brother of Obatala), he became the second king of the tribe

ORELUERE First man created by Olodumare

ORI God of Wisdom and Determination. He oversees the choice of fate made by each spirit Ori chooses a fate before birth.

ORI Spirit residing in each individual.

ORISHA Distant deified ancestors who were able to establish links with certain forces and phenomena of nature during their lifetime.

ORISHAKO God of Agriculture, husband of Oduduwa.

ORISHA-NLA First god, who existed before the other Orishas and from whom all Orisas originated.

ORISHA OKO Orisha of agriculture and tutelary god of farmers.

ORUN God of the Sun.

ORUN BUBURU Part of the sky reserved for evil people.

ORUN RERE Part of the sky reserved for good people.

ORUNMILA (Heaven knows those who prosper) God of Divination, Fate, and Wisdom; the oldest son of Olorun. Orunmila possesses knowledge of future events and he has the ability to speak to human beings for Olorun through oracles. He defended Men against Olokur

OSAIN God of Vegetation.

OSANYIN Orisha of Medicine and Divination.

OSHOSSI God of forests and hunting.

OSHUNMARE Snake deity.

OSUN River Goddess and Goddess of Riches. Daughter of Oba Jumu and Oba Do, wife of Shango.

OYA River goddess and climate goddess, wife of Shango; she wore a beard.

SHANGO God of thunder and lightning, whose auxiliaries are the wind and the rainbow. Shango Il is considered the fourth ruler of Oyo City and was deified after his death. His wives were Obba, orisha of the river Obba; Oshun, orisha of the Oshun River; and Oya, orisha of the river Niger.

YANSAN Orisha of the wind.

YEMOJA Orisha of the Ogun River and Mother Goddess, Orisha of the Ocean and Maternity; from his body arose fifteen gods among which Ogun and Shango. In certain legends Yemoja is identified as a woman from Ogun. There are also the spellings Yemaja and Yemayah.