Baron Samedi by artJWB on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

16in x 10in acrylic on wood

Baron Samedi (Baron Saturday, also Baron Samdi, Bawon Samedi, or Bawon Sanmdi) is one of the loa of Haitian Vodou. Samedi is a loa of the dead, along with Baron's numerous other incarnations Baron Cimetière, Baron La Croix, and Baron Kriminel. He is the head of the Guédé family of Loa, or an aspect of them, or possibly their spiritual father. His wife is the loa Maman Brigitte. Like Maman Brigitte, Baron Samedi is thought to have been adopted into the Vodou religion from the Celtic pagan religious beliefs held by some of the Irish indentured servants who worked alongside the African slaves in the sugar plantations of the Caribbean. 'Samedi' means 'Saturday' in French, though there are alternate etymologies offered, such as Samhain, the Irish Gaelic name for November Eve or Halloween which is also a name given to a deity in Irish mythology who appears as a brother to Cian and Goibniu in some versions of the legend of Lugh's conception.