Candomblé Ketu is the largest and most influential branch (nation) of Candomblé, a religion practiced primarily in Brazil. The word Candomblé means "ritual dancing or gather in honor of gods" and Ketu is the name of the Ketu region of Benin. Its liturgical language, known as yorubá or Nagô, is a dialect of Yoruba. Candomblé Ketu developed in the early 19th century and gained great importance to Brazilian heritage in the 20th century.
Candomblé priestesses in Brazil
Candomblé is an African diasporic religion that developed in Brazil during the 19th century. It arose through a process of syncretism between several of the traditional religions of West Africa, especially those of the Yoruba, Bantu, and Gbe, coupled with influences from the Roman Catholic form of Christianity. There is no central authority in control of Candomblé, which is organized around autonomous terreiros (houses).
A practitioner dressed as the orixá Oba at a temple in Brazil; the possession of adherents by orixá is central to Candomblé
A Candomblé ritual photographed in 2023
A Candomblé ritual in 2008
A statue depicting the orixá Xangô inside a Candomblé terreiro in São Paulo; he is distinguished by his possession of a double-headed axe, the oxê
