mambo

Definition

A voodoo priestess (in Haiti)

Etymology

From Haitian Creole manbo (“voodoo priestess”) (ultimately from Yoruba mambo (“to talk”)), in later senses via Cuban Spanish mambo (“dance”).

Example Sentences

• "The mambo next presented a container of water to the cardinal points, then poured libations to the centerpost of the peristyle, the axis along which the spirits were to enter."
• "The manbo showed her how to take small handfuls of liquid and spread it on her skin always moving in the upward direction."
• "In the 1950s, Ukrainian American filmmaker Maya Deren traveled to Haiti and became initiated as a manbo (priestess) in Haitian Vodou."