Origins and spread
In Yoruba tradition, an orixá (òrìṣà) reflects one aspect of the supreme divinity, known by names including Olodumare and Olorun; some are described as having always existed in the spirit world, while others are said to have been human beings recognized as divine for extraordinary deeds. Carried across the Atlantic by enslaved Yoruba people, veneration of the orixás took root and diversified into related but distinct traditions, including Cuban Santería, Brazilian Candomblé and Umbanda, and Trinidad Orisha.
Syncretism with Catholic saints
In colonial Brazil, enslaved practitioners of Candomblé, forbidden from openly worshipping their own deities under an officially Catholic regime, began pairing orixás with Catholic saints as a form of disguise and continuity. Because this pairing developed informally and regionally, the specific saint linked to a given orixá can differ from one Brazilian tradition or region to the next — Ogum, for instance, is paired with Saint George in most Brazilian Umbanda, but with Saint Peter in Cuban Santería's parallel tradition around the closely related figure Ogún. The orixás themselves are also described as having recognizably human traits — vanity, generosity, jealousy, courage — each understood as paralleling a force found in nature.