Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

houngan

/ˈ(h)uŋ.ɡən/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.13 in modern English

Syllables: houn-gan
IPA: /ˈ(h)uŋ.ɡən/

11

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A (male) voodoo priest.

Example Sentences

"The shadow of the houngan, projected from within the tent by the flickering of the candle, dances and glides over the folds of the cloth as he completes his final preparations."
"By then, estimates of the number of oungans killed in 1986-87 had reached as high as 400."
"From 1751 to 1758, Makandal, a one-armed former slave and houngan, staged a rebellion that claimed some six thousand lives."
"Most voodoo priests, known as houngans, operate semi-independently, catering to their followers without much structure."

Etymology

Etymology tree Fon houn Proto-Bantu *mʊ̀gàngà Kongo nganga Haitian Creole ounganbor. English houngan From Haitian Creole oungan, apparently from Fon houn (“spirit”) + Kongo nganga (“high priest”).

Word Breakdown

Root: oungan, houn, nganga

Inflected Forms

houngans (plural) oungan (alternative)

Frequently Paired Words

mambo

Questions

How do you pronounce houngan?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈ(h)uŋ.ɡən/.
What does houngan mean?: A (male) voodoo priest.
Where does houngan come from?: Etymology tree Fon houn Proto-Bantu *mʊ̀gàngà Kongo nganga Haitian Creole ounganbor. English houngan From Haitian Creole oungan, apparently from Fon houn (“spirit”) + Kongo nganga (“high priest”).

How to pronounce houngan

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “houngan”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈ(h)uŋ.ɡən/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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