obeah
/ˈəʊbɪə/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.81 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A form of folk magic, medicine or witchcraft originating in Africa and practised in parts of the Caribbean.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Although lacking a self-perpetuating institutional structure, Obeah was a crucial element of Afro-Caribbean religions everywhere from Suriname's Maroon societies (communities of runaway slaves) to the Leeward Islands' slave societies."
- "However, quite often it is also applied to protect from obeah spells which the client feels himself or herself to be suffering from. Since obeah can also cast protective spells (e.g., against other obeah spells), it is not entirely correct to dismiss it as an evil practice."
- "Obeah—a set of hybrid or creolized beliefs dependent on ritual invocation, fetishes, and charms—incorporates two very distinct categories of practice. The first involves "the casting of spells for various purposes, both good and evil: protecting oneself, property, family, or loved ones; harming real or perceived enemies; and bringing fortune in love, employment, personal or business pursuits"[…]. The second incorporates traditional African-derived healing practices based on the application of considerable knowledge of herbal and animal medicinal properties."
- "[Sosiessia] Nixon hopes the movie will spark a dialogue about the tension between Christianity and obeah, which is rooted in the country’s African heritage and still practised today despite being outlawed by colonisers in the 1700s – and still illegal today."
- "[…] but he went down to death, with dusky dreams of African shadow-catchers and Obeahs hunting him."
- "A Jamaican Christian came to me for counseling. […] I asked him if he had been charmed as a child by an Obeah. Obeahs are the magicians of the Carribean^([sic]) islands."
Etymology
Uncertain; apparently from a Caribbean creole, probably ultimately from a West African language. The Oxford English Dictionary points to Igbo abià (“knowledge, wisdom”), obìa (“doctor, healer”). Cognate of Aukan obiya, Saramaccan obia, and Sranan Tongo obia.
Word Breakdown
- Root: abià
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /ˈəʊbɪə/