Cuba: A Santería priestess in the Plaza de la Catedral, Old Havana

Santería, also known as Regla de Ocha, La Regla de Ifá, or Lucumí, is an Afro-American religion of Yoruba origin that developed in Cuba among West African descendants. Santería is a Spanish word that means the 'worship of saints'. Santería is influenced by and syncretized with Roman Catholicism. Its sacred language is the Lucumí language, a remnant of Yoruba language that is used in rituals but no longer spoken as a vernacular and mostly not understood by practitioners.

Plaza de la Catedral is one of Old Havana’s squares, this cobbled open area (pedestrians only) is surrounded by fine buildings and home to the most colourful of all La Habana Vieja’s street people and performance artists. They range from Santería priestesses through sharp-suited street dancers to flower girls and Rastafarians.

La Habana Vieja (Old Havana) was declared a National Monument in 1977, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. It is the most significant centre of Spain’s colonial heritage in all the Americas.

Copyright:

CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Photographer:

David Henley

Credit:

Pictures From Asia