Maman Brigitte

Origins

Maman Brigitte originally comes from Celtic mythology, in the form of the goddess Brigid. In pre-Christian times, she was the goddess associated with wisdom, poetry, spring, healing, smithcraft, fertility and protection. When Irish and Scot indentured servants were brought to the French colony of Haiti, in the 15th and 16th century, many of their folklore mixed in. With many of them being female servants, they held the protective mother goddess close to them. And, the goddess Brigid became associated with a old African goddess of similar veneration. Until, Maman Brijit of the Ghede family of loas was the result. In fact, she is the only European loa of those praised in Haitian Vudou, as well as Louisiana Voodoo.

Many of her pre-Haitian traits remained. In physical appearance, he remained fair skinned (though, she is sometimes portrayed as being Black). Her hair remains high auburn, or ginger in color. Green is still a color associated with her, along with purple and black (the colors of the Ghede family that she being the queen of).

Personality and Role

Like her husband and children, Brigitte is foul-mouthed and crude in humor. She smokes and drinks to a absurd degree, and generally enjoys living life to the fullest. Like her husband, she possesses her followers to indulge in the festivities of mortals. Though, also like her husband (even moreso, because of her womanly spirit of nurturing energy), she is far more comforting to those she helps. Brijit is said to be a woman of fertility and life. Loving to enrich life and protect it. She can heal anything and anyone, if they ask her to.

She is a loving woman who cares for the dead, more then they were ever cared for in life. She watches over the gravestones of the dead, and is much like her husband in her cherishment of life and death. She loves dancing and music, often interrupting gatherings (no mater how sacred or private) for other loas, along with her husband, to eat, drink, dance, laugh, and listen to music.