(Lu) Lucumi term
(Sp) Spanish term
Achere (Lu.)
A small rattle which is sometimes used to play the standard bell pattern
in batà ensembles.
Agbé (Lu.)
A calabash gourd idiophone strung on the outside with beads. Sometimes
called shekere.
Agogo (Lu.)
Metal bell used to play the standard bell pattern in bembé
ensembles.
Afia (Lu.)
A sacred force believed to reside in the batà drums, considered
an oricha by some Santeros.
Batalero (Lu./Sp.)
A batà drummer.
Bembé (Lu.)
A religions party held to honor an oricha.
Cabildo (Sp.)
Mutual aid societies established by slaves in Cuba.
Caminos (Sp.)
Roads. Diferent avatars of an oricha. Each " standard pattern
" or toque signifies a différent camino.
Chacha (Lu.)
The smaller head of the batà drum.
Chaworo (Lu.)
Bells wrapped around the shell of the iyà ilù.
Cierre (Sp.)
Closing. The ritual that closes a bembé.
Conversacion (Sp.)
A conversation that takes place between the iyà and itotele.
Conversations used to render lexical meaning but most of this knowledge
has been lost.
Enù (Lu.)
The larger head of the batà drum.
Fardela (Sp.)
Also called the idà, it is a ring of clay
molded to the iyà ilu'. It is used to dampen the drum's overtones.
Güiro (Sp.)
Musical gourd. An idiophone, it is also known as agbé or shekere.
It is covered with strung beads and played by shaking and striking
the bottom.
Ida (Lu.)
See Fardela.
Itotele (Lu.)
The middle drum of the batà set.
Iya (Lu.)
Mother.
Iya Ilu (Lu.)
Mother drum. The lead drum in the batà ensemble.
Llame (Sp.) The call used in batà drumming
to begin a rhythm or initiate a conversation.
Lucumi
Name used to identify Yoruba slaves and their language in Cuba. Practitioners
today sometimes call their religion Lucumi.
Ocha (Lu.)
A saint/oricha. The religion of Santeria (Regla de Ocha).
Okonkolo (Lu.)
The smallest drum of the batà set. Also called omelé.
Olori (Lu.)
The strap used by the batalero to secure the drum during performance.
Olù Bata (Lu.)
A batalero initiated into Ana.
Omelé (Lu.)
Another name for okonkolo.
Omo (Lu.)
Child.
Ori (Lu.)
The physical head and inner person. The essence of personality.
Oricha (Lu.)
Sacred head. The nature divinities of traditional Yoruba religion
and Santeria.
Oru (Lu.)
A liturgical sequence of songs or batà rhythms. (Sometimes
mistakenly called oro.)
Oru del Igbodu (Lu.)
" Oru in front of the throne " played on the batà
drums without song. Also called oru seco.
Orun (Lu.)
The heaven world of Yoruba religion.
Santeria (Sp.)
The Lucumi religion of Cuba.
Santero, Santera (Sp.)
Male and female initiates or priests of Santeria.
Santo (Sp.)
Saint. The oricha.
Tambor (Sp.)
Drummer.
Tamabor (Sp.)
Drum. A liturgical fiesta for the orichas using the batà drums.
Toque (Sp.)
A bata rhythm. Another name for a liturgical fiesta using batà.
Yesa (Iyesa) (Lu.)
Single headed drum type found in Cuba. Name of generic rhythms played
in " drum and güiro " ensembles. In batà ensembles
this rhythm is called rumba yesa.
