obeah

Meaning

Noun

1. A form of folk magic, medicine or witchcraft originating in Africa and practised in parts of the Caribbean.
2. A magician or witch doctor of the magic craft.
3. A spell performed in the practice of the magic craft; an item associated with such a spell.

Verb

To bewitch using this kind of folk magic.

Synonyms

obi

Hyphenated as

o‧be‧ah

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈəʊbɪə/

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.