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LucumLucumi, a Yoruba word meaning "friends", is a common name for the Yoruba religion, also referred to as Santeria. The term also applies to descendants of Yoruba slaves in Cuba, their music and dance, and the cubanized dialect of the Yoruba language. The Yoruba religion originated during the time of slavery in Cuba, when slaveowners purposely divided slave families and mixed members of different African ethnic groups as a way of maintaining control. Later, in the early 18th century, the Spanish Catholic church created societies called cabildos to provide means for entertainment and reconstruction of many aspects of ethnic heritage for both sides. The slaves practiced Yoruba religious ceremonies in these cabildos, combining their masters' pantheon of Catholic saints with their own pantheon of orisha. Yoruba's survival in Cuba was primarily due to its practicants' camouflaging the religion with a pretence of Catholicism. When slaveowners observed Africans celebrating a Saint's Day, they were generally unaware that the slaves were actually worshiping the orisha. Today, the terms saint and orisha are often used interchangeably. The common bond between the Yoruba orisha and the Catholic saints has become a part of Cuba's religious culture.
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