5454: Re: 5423: Vodou not "Voodoo" (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Charles Arthur <charlesarthur@hotmail.com>

Guy Antoine wrote:
<To their credit, however, BBC uses the spelling "Vodou" for the
majority religion in Haiti. I was truly surprised, since major
publications in the U.S. appear stuck with "Voodoo" and all the "black" 
magic, "voodoo" dolls and pins, zombies and lougawous associated with it.>

Credit where credit is due: I think the BBC's use of Vodou instead of Voodoo 
is in part a consequence of Leah Gordon's determination to overturn the 
established and accepted way of spelling in the UK. I know that she had to 
fight hard to win acceptance of the Vodou spelling in her contribution to 
the 'Lonely Planet Guide to the Dominican Republic and Haiti', and the 
recently published 'A Book of Vodou'.

The Haiti Support Group has also been using the Vodou spelling for many 
years, and it is likely that the BBC journalists with whom we are in contact 
have taken it on board. Anyone can check the Haiti Support group's usage of 
Vodou on our web site at http://www.gn.apc.org/haitisupport

Charles Arthur


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