Maman Bridgitte

Baron’s wife is named Brijit (brih-ZHEET) and called Manman (mon-MON or ma-MON) or Grann (Grand-mother) after the honorific given to very old or respectable women. There has been some anthropological speculation that she may be a form of the Irish “saint” Brighid, who is herself a Celtic deity, but this is far from proven in Haiti; while some lineages sing a song about “Manman Brijit who came from England,” others do not. The imagery and functions of Manman Brijit do not really resemble those of the Irish goddess of smithcraft and poetry. Brijit lives in the largest tree of a cemetery (or the largest cross in a cemetery, which will also be where her husband, Baron, is to be found and served) and is not often seen in possession or ceremonies, being one of only a handful of female Gede. In lineages where she is given her own saint and not simply honored alongside Baron as his partner, we designate Manman Brijit with wild-haired Saint Rosalia in a cave praying to a skull, or stately crowned Saint Helena holding her giant cross.”

Excerpt from the book: "Haitian Vodou: An Introduction to Haiti's Indigenous Spiritual Tradition" by Mambo Chita Tann