In October 2012 the LCSH "Voodooism" gave way to "Vodou," the spelling most
commonly used by Haitians for the traditional religion of their country. The
DDC has likewise adopted this spelling.
At the same time, we are making clearer the split between vodou, the
Haitian traditional religion, and hoodoo, an occult practice found primarily in
the southern United States. Vodou
belongs in 299.675 Vodou; hoodoo
belongs in 133.4 Demonology and
witchcraft.
Example 1. Sticks, stones, roots
& bones: hoodoo, mojo & conjuring with herbs, to which the Library
of Congress subject headings, "African American magic" and "Hoodoo (Cult)" have
been assigned, is about hoodoo and should be classed in 133.4.
Example 2. Haitian vodou:
an
introduction to Haiti's indigenous spiritual traditions, to which
the Library of Congress subject headings, "Vodou—Haiti," "Haiti--Religious
life and customs," and “Haiti--Religion” have been assigned, is about
Vodou and should be classed in 299.675097294 Vodou in Haiti (built from 299.675 Vodou, plus T1—09,
plus T2—7294 Haiti, following the
instructions at T1—093-099 Specific
continents, countries, localities; extraterrestrial worlds).
Unfortunately, our "clear split" isn't always clear in the literature, as
many people have used the term "voodoo" when they are referring to hoodoo. This is why we have added an example to the
Manual note at 130 vs. 200, part of which now reads, "Use 130 for parapsychological and occult
phenomena if they are not presented as religious, or if there is doubt as to
whether they have been so presented, e.g., works on hoodoo in 133.4 even if the
term "voodoo" has been applied (not
299.675 Vodou)."
An example of this type of literature is Voodoo sorcery grimoire.
Although it uses "voodoo" in the title, the work is about hoodoo and
should be classed in 133.4. (It doesn’t
help the classifier that both the old "Voodooism" and "Hoodoo (Cult)" were
assigned as LCSHs to the work.)
How can the classifier make the correct choice? Often there will be clues in the
bibliographic record. On the one hand,
the presence of "Haiti" and "religion" should move the classifier toward
299.675, as should "Bondye" and "loa," deities in Vodou. On the other hand, presence of the following
terms should move the classifier toward 133.4: "conjure," "grimoire," "magic," "mojo," "rootwork," "sorcery," "spells,"
and "witchcraft."
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