Iyaami
Iyaami is a term used in Yoruba religion and in Afro-diasporic traditions such as Santería and Candomblé to describe a group of powerful female spiritual beings. The name, often rendered as Iyaami or Iyami, is commonly interpreted to mean “our mothers” or “great mothers,” signaling a collective of feminine forces that preside over motherhood, lineage, and protective power.
In Yoruba cosmology, the Iyaami are viewed as potent feminine energies that predate and influence other deities.
Ritual practice and belief regarding the Iyaami vary among communities. In some traditions, offerings, ceremonies, and
Scholars note that Iyaami exists as a flexible, contested category rather than a single, fixed deity. Variations