The Yoruba Orisha of winds, storms, and transformation, and guardian of the threshold between the living and the dead. Wife of Sango, Oya is associated with the Niger River and is invoked at times of upheaval and decisive change. She is a fierce warrior, often depicted with nine skirts and a horsetail whisk, and presides over the cemetery gate, escorting the dead into the next world.
O
Mythology· Codex · Deity
Oya
Yoruba (Nigeria); diaspora to Brazil (Iansã) and Cuba (Oyá) · West Africa

