Vèvè Module — Graphic Sign Systems
Sacred diagrams, signs, and esoteric scripts
Domain module. Vocabulary for documenting graphic sign systems, sacred diagrams, and esoteric scripts across Afro-Atlantic traditions. Covers Vèvè (Vodou), Firma/Patipemba (Palo), Ponto Riscado (Umbanda/Quimbanda), Anaforuana (Abakuá), Nsibidi (Ejagham), Adinkra (Akan), and Kongo cosmograms. Access control runs from public (sign system typology) through initiated-elder (operational drawing sequences) and no-access (selected Anaforuana protected by tradition authority). Use with iroko-authority to document which lineage or sodality context authorizes transmission of a sign system.
A discrete ritual diagram, symbol, or graphic mark belonging to a sacred sign system. Each sign has a conventional form, a tradition-specific name, and one or more ceremonial functions. Examples: a specific Vodou vèvè drawn for Ogou Feray; an Abakuá Anaforuana sign protecting a potencia's territory; a Palo firma drawn to open a Nganga. The sign's form and name are community-restricted in active traditions; its operational use and drawing sequence are initiated-only.
The complete inventory of graphic signs held and transmitted by a specific lineage, house, or tradition community. Different lineages within the same tradition may hold different signs or use the same sign with different operational meanings. A sign corpus is lineage-specific and represents a distinct LineageKnowledgeGraph.
A specific documented occurrence of a graphic sign: a particular vèvè drawn at a specific ceremony, a firma traced before a consultation, an Adinkra stamped on cloth. Distinct from the abstract sign type (iroko:GraphicSign). Records medium, surface, date, ritual context, and photographer/recorder where available. Photographic documentation of sign instances is community-restricted; the sign's existence is public.
A tradition-specific graphic communication system consisting of a defined corpus of signs with shared visual grammar, drawing conventions, and ceremonial functions. Examples: the Vodou vèvè corpus; the Palo Monte firma/patipemba tradition; Ejagham Nsibidi; Abakuá Anaforuana; Akan Adinkra. A sign system is identified by tradition, geographic origin, and governing authority. The existence of a system and its name are public; its internal grammar and full sign inventory may be restricted.
| Property | Type | Domain → Range | Access | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| colorSignificance color significance |
Datatype | Graphic Sign → langString | Initiated Only | The ritual significance of colors used with this sign, where applicable. Initiated-only. |
| directionality directionality |
Datatype | Graphic Sign → langString | Initiated Only | Whether and how orientation of the sign affects its function (e.g., inverted signs in some Palo and Kongo traditions activate opposite polarity). Initiated-only. |
| documentationRecord documentation record |
Object | Sign Instance → SacredMedia | Community Only | Photographic, rubbing, or tracing record of this sign instance. Range: iroko:SacredMedia. Community-restricted: documentation should not enable replication. |
| drawingMedium drawing medium |
Object | Sign Instance → Concept | Community Only | The material used to draw this instance. Range: iroko:DrawingMediumScheme. |
| drawingSequence drawing sequence |
Datatype | Graphic Sign → langString | Initiated Elder | The step-by-step sequence in which the sign must be drawn. The directionality and order of strokes often carries operational significance. Initiated-elder only. |
| drawingSurface drawing surface |
Object | Sign Instance → Concept | Community Only | The surface on or within which this instance was drawn. Range: iroko:DrawingSurfaceScheme. |
| drawnBy drawn by |
Object | Sign Instance → Person | Community Only | The practitioner who drew this sign instance. Range: foaf:Person. Community-restricted. |
| governingAuthority governing authority |
Object | Sign System → Concept | Community Only | The title or institution with authority over this sign system. For Anaforuana: the Abakuá potencia leadership. For Vodou vèvè: the Houngan/Mambo body. Community-restricted. |
| invokedEntity invoked entity |
Object | Graphic Sign → SpiritualEntity | Community Only | The spiritual entity primarily associated with or invoked by this sign. Range: iroko:SpiritualEntity. Community-restricted. |
| permanence permanence |
Object | Sign Instance → Concept | Community Only | Whether this instance is ephemeral, temporary, or permanent. Range: iroko:PermanenceScheme. |
| relatedSign related sign |
Object | Graphic Sign → Graphic Sign | Initiated Only | A sign within the same system that shares visual elements, modifies this sign's function, or is typically drawn in sequence with it. |
| signFunction sign function |
Object | Graphic Sign → Concept | Community Only | The primary ceremonial function of this sign. Range: iroko:SignFunctionScheme. |
| signMeaning sign meaning |
Datatype | Graphic Sign → langString | Initiated Only | The semantic or esoteric meaning of the sign as transmitted within the lineage. Initiated-only. |
| instanceSign sign type |
Object | Sign Instance → Graphic Sign | Public | The abstract GraphicSign of which this is a specific drawn instance. |
DrawingMediumScheme
Wood ash or specific burned materials used for cooling, ancestral, and threshold-crossing signs.
Animal or human blood used as a drawing medium in highly restricted ceremonies. Initiated-elder access for operational detail.
Signs carved or incised into wood, stone, metal, or other materials for permanent installation.
Powdered eggshell (cascarilla), a cooling and purifying medium used across multiple Afro-Atlantic traditions.
Ground charcoal used for ancestral, funerary, and dark-force-related signs.
Pigmented chalk in tradition-specific colors, used for signs associated with particular spiritual forces or chromatic requirements.
Ground cornmeal used for vèvè and some Lucumí ground drawings.
Gunpowder used in Palo Monte firmás and some Vodou vèvè for Ogou/Oggun-family entities. Associated with warrior and fire forces.
Ink applied with pen, brush, or stamp. Common in Nsibidi documentation and Adinkra cloth stamping.
Commercial or natural paint used for wall murals, cloth stamping, or semi-permanent sign installation. Common in Adinkra cloth production.
Refined wheat flour, the most common medium for Haitian Vodou vèvè.
White chalk or powdered eggshell (cascarilla/efun) used for protective and cooling signs in Lucumí, Palo, and Vodou traditions.
DrawingSurfaceScheme
The surface of an altar, throne, or ritual table.
The skin of a practitioner or initiate. Used for protective and initiatory markings.
Fabric or cloth, particularly for Adinkra stamping and some Vodou ceremonial use.
Door, doorframe, or threshold — boundary surfaces with protective and liminal significance.
Interior floor of a temple, hounfò, or ilé. The most common surface for Vodou vèvè.
Bare earth or dirt surface, often at crossroads or outdoor ceremony spaces.
Drawing surface not covered by existing concepts.
Paper, parchment, or documentary material. Used in some Palo and Espiritismo contexts.
A consecrated object, vessel, drum, or implement.
Living tree or bark surface. Used in some outdoor and forest-spirit ceremonies.
Interior or exterior wall surface. Used for semi-permanent protective signs.
A body of water, basin, or liquid surface. Used in some healing and cooling ceremonies.
SignFunctionScheme
The sign constrains or binds a force or entity. Initiated-only detail.
The sign transmits information or messages between practitioners or between practitioners and spiritual forces.
The sign activates or consecrates an object, person, or space for sacred use.
The sign identifies a house, potencia, lineage, or practitioner's affiliation. Primary function of Anaforuana territorial marks.
The sign records an event, tells a story, or encodes historical knowledge. Characteristic of Nsibidi's documentary function.
The sign opens a ceremony, a spiritual pathway, or a sacred space for work.
The sign creates a boundary of spiritual protection around a person, object, or space.
The sign closes or concludes a ceremony or seals a spiritual agreement.
The sign marks the boundary or domain of a spiritual entity, house, or society. Particularly important in Abakuá Anaforuana.
PermanenceScheme
Destroyed or erased immediately after use as part of the ceremony (e.g., vèvè covered by dance, flour swept away).
Intended to endure: carved stone or metal, tattooed or scarified body marks, Nsibidi on permanent objects.
Remains for an extended period but is understood to be renewable (e.g., wall signs, painted objects, cloth).
Fades naturally or is ritually removed after the ceremony concludes (e.g., ground drawings exposed to weather).
SignSystemTypeScheme
A system of visual symbols originating among the Akan of Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, each symbol encoding a proverb, concept, or value. Traditionally stamped on cloth for funerary and ceremonial use. More publicly documented than many Afro-Atlantic sign systems due to widespread commercial adoption, though ceremonial uses retain their gravity. Increasingly present in diaspora contexts.
While many Adinkra symbols are widely published, their ceremonial and mortuary use context should be documented with appropriate respect for Akan tradition authority.
The esoteric graphic script of the Abakuá society in Cuba, derived from Ejagham Nsibidi through enslaved Cross River practitioners. Anaforuana signs represent potencia territories, spiritual forces, and society knowledge. Among the most protected sign systems in the Afro-Atlantic world; specific signs are restricted to initiated members at specific grades. Related to but institutionally distinct from Nsibidi.
Many Anaforuana signs are protected at initiated-only or no-access level by potencia authority. Researchers must obtain community approval before documenting or publishing specific signs.
The Kongo-derived graphic sign system of Palo Monte and related Cuban-Bantu traditions. Firmas are drawn to open, close, seal, and communicate with Nganga (spirit vessels) and their governing Mpungo. Patipemba are specific ground-drawing configurations. The directionality and polarity of firmas is operationally significant.
Also known as: Prenda signature
The foundational Kongo cosmological diagram (dikenga dia Kongo) representing the cyclical journey of the soul through the four moments of the sun. A cross-in-circle form that underlies both Palo Monte firmás and traces of Kongo spiritual geography throughout the Afro-Atlantic diaspora. Foundational to understanding other Kongo-derived sign systems.
Also known as: Dikenga
An ideographic script and graphic sign system originating among the Ejagham and neighboring Cross River peoples of Nigeria and Cameroon. Used by Ékpè society members for communication, record-keeping, and ceremonial marking. Nsibidi predates colonial contact; some signs are public while esoteric variants remain restricted to Ékpè initiates. Ancestor system to Cuban Abakuá Anaforuana.
The graphic sign system of Brazilian Umbanda and Quimbanda, consisting of drawn points (pontos) associated with Orixás, Exus, and Pombagiras. Related to but distinct from Palo Monte firmás; developed in the Brazilian context with syncretic elements from African, Indigenous, and Spiritist sources.
The graphic sign system of Haitian Vodou, consisting of elaborate diagrams drawn in flour, cornmeal, ash, or gunpowder on the ground or altar surface to invoke and represent specific lwa. Each lwa has one or more canonical vèvè; regional and lineage variations are well-documented. Drawn at the opening of ceremonies and during possession rites.