Yemanjá (Yoruba: Yemọja) is a water goddess from Yoruba religion and is one of the Orisha spirits. She is the mother of all Orishas.
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She is an the patron spirit of rivers, particularly the Ogun River in Nigeria; and oceans in the Cuban and Brazilian orisha religions. She is often syncretized with Our Lady of Regla in the Afro-Cuban diaspora, and with several other figures of the Virgin Mary of the Catholic Church, a practice that emerged during the era of the transatlantic slave trade.
It is said that Yemanjá is maternal and strongly protective, and that she deeply cares for all her children, comforting them and cleansing them from sadness. She is also said to cure infertility in women, and cowrie shells represent her wealth. She doesn't lose her temper easily, but when angered she can be quite destructive and violent, like the floodwaters of turbulent rivers.
In American countries such as Brazil and Cuba, she is primarily worshiped as a sea and ocean goddess, in contrast to West Africa where she is worshiped as a high-ranking river deity.
In Brazilian religions of African origin, for example Candomblé and Umbanda, she is said to be the Queen of the Ocean, the patron spirit of fishermen and shipwreck survivors, the feminine principle of creation and the spirit of moonlight and Saturday is her consecrated day. She is syncretized with Our Lady of Navigators (Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes) and Our Lady of the Conception (Nossa Senhora de Conceição).
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