Mãe Nitinha de Oxum

Areonite da Conceição Chagas or Mãe Nitinha de Oxum (12 September 1925 to 4 February 2008) was a Brazilian Iaquequerê, Iatebexê, e Ojuodé of the Candomblé temple (in Portuguese, terreiro) Casa Branca do Engenho Velho in Salvador, Bahia, and later Ialorixá at the Terreiro de Nossa Senhora das Candeias in Miguel Couto, greater Rio de Janeiro.

Biography Areonithe Conceição Chagas was born in Santo Amaro, Bahia on September 12, 1925. Her mother was a mãe-de-santo (Candomblé religious leader).

Mãe Nitinha married “Seu Benzinho”, a man from neighboring Cachoeira, at age 14.

After her marriage dissolved, Mãe Nitinha worked as a midwife and elementary teacher in Portão, Bahia.

In 2005, the Brazilian government chose Mãe Nitinha as a representative of a multi-faith religious group sent to Rome to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Unfortunately, she was not able to attend because she arrived to the airport late and missed her flight. Bahia's State Secretary for the Promotion of Equality, Luiz Alberto, attended, saying that he "represents the condolences of Bahia's governor (Jaques Wagner) and of Brazil's president (Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva), who lament the death of this important representative of Candomblé." Additional rituals followed at the Casa Branca terreiro.