The 8th of December is Oxum's day where she was linked to Our Lady of the Conception, the saint of the day: in Rio Grande do Sul and in Sergipe. In Recife, in São Paulo and in many terreiros of umbanda, the same date is for Iemanjá.
In 2026, December 8 falls on a Tuesday. The date that matters for you is the one of your house, and both readings are legitimate.
Is December 8 the day of Oxum or Iemanjá?
It depends on the place and the house. December 8 is for Oxum in Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande and in Aracaju, and for Iemanjá in Recife, in São Paulo and in the Ketu candomblé described by Reginaldo Prandi. Salvador has those who honor one and those who honor the other, and in Belém the two meet on the same night.
Catholic date: December 8, Immaculate Conception | Oxum's day in the week: Saturday | Oxum's color: yellow | In 2026: Tuesday
| Place or tradition | December 8th is for... | Who registers |
|---|---|---|
| Porto Alegre (RS) | Oxum, in law since 2010 | Câmara de Porto Alegre |
| Rio Grande (RS) | Oxum | Pereira (2018) |
| Aracaju (SE) | Oxum | Aguiar (UEM) |
| Belém (PA) | Oxum and Iemanjá together | Cardoso Filho, via Aguiar |
| Salvador (BA) | the two readings | Vallado (USP); Boff, via Barros (UFJF) |
| Candomblé queto | Iemanjá | Prandi (1995) |
| Recife (PE) | Iemanjá, in many terreiros | Vallado; Brasil de Fato |
| São Paulo | Iemanjá | Vallado |
The other dates of Oxum in the year, such as July 16 in Recife, are in dates of the day of Oxum.
Why Conceição stayed with Oxum in the South
The Immaculate Conception is a Catholic dogma: Mary was preserved from original sin since conception. The feast was approved by Pope Sixtus IV in 1476, and Pius IX proclaimed the dogma in 1854.
The saint of Oxum changes by region. Reginaldo Prandi summarizes the map of Oxum for Folha de Pernambuco: Conceição in the South, Dores in Minas, Candeias and Prazeres in Bahia, Carmo in Pernambuco and Nazaré in the North. The sociologist Armando Vallado describes the same logic for Iemanjá, who follows the most popular Our Lady of each city.
Therefore, in the South and in Sergipe, Conceição belongs to Oxum, and in São Paulo and in Pernambuco, she belongs to Iemanjá. Who is the orixá behind the date is in who is Oxum.
October 12: Aparecida is also a Conceição
The statue fished in 1717 in the Paraíba do Sul river was a small terracotta statue of Our Lady of the Conception: by joining the body and the head, the fishermen recognized her as the Immaculate Conception. Aparecida is, therefore, a Conceição. Prandi records that the bond of Oxum with Aparecida is strong in Rio de Janeiro and in São Paulo.
The saint and the orixá have water in common, but, for Prandi, "that is not what sustains the connection of the two. It is just a coincidence."
Hence the two answers for "Oxum day December 8 or October 12". The Federation of Umbanda and Candomblé of the State of São Paulo gives both dates for Oxum. Meanwhile, a São Paulo umbanda house, TUCTVC, celebrates Oxum on October 12 and Iemanjá on December 8. The history of the patroness is in Our Lady Aparecida and Oxum.
Salvador: the Conceição da Praia between Oxum and Iemanjá
In Salvador, December 8 is the feast of Our Lady of Conceição da Praia, patroness of Bahia, and a municipal holiday.
Who is the orixá of this day in Salvador? Sources answer differently:
- Oxum, for Armando Vallado, a doctor from USP: the December cycle begins on December 4 with Saint Barbara and Iansã (Oya) and continues on the 8th with Conceição da Praia, "syncretized with Oxum".
- Iemanjá, for the theologian Clodovis Boff, cited by Cristiane de Barros (UFJF), who links Conceição da Praia to the identification of Iemanjá with Mary.
- In Prandi's table for Ketu candomblé, Conceição is of Iemanjá, and the saint of Oxum is Our Lady of Candeias.
The cycle that opens with Iansã is on Iansã's day, December 4. The other mother of the waters in this story is in who is Iemanjá.
How December 8 is celebrated
Where December 8 is of Oxum, the feast happens by the freshwater, and often alongside the Catholic feast.
- Porto Alegre: Oxum Day and the Oxum Festival are on the city's official calendar by Law 10.903, from 2010, every December 8. The festival is on the Ipanema waterfront, next to the Oxum monument, by the Guaíba. The Gaúcho batuque is in Oxum in batuque.
- Rio Grande: the walk in honor of Oxum meets the procession of the Immaculate Conception. The geographer Rogério Amaral Pereira recorded more than 5,000 participants and offerings in the freshwater.
- Aracaju: the Oxum festival is on the day of the city's patroness, which is a holiday. In the morning, the people of santo go to the washing of the cathedral stairs. At night, terreiros of umbanda and Candomblé take gifts to the sea at Atalaia beach, where Iemanjá also receives offerings. Since 2004, the procession of women from Afoxé Omo Oxum has taken place.
- Belém: on the turn from December 7 to 8, the offering goes to the fresh waters of Oxum, which take it to Iemanjá in the sea, according to researcher João Simões Cardoso Filho.
- Recife: there are those who go in the morning to mass at Morro da Conceição and in the afternoon to the toque at Sítio de Pai Adão, the oldest Nagô house in the state.
Syncretism is not equivalence
Conceição and Oxum were brought together, never merged. A Candomblé practitioner from Recife summarizes: "Our Lady of Conceição was Iemanjá. So in some way we needed to 'hide' behind these saints".
On July 27, 1983, five ialorixás from Salvador signed the manifesto "To the public and to the people of Candomblé" refusing syncretism. Among them were Mãe Menininha do Gantois and Mãe Stella de Oxóssi (Oshosi). Professor Wanderson Flor do Nascimento, from UnB, shows that the refusal recognized syncretism as a survival tactic and criticized its use outside of that context.
Not every terreiro thinks the same: there are houses in Recife that see syncretism as something positive. One Umbanda house summarizes the common point: syncretism brings symbols together, "but it does not mean that the two figures are exactly the same deity".
How to honor Oxum on December 8
If your house celebrates Oxum on December 8, the day follows what it teaches: go to your city's festival, light a yellow candle, take flowers and honey to the riverside. What is offered to Oxum, how to assemble it, and where to deliver it is in offering for Oxum.
If your house gives December 8 to Iemanjá, the tribute goes to her, and Oxum has her date on another day of the year. If in doubt about the candle or the statue the house requested, speak with us via WhatsApp. Those who still do not know which orixá they are children of can start with the discover your orixá test.
Frequently asked questions
December 8 is the day of which orixá?
It depends on the place. It is the day of Oxum in Rio Grande do Sul, in Sergipe, and in houses that link the orixá to Our Lady of the Conception. It is the day of Iemanjá in Recife, in São Paulo, and in the Ketu Candomblé described by Prandi. Salvador has both readings.
Why is December 8th the day of Oxum?
Because it is the day of Our Lady of the Conception, the saint that syncretism brought close to Oxum in the South and in Sergipe. In Porto Alegre, the Day of Oxum on December 8th has been a municipal law since 2010.
Is the day of Oxum December 8th or October 12th?
Both dates exist. December 8th comes from Our Lady of the Conception, and October 12th comes from Aparecida, who is a statue of the Conception. Your house says which one it follows.
Is Our Lady of the Conception Oxum or Iemanjá in umbanda?
It varies from house to house. Terreiros studied by UFJF celebrate the festival of Iemanjá on December 8th; in the South, the date is for Oxum. In neither of them is the saint and the orixá the same.
References
- Vatican News: Immaculate Conception
- Prandi (1995): African gods in contemporary Brazil
- Folha de Pernambuco (2022): Aparecida and Oxum
- Vallado (2010): Iemanjá, the powerful mother
- Barros, UFJF (2006): dissertation
- Aguiar, UEM (2014): festas de Iemanjá e Oxum
- Pereira (2018): Oxum e a Conceição em Rio Grande
- Câmara de Porto Alegre: PLL 066/24
- Prefeitura de Porto Alegre: Festa de Oxum
- REVER, PUC-SP (2019): a imagem de Aparecida
- flor do nascimento, UnB (2017): o manifesto de 1983
- Brasil de Fato (2018): Pernambuco e Salvador
- A Tarde (2026): feriados
- FUCESP: Oxum
- TUCTVC, casa de umbanda: Oxum
