For 2027, the ruling orixá most cited is Iemanjá, because January 1st falls on a Friday. Oxalá comes right after. In Candomblé, however, the ruling orixá only comes out in the cowrie-shell divination of the turn, and it applies to the house that cast.
Each name circulating has a method behind it. Below is who has already announced, how they reached the result, and when your house should perform the cowrie-shell divination.
What is the ruling orixá of 2027
Turn of 2027: Friday, January 1st | Most cited: Iemanjá | Second name: Oxalá | In Candomblé: comes out in the cowrie-shell divination of the turn, house by house
Until October 26, 2026, these were the announcements for 2027 that we found, with each one's method:
| Who announced | Regent of 2027 | Method | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Ogum (Ogun) Megê | Iemanjá, and Oxalá starting from the second semester | cowrie shells (búzios) of the house's Preto Velho | October 2026 |
| Astrocentro (astrology portal) | Iemanjá | day of the week of January 1st | August 2026 |
| Bem Zen (astrology portal) | Iemanjá | table of days of the week with orixás of the batuque | 2021 |
| Ifá of Ilé-Ifẹ̀ (Nigeria) | Òsá Méjì, which is odu and not orixá | Ifá ritual in the Yoruba new year | June 2026 |
| Casas de candomblé | there are none yet | cowrie-shell divination on New Year's Eve | January 1st, 2027 |
The only announcement with a reading already cast is from a house of Umbanda. In the Luz de Umbanda blog, Carlos de Ogum, from the Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Ogum Megê, tells that Preto Velho Rei Congo "cast his cowrie shells (búzios)" and that the result was confirmed by other pretos velhos of the house. The text, from October 15, 2026, says that the house will work "with the force of Iemanjá as the main reference for the year, having Oxalá as the force of balance, serenity, and wisdom starting from the second semester."
This applies to that chain. The rule that the ruling orixá is from the house is further down, in why each house has its ruling orixá.
Why Iemanjá appears so much for 2027
Almost every "Iemanjá 2027" on the internet comes from the same shortcut: the orixá of the day of the week that January 1st falls on. Astrocentro says that, by this method, "2027 will be ruled by Iemanjá", and admits that it "is not a fixed rule of the original African traditions."
The detail that almost no one explains is that the answer depends on the table:
- In the most widespread Umbanda table, Friday is Oxalá's. Iemanjá gets Saturday, as shown in our guide of the days of the week of the orixás. By this table, 2027 would be Oxalá's.
- In the gaúcho batuque, Friday is Iemanjá's. The batuque on Wikipedia entry gives her Friday and Saturday. The Bem Zen table puts Iemanjá, Bará Agelu, Odé, and Otim, names from the gaúcho cult, on Friday, and marks 2027 as the year of Iemanjá.
- A house of batuque has already tested Friday. Fortaleza Ilê Orixá, in Gravataí, followed the day of the week until 2016. January 1, 2016, also fell on a Friday, and the ruling orixá was Iemanjá. The case is in ruling orixá in batuque.
That is: the Iemanjá of 2027 matches the batuque and the divination of an umbanda house. Oxalá matches the most common umbanda table. Neither of them is the ruling orixá of candomblé, which has not cast yet.
If 2027 is of Iemanjá in your house, her colors are light blue, white, and silver, and the greeting is "Odoyá!", as it is in the profile of who is Iemanjá. If it is of Oxalá, the color is white and the greeting is "Epa Babá!", as shown in who is Oxalá. What is taken to her on the turn is in Iemanjá in the new year, and what goes in the alguidar, in offering for Iemanjá.
When the regent comes out in the candomblé
| Tradition | Who defines | When | Has 2027 already come out? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Candomblé | the keeper of the house, in the búzios | dawn of January 1st, or in the first days | no |
| Batuque (RS) | the orixá of the day of the week, or the house's cowrie-shell divination | on the turn | only by the table |
| Umbanda | varies: divination, day of the week, or planet | varies | one house has already announced |
| Letter of the Year (Cuba) | babalaôs of two spirits | December 31 to January 2 | no |
| Ifá in Ilé-Ifẹ̀ (Nigeria) | the Araba Agbaye, chief priest of Ifá | June, in the Yoruba new year | yes: Òsá Méjì |
In Salvador, the newspaper Correio heard from pais de santo about the subject in 2016. Pai Balbino, from Ilê Axé Opô Aganjú, explained that the cowrie-shell divination happens "at dawn on the first day of the year, more precisely at 6am". In the same Correio report, Pai Air José, from Terreiro Pilão de Prata, states that it is an error to see the regency before the first day of the year.
Not every house performs the divination on the 1st. Pai Bira de Xangô (Shango) leads Ilê Axé Oju Olá Ogo Odô. In 2021, he told Correio that in his house, the divination of the regents is done on the third day of the year.
The professor and babalorixá Vilson Caetano, from UFBA, described the rite to Correio in 2021. The children of santo spend the turn of the year at the terreiro. In the first hours of January 1st, they fill the quartinhas of the orixás with new water.
Shortly after comes the divination. In his words, "the person responsible for the house goes to the cowrie-shell divination and consults which paths will rule that community". The divination shows the orixás of the year and also what to do to attract good and ward off misfortune.
For Vilson Caetano, announcing the regent before the time "would be like registering a child before they are born". The quartinha is explained in what is quartinha, and the oracle in what is the cowrie-shell divination.
Why each house has its regent
The point that is most lost on the internet is this: the ruling orixá is not of the world, it is of the house. Who said this with the most clarity was Mãe Stella de Oxóssi, ialorixá of Ilê Axé Opô Afonjá, in a 2012 article in the newspaper A Tarde, reproduced on the blog O Candomblé.
“The correct question is not which orixá rules the year, but rather which orixá rules the year for those people who worship the deities and are linked to the community in which the cowrie-shell divination was used.” (Mãe Stella de Oxóssi, 2012)
In Opô Afonjá, the ruling orixá of 2012 was Xangô. But she warned that he “is not commanding the entire world, nor even Brazil or Bahia.” Pai Bira said the same in 2021: it is a mistake to think that the divination of one house applies to the entire country.
Therefore, two serious houses can announce different orixás for the same year, and both can be correct. This is what happened in 2026, with Ogum on one side and Oxóssi on the other. The list of what each house said is in ruling orixá of 2026.
The other shortcuts: planet and sum of the digits
Besides the day of the week, two shortcuts that do not involve the cowrie shell also appear in searches.
The planet of the year. Popular astrology gives each year a ruling planet, in a fixed row of seven celestial bodies. According to its calculations, the Sun takes over on March 20, 2027, after Mars in 2026, according to Astrocentro. In 2026, the Mars and Ogum bridge helped spread the name of Ogum. We did not find a terreiro source that links the Sun of 2027 to an orixá.
The sum of the digits. There are those who add 2 + 0 + 2 + 7 and arrive at 11, the number of open cowrie shells of the odu Owonrin in the Brazilian order. Ifá priests contest this calculation, and the reason is in odu of the year.
No shortcut replaces the cowrie-shell divination (jogo). They explain why the internet disagrees, but they do not say which orixá will rule your house.
Cuba and Nigeria: the letter and the odu of the year
Two traditions from outside Brazil also announce regents, and each has its own calendar.
In Cuba, the Letra of the Year comes out on New Year's Eve. Two babalawo organizations have been drawing separate letras since 2021. The one for 2026 from the Asociación Cultural Yoruba de Cuba was revealed on January 1st: Oggún regent, Oshún companion, according to IPS Cuba. The one from the Comisión Miguel Febles Padrón, released between January 1st and 2nd, gave Oggún with Oyá. The one for 2027 should follow the same calendar.
In Nigerian Ifá, the one for 2027 is already out. The Yoruba year begins at the end of May or in June. On June 7, 2026, in Òkè-Ìtàsẹ́, Ilé-Ifẹ̀, the revealed odu was Òsá Méjì, according to the Ilé Awo temple. It is valid until the Yoruba New Year of 2027.
The odu is not an orixá. It is a sign of the oracle, and the difference is explained in odu of the year.
What to do while your house has not performed the jogo
If you are from a terreiro, the regent that counts is the one your house announces. Ask your zelador when the divination will be held, which table the house follows, and if there is an obrigação on New Year's Eve.
Three precautions apply to everyone:
- Take care of your head orixá. It does not change with the year. If you still do not know which one it is, the cowrie-shell reading with your house is the path, and the discover your orixá test is just a first clue.
- Do not pay for "official prediction". There is no national regent of Candomblé. Whoever sells one is someone speaking about their own house or a table.
- Wear white, if you wish. The white of New Year's Eve comes from the Iemanjá festivals on the beach, as shown in why wear white on New Year's. The color for your request is in the New Year's clothing color test.
Frequently asked questions
What is the ruling orixá of 2027?
The most cited name is Iemanjá, because January 1, 2027, falls on a Friday and the batuque tables give Friday to her. An Umbanda house that throws cowrie shells also announced Iemanjá, with Oxalá in the second semester. In Candomblé, each house only discovers the ruling orixá in the New Year's cowrie-shell reading.
Is 2027 the year of Iemanjá or Oxalá?
It depends on the table. In the most widespread Umbanda table, Friday belongs to Oxalá, and by that, 2027 would be his. In the records of Gaucho batuque, Friday belongs to Iemanjá. The Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Ogum Megê announced both: Iemanjá as the main one and Oxalá starting from the second semester.
When is the ruling orixá of the year revealed?
In the houses of Salvador heard by Correio, the divination (jogo) is done at dawn on January 1, after filling the quartinhas. Some houses do it on the third day of the year. In Cuba, the Letra do Ano comes out between December 31 and January 2. In Ilé-Ifẹ̀, the odu comes out in June.
Does the ruling orixá of the year apply to everyone?
No. Mãe Stella de Oxóssi wrote in 2012 that the ruling orixá revealed in the cowrie-shell divination applies to those who are connected to the house where it was performed. That is why different houses announce different orixás in the same year. For your life, what matters is your head orixá and what your house guides you on.
Does the ruling orixá of the year change my head orixá?
No. The ruling orixá of the year is a regency of time, announced for the community. The head orixá is personal and is discovered through cowrie-shell divination, generally before rites such as the bori. The two coexist: the year can be of Iemanjá and your head can continue to be of Ogum.
Will your house ask for a white candle, a new quartinha, or a bead necklace for the turn? The shop in Extrema, Minas Gerais separates and sends all over Brazil: seven day candles, clay quartinhas, bead necklaces (guias) and orixá statues. Just message us on Joia Mística's WhatsApp.
References
- SANTOS, Maria Stella de Azevedo (Mãe Stella de Oxóssi). Jornal A Tarde, 2012, reproduced in O Candomblé. Ruling orixá
- BARRETO, Lucy. Jornal Correio, 2016. Find out what the energy of the new year's ruling orixá will be
- LYRIO, Alexandre. Jornal Correio, 2021. In the lap of Oxum and Oxalá: orixás that will rule 2021
- Jornal Correio, 2021. Oxum, Nanã and Iemanjá: orixás that will rule 2022
- CARLOS DE OGUM. Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Ogum Megê, blog Luz de Umbanda, 2026. Ruling orixás of 2027
- Bem Zen. Ruling orixás in the coming years until 2034
- Wikipedia. Batuque (religion)
- Fortaleza Ilê Orixá, Gravataí (RS). Ruling orixás in the Fortaleza
- IPS Cuba, 2026. Letra del año de 2026
- Ilé Awo. Oke Itase 2026
- CRIVELLI, Katrina. Astrocentro, 2026. Ruling orixá of 2027 and Ruling planet of 2027
