“Championing Folk Midwifery™ as Intangible Cultural Heritage”

Welcome to the Global Home of Folk Midwives™ & Birth Priestesses™—A Sacred, Protected, Autonomous Tradition.

“A patent-pending, spiritual, cultural, and ancestral birthwork system. Public & private offerings available.”

Explore Public Offerings & Services

The Midwifery Folklorist™, LLC Services

✔ Books, Publications & Policy Archives
✔ Public Speaking & Keynotes
✔ Consulting & Ethnographic Midwifery Research ✔Museum Exhibits & Curation

Join Our Private Membership

Private Membership Services

✔ Folk Midwife™ Designation
✔ Birth & Midwife Priestess™ Initiation
✔ Legal Advocacy & Global Community ✔Conference & Global Directory

  • ✔ Folk Midwife™ (FM) → Foundational training in Cultural & Spiritual Midwifery and Ancestral Birthwork practices, oral histories, rituals, plant medicine, and basic community care.

    ✔ Advanced Folk Midwife™ (AFM) → Apprenticeship-based learning with elder midwives, focusing on advanced ceremonial care, cultural rituals, and maternal health techniques.

    ✔ Elder Folk Midwife-Teacher™ (EFM-T) → Leadership training for midwives who become educators, policy advocates, and cultural preservationists.

  • Cultural and spiritual midwifery has existed since antiquity and for over a century, it has been strategically erased significantly from communities across the globe, replaced with medicalized versions of midwifery void of cultural, spiritual and true physiological care, and forced out of access for families who desire sacred and communal care throughout the childbirthing journey.

    The Folk Midwife™ Pathway—through a Private Membership Organization—restores Folk Midwifery™ to its place of honor and provides education and designation through a protected lineage to preserve, protect and make folk midwifery-an intangible cultural heritage-accessible to all who desires its care.

    True indigenous birthing care practices are almost extinct, being replaced by hybrid forms of modern medicalized care. To ensure Folk Midwifery™ remains alive, thriving and accessible to cultural communities globally, it is offered through a legally protected process for members of the Global Folk Midwife Alliance™:

    ✔ The title "Folk Midwife™" is a legally protected framework and designation, only available through the Global Folk Midwife Alliance™ and Foundation™ and may NOT be used outside of the GFMA and GFMF recognition process.

    ✔ All training, certification, and teachings are provided exclusively within a Private Membership and is not accessible to the general public.

    ✔ Unauthorized use or commercialization of this title is strictly prohibited.

What is Folk Midwifery™?

Folk Midwifery™ is a sacred, spiritual, cultural and protected—structured midwifery system—designed to train, recognize, and empower midwives through a culturally rooted, three-tiered designation process. Rooted in the patent-pending Folk Midwife™ Designation Pathway—invented by Okunsola M. Amadou—this training honors the global ancestral knowledge, rituals, and community-based maternal care practices that have been historically marginalized. This system ensures that Folk Midwifery™ is preserved and globally acknowledged as a respected field through sacred cultural preservation practices.

The title Folk Midwife™ is reserved for and may only be carried by those who are members of the Global Folk Midwife Alliance™, and have successfully completed the educational, training and apprenticeship components of the Folk Midwife™ designation pathway. Upon completion of the respective components, the Folk Midwife™ title is awarded by the Global Folk Midwife Foundation™ (GFMF), a Private Membership Organization (PMO). This spiritual and cultural system maintains the integrity and lineage of this sacred tradition.

This ensures the highest level of training in cultural midwifery, ancestral birthwork, and advocacy, equipping midwives to preserve, practice, and lead within this tradition, preventing further erasure of indigenous and cultural birthing care practices.

To learn more about Folk Midwifery™, click below.

The Birth Priestess™

The Birth Priestess™ also known as the Midwife Priestess™—is a sacred, initiatory role exclusively preserved within the sacred birth worker temple-Ile Asé Omi Orun™-a Private cultural and spiritual Membership Organization (PMO), through the Balewa Yoruba lineage of Priestess Okunsola M. Amadou, dedicated to the revitalization of African Indigenous Pre-Colonial Midwifery™ traditions. Rooted in the patent-pending “African Indigenous Pre-Colonial Midwifery Framework™” invented by Okunsola, this training is a spiritual and cultural reclamation of midwifery as an ancestral birthright. Birth Priestesses™ serve as spiritual birth guides, cultural midwives, and lineage protectors, ensuring that the sacred rites of birth remain aligned with traditional African cosmologies, including Ifa-Orisa, Vodun-Afa, and Mami Wata spiritual systems. This path is not simply a training—it is an initiatory journey of deep transformation, requiring commitment, divine alignment, and ancestral approval.

Available Exclusively With Private Membership

The Birth & Midwife Priestess™ title is a sacred priestess lineage, reserved for those called to Priestesshood, and not offered to the general public. The Birth Priestess™ title is legally protected and may only be carried by those who undergo the full initiation process within Ile Asé Omi Orun (PMO). This is a closed, private pathway that is:

✔ Rooted in sacred African Indigenous spiritual traditions (Ifa-Orisa, Vodun-Afa, Mami Wata).
✔ Available only through initiation, training, and direct mentorship from lineage-holding Priestesses.
✔ A sacred role that blends Ancestral Birthwork, Cultural Midwifery, and spiritual birth work care.

Not everyone is called to be a Birth Priestess™. Not everyone is accepted on this path for this lineage. This is not a profession, but a divine calling. Those chosen must be aligned with the ancestral wisdom and spiritual responsibility required to uphold this sacred path, and must be accepted into the Ile.

To learn more about the Birth & Midwife Priestess™ private membership, click below.

The Midwifery Folklorists™’ Calling

The Midwifery Folklorist™ is a bridge between the past and the present, uncovering the untold stories, practices, and rituals of midwives across time and cultures, with a special focus on coastal communities.

I’m Okunsola M. Amadou, also known as The Midwifery Folklorist™—a midwife, Midwifery Historian, and guardian of Ancestral Birthwork traditions. After a decade of balancing westernized clinical and traditional midwifery while founding and leading Jamaa Birth Village—a multi-award-winning historic midwifery clinic and Black Maternal Health organization—I answered a deep spiritual calling to preserve the wisdom, folklore, and sacred traditions of ancestral, cultural and spiritual midwives worldwide.

Priestess | Seer | Cultural Preservationist | Midwifery Historian

As an initiated Vodun-Mami Wata, Ifa & Orisa Priestess and a Museum Studies scholar, I am on a mission to document, protect, and share the rich, sacred lineage of Folk Midwifery, with a specialty and focus on water communities across the globe. In Autumn of 2024, I embarked on a two-year independent field study, traveling across regions to preserve oral histories, ceremonies, and ancestral midwifery knowledge, beginning in the New Orleans Bayou.

Preserving the Legacy. Reclaiming the Future.

Through research, storytelling, public education, and advocacy, I aim to bridge ancestral knowledge with modern birthwork, ensuring that the wisdom of Folk Midwives™ & Birth Priestesses™ is never lost.

Review my Mission, Vision and Divine Purpose Below:

  • The sacred mission of The Midwifery Folklorist™ is to preserve, celebrate, and exhibit the rich traditions and cultural heritage of Folk Midwifery™ & Birth Priestesses™ through research, community storytelling, historic education, and global advocacy. By documenting and protecting the practices of Folk Midwives™ and Birth Priestesses™, this work ensures the survival and resurgence of a nearly lost sacred tradition, safeguarding its wisdom for future generations.

  • The Midwifery Folklorist™ envisions a world where Folk Midwifery™ and sacred pre-colonial & traditional birthing practices like Birth Priestesses™—are recognized, honored, and protected as vital pillars of human history. This vision fuels a movement advocating for the decriminalization, legal protection, and elevation of Folk Midwives™ globally—ensuring that families have the right to access ancestral birthwork and cultural midwifery care to not only survive but thrive in childbirth. Through education, policy engagement, and cultural documentation, we aim to restore and uphold the dignity of Folk Midwifery™ worldwide.

  • To serve as a global thought leader in Folk Midwifery™, advancing the fields of Cultural Midwifery, Ancestral Birthwork, and traditional birthing studies through research, education, and advocacy. This work bridges the gap between historical midwifery traditions and modern maternal health systems—ensuring that ancestral knowledge is not only preserved but actively integrated into academic, community, and policy frameworks.

Restoring Folk Midwifery™ to Its Place of Honor

Global Recognition for Folk Midwives™

Join the movement to honor and elevate Folk Midwifery™ as an autonomous, legally protected midwifery system that stands apart from folk medicine.

Through historical preservation, policy advocacy, and global recognition efforts, The Midwifery Folklorist™ works to reestablish Folk Midwives™ as essential cultural and maternal health leaders, ensuring their contributions are preserved, respected, and integrated into contemporary maternal health frameworks.

By securing official recognition, we safeguard the legacy, dignity, and future of Folk Midwifery™ for generations to come.

Folk Midwife™ Marketplace

Explore The Midwifery Folklorist™ Marketplace, a carefully curated collection of handcrafted artifacts, sacred tools, and rare historical items that celebrate the artistry and cultural legacy of Folk Midwifery™.

This marketplace serves as both an economic support system for traditional artisans and a platform for preserving the tangible heritage of midwifery across cultures.

Every purchase directly contributes to sustaining ancestral birthwork, funding research, and supporting midwives worldwide. Browse authentic, ethically sourced items that honor the sacred lineage of midwifery."

Educational Opportunities

Expand your knowledge of Folk Midwifery™ through exclusive educational offerings, including college-level courses, research-based articles, archival collections, and immersive workshops led by The Midwifery Folklorist™. Our platform provides in-depth exploration of cultural midwifery practices, ancestral birthwork, and the historical evolution of maternal care. Stay engaged through thought-provoking blogs, newsletters, and specialized training opportunities designed for scholars, birthworkers, and advocates committed to reclaiming and preserving midwifery traditions. Whether you are deepening your academic research or seeking to integrate traditional midwifery into your practice, these educational tools empower you to learn, advocate, and grow.

Folk Midwife™ Newsletter

Stay connected with the evolving world of Folk Midwifery™ through exclusive content delivered directly to your inbox. The Folk Midwife™ Newsletter provides you with research insights, inspiring stories of ancestral midwives, policy updates, and a deeper exploration of traditional birthwork practices from around the globe.

Each issue is a step toward reclaiming, preserving, and honoring the sacred lineage of Ancestral Birthwork and Cultural Midwifery. Join our community of birthworkers, scholars, and advocates who are committed to restoring the wisdom of Folk Midwifery™ for future generations.