Sentence:  Although lacking a self-perpetuating institutional structure, <WSD>Obeah</WSD> was a crucial element of Afro-Caribbean religions everywhere from Suriname's Maroon societies (communities of runaway slaves) to the Leeward Islands' slave societies. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A form of folk magic, medicine or witchcraft originating in Africa and practised in parts of the Caribbean.