ANIMISM

animism

(noun) the doctrine that all natural objects and the universe itself have souls; “animism is common among primitive peoples”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

animism (countable and uncountable, plural animisms)

A belief that spirits inhabit some or all classes of natural objects or phenomena.

A belief that an immaterial force animates the universe.

(dated) A doctrine that animal life is produced by an immaterial spirit.

Coordinate terms

Source: Wiktionary


An"i*mism, n. Etym: [Cf. F. animisme, fr. L. anima soul. See Animate.]

1. The doctrine, taught by Stahl, that the soul is the proper principle of life and development in the body.

2. The belief that inanimate objects and the phenomena of nature are endowed with personal life or a living soul; also, in an extended sense, the belief in the existence of soul or spirit apart from matter. Tylor.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

17 May 2025

ANTHOZOAN

(noun) sessile marine coelenterates including solitary and colonial polyps; the medusoid phase is entirely suppressed


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Coffee Trivia

The earliest credible evidence of coffee-drinking as the modern beverage appeared in modern-day Yemen. In the middle of the 15th century in Sufi shrines where coffee seeds were first roasted and brewed for drinking. The Yemenis procured the coffee beans from the Ethiopian Highlands.

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