animism

animism
The view that all things in nature, both animate and inanimate, contain a spirit or soul; held by primitive peoples and young children. SEE ALSO: animatism. [L. anima, soul]

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an·i·mism 'an-ə-.miz-əm n
1) a doctrine that the vital principle of organic development is immaterial spirit
2) attribution of conscious life to nature or natural objects
an·i·mist -məst n
an·i·mis·tic .an-ə-'mis-tik adj

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an·i·mism (anґĭ-miz-əm) [L. anima soul] the belief that nonliving objects and phenomena (such as clouds) are inhabited and motivated by a nonphysical agent; it is a characteristic of the thinking of early childhood.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • Animism — (from Latin anima soul, life )[1][2] refers to the belief that non human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life principle.[3] Animism encompasses the beliefs that there is no separation between the spiritual and… …   Wikipedia

  • Animism — • The doctrine or theory of the soul Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Animism     Animism     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • animism — ANIMÍSM s.n. Formă primitivă a religiei, când oamenii credeau în spirite şi în existenţa unor duhuri ale obiectelor (plante, ape etc.); spiritualizare, personificare a forţelor şi a fenomenelor naturii. – Din fr. animisme. Trimis de ana zecheru,… …   Dicționar Român

  • Animism — has been applied to many different philosophical systems. It is used to describe Aristotle s view of the relation of soul and body held also by the stoics and scholastics. On the other hand monadology (Leibniz) has also been termed animistic. The …   Mini philosophy glossary

  • Animism — An i*mism, n. [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. [1913 Webster] 2. The belief that inanimate objects and the phenomena… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • animism — (n.) 1866, reintroduced by English anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett Taylor (1832 1917), who defined it (1871) as the theory of the universal animation of nature, from L. anima life, breath, soul. Earlier sense was of doctrine that animal life is …   Etymology dictionary

  • animism — ► NOUN ▪ the belief that plants and inanimate objects have souls. DERIVATIVES animist noun animistic adjective. ORIGIN from Latin anima life, soul …   English terms dictionary

  • animism — [an′i miz΄əm] n. [Fr animisme & Ger animismus, both < L anima, soul: see ANIMAL & ISM] 1. the doctrine that all life is produced by a spiritual force separate from matter 2. the belief that all natural phenomena have souls independent of their …   English World dictionary

  • animism — animist, adj. animistic, adj. /an euh miz euhm/, n. 1. the belief that natural objects, natural phenomena, and the universe itself possess souls. 2. the belief that natural objects have souls that may exist apart from their material bodies. 3.… …   Universalium

  • Animism —    Arguably the proper label for the type of religion practiced among traditional indigenous people who employ shamans. Rather than being “shamanists” or adherents of “shamanism,” these people may be usefully named “animists.” While the term was… …   Historical dictionary of shamanism

  • ANIMISM —    a very misleading term often used to characterize African and other non literate religious systems. The term was first introduced by Sir Edward B. TYLOR as a minimum definition of RELIGION. He argued that from sleep experiences, such as dreams …   Concise dictionary of Religion

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