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.
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.
© Webster 1913.