Animism, << AN uh mihz uhm, >> is a term used to describe certain religious beliefs based upon the concept of a soul that departs the body after death. The British anthropologist Edward Burnett Tylor introduced the term in 1871, from the Latin word animae, which means souls or spirits. He argued that early people first developed the idea of the soul from dreams about the dead.
Scholars today have rejected Tylor’s theory. However, many believe that animism is the basis of later religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
