Bible Dictionaries
Animism

Webster's Dictionary

(1):

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

(2):

(n.) 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.

Bibliography Information
Webster, Noah. Entry for 'Animism'. Noah Webster's American Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​web/​a/animism.html. 1828.