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Pneuma (πνεῦμα) is an ancient Greek word for "breath", and in a religious context for "spirit" or "soul".[1][2] It has various technical meanings for medical writers and philosophers of classical antiquity, particularly in regard to physiology, and is also used in Greek translations of ruach רוח in the Hebrew Bible, and in the Greek New Testament. In classical philosophy, it is distinguishable from psyche (ψυχή), which originally meant "breath of life", but is regularly translated as "spirit" or most often "soul".[3]
Greek word ψυχή (psyche) was "life" in the sense of "breath", formed from the verb ψύχω (psycho, "to blow"). Derived meanings included "spirit", "soul", "ghost", and ultimately "self" in the sense of "conscious personality" or "psyche".[2][3] The association of "spirit" and "breath" is not unique to Greek or western cultures. The Chinese character for "spirit", "soul" is 魂 (hún, simplified) which is the merging of 云 (yún) and 鬼 (guǐ). 云 is commonly used as "clouds" but also as "breath" in expressions such as 吞云吐雾 (smoking or vaping). 鬼 is simply "ghost" or "spirit". The linkages between "spirit" and "breath" were formed independently by ancient people who at the time did not have any real contact with one another.