1. Prehistoric Roots: Animism (c. 100,000 – 10,000 BCE)

The earliest evidence of "soul-like" thinking is found in Paleolithic burial rites.

Grave Goods: When early humans buried the dead with tools, jewelry, or food (as seen in Neanderthal and early Homo sapiens sites), it suggested a belief that some part of the person persisted and had needs in another realm.

Animism: Early humans likely believed in a "life force" that animated everything—people, animals, and even rocks. In many early languages, the word for "soul" is synonymous with "breath" or "shadow."

2. Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt (c. 3000 – 1000 BCE)

These civilizations were the first to codify the soul into complex systems.

Egypt: They believed the soul had multiple parts, most notably the Ka (vital essence) and the Ba (personality). For them, the soul wasn't just a ghost; it was a sophisticated machinery required for eternal life.

Mesopotamia: The Epic of Gilgamesh describes the "Etmu" (ghost), a shadow-like version of the self that dwelt in a dark underworld.

3. The Axial Age: The Great Shift (c. 800 – 200 BCE)

This is the era when the modern "individual soul" was truly born. Major shifts occurred simultaneously across the globe:

Culture : Ancient Greece
Concept: Psyche
Key Contribution: Plato argued the soul was immortal, existed before the body, and was the seat of reason.

Culture : Ancient India
Concept: Atman
Key Contribution: The Upanishads defined the soul as the eternal essence of a person, distinct from the physical body and subject to reincarnation.

Culture : Hebrew Tradition
Concept: Nephesh
Key Contribution: Originally meaning "living being" or "throat," it evolved from a physical life-breath into a more spiritualized concept over centuries.

4. The "Dualist" Revolution

The most influential turning point for Western thought came from the Platonic and Orphic traditions in Greece. They introduced Dualism: the idea that the body is a "prison" and the soul is the "true self."

This idea was later adopted by early Christian theologians like Augustine, who fused Greek philosophy with Biblical teachings, cementing the "soul" as a singular, eternal spark that determines one's fate in the afterlife.

Summary of Evolution

Breath: "I breathe, therefore I am alive."
Shadow: "There is a double of me that appears in dreams."
Essence: "There is an immortal part of me that is more 'me' than my body."

Note: Interestingly, some modern neuroscientists argue that the "soul" is an evolutionary byproduct—our brains are hardwired to perceive ourselves as separate from our physical movements to help us navigate social intentions.