Spirit (noun) from Old French spirit, from the Latin spiritus, meaning "breath." 

1): the nonphysical part of a person which is the seat of emotions and character

2): those qualities regarded as forming the definitive or typical elements in the character of a person, nation, or group or in the thought and attitudes of a particular period.

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Spiritism is the creation of the French educator Hyppolyte Leon Denizard Rivail (1804–1869), who used the name Allan Kardec for his Spiritist writings. The term was first used in The Spirits Book, which sought to  distinguish Spiritism from Spiritualism. Spiritism incorporates the mediumistic methods of the American Spiritualism” of the Fox sisters but is more Christian though it also incorporates reincarnation.

      Spiritism quickly spread from France to Cuba and Brazil, where in some instances it blended with Cuban and Brazilian African traditions. Spiritism is currently represented in 35 countries by the International Spiritist Council. It has the greatest number of adherents in Brazil.

      Elements of Spiritism can alsobe found in Cao Dai, a Vietnamese religion which originated in 1926 by three spirit mediums who claimed to have received messages that identified Allan Kardec as a prophet of a new universal religion.

      Modern Spiritualism, at least that segment of it espoused by the National Spiritualist Association of Churches, denies, as fantasy, the doctrine of reincarnation. Yet, recent surveys indicate clearly that the majority of Americans, including Spiritualists, do believe in reincarnation.

      From its initiation, the New Age Movement has been involved in various aspects of Spiritualism, i.e. channeling, etc..