kami
n. plural-onlyn. the spirits or gods that people respect in the Shinto religion of Japan. They can be found in nature, like in trees, mountains, or the wind.
n. the spirits, deities, or holy powers venerated in Shintoism. Refers to a wide range of entities including natural forces, landscape features, and ancestral spirits.
The local people built a shrine to honor the mountain kami.
In Shinto belief, kami reside in all things, from ancient cedar trees to the flowing waters of a river.
The concept of kami is central to Japanese spirituality, representing a sacred essence that connects the human world with the divine forces of the natural environment.
Borrowed from Japanese 神 (kami, “god, spirit, deity”).
Borrowed from Japanese 紙 (kami, “paper”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Often treated as a plural noun in English to refer to the collective spirits of Shinto, though it can also refer to a single deity.
Last updated May 11, 2026