spirituali

Spirituali is the Italian term that functions as the plural form of the adjective spirituale, meaning relating to the spirit, religion, or non-material aspects of life. It can also be used as a generic noun in some contexts to refer to spiritual matters or to people engaged with spiritual concerns, depending on how it is framed within a sentence.

Etymology and meaning. The word derives from Latin spiritualis, from spiritus (spirit). In Italian, spirituale and its plural spirituali are used across religious, philosophical, and cultural discourse to describe things connected with inner life, contemplation, and religious experience. The nuance of meaning shifts with context, from personal spirituality to symbolic or cultural expressions of the sacred.

Usage in Italian. In contemporary Italian, phrases such as vita spirituale (spiritual life), pratica spirituale (spiritual practice), and cultura spirituale (spiritual culture) are common. As an attributive plural, spirituali can modify nouns denoting activities, communities, or ideas tied to the inner, immaterial dimension of existence. It does not denote a formal movement by itself, but rather an adjectival or nominal descriptor used across diverse contexts.

Relation to related terms. Spirituali is related to spiritualità (spirituality), which names the broader concept. It may appear alongside terms like filosofia, teologia, and pratica religiosa in academic or literary writing. In English-language texts, spirituali is usually translated as “spiritual,” and capitalization or capitalization-based references would depend on whether a specific organization or title is being referenced.

See also: spirituality, spiritualism, spiritualità.