"The messengers from the afterlife have gone through a variety of makeovers over the centuries, and the word continues to influence the English language in many ways. Part of the reason for that, said Lisa Morton, author of Ghosts: A Haunted History, is just like ghosts themselves, our fascination with the afterlife just won't die. "I think one of the reasons we fear them is that sense that this is the worst part of us and this is what's going to survive after death,""
""All of [its meanings] centered on breath, life and the human spirit," and it was also used in Christian contexts like the notion of the Holy Ghost, said Jess Zafarris, author of Useless Etymology and other books about the origins of words. "These broad spiritual concepts predate the narrower idea of a ghost as a spooky creature or an apparition of a deceased person," Zafarris said."
The term traces to Old English gast, originally denoting breath, life, and the human spirit and appearing in Christian usage such as the Holy Ghost. Revenant figures appear in ancient literature, including Enkidu appearing to Gilgamesh and Odysseus encountering his mother's ghost. Over centuries the concept shifted from broad spiritual and life-related meanings toward the narrower notion of an apparition of a deceased person. The image of pale, otherworldly apparitions became common in modern popular culture and holiday iconography, while the word continued to adapt and influence English usage.
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