“Spirit of place” is a translation of the Latin genius loci.
The Romans believed in a pantheon of gods, many
associated with specific places. Each house, town, grove,
and mountain was possessed by its own spirit that gave
identity to that place by presence and actions. Though
elements of a belief in sacred spirits of place persist—for
example, in geomancy and feng shui—spirit of place now
generally refers to a mostly secular quality, either
natural or built, that gives somewhere a distinctive
identity.