Human spirit noted in Asian capital (5)

I believe the answer is:

seoul

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'asian capital' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'human spirit noted in' is the wordplay.
'human spirit' becomes 'soul' (I've seen this before).
'noted' becomes 'e' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'soul' enclosing 'e' is 'SEOUL'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for seoul that I've seen before include "South Korean capital" , "Capital city" , "19 [EASTERN] capital" , "Olympic venue" , "Asian capital" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

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