Definition

Noun: 1. A system of belief or social organization: Totemism is a belief system or social structure in which a human group (such as a clan or family) considers itself to have a spiritual connection or kinship with a particular natural object, animal, or plant, known as a totem. This totem often serves as a symbol and emblem of the group. 2. An anthropological concept: In anthropology and sociology, totemism refers to the complex of ideas and practices based on the totemic relationship, which can include taboos, rituals, and social regulations associated with the totem.

Usage Examples

• The anthropologist studied the totemism of the indigenous tribe, focusing on their clan identities linked to animals.
• Totemism was a central feature of their cultural and social organization, dictating marriage rules and ceremonial roles.
• In some belief systems, totemism involves a prohibition against harming or eating one's clan totem.

Advanced Usage

• Structuralist interpretations: In academic discourse, scholars like Claude Lévi-Strauss analyzed totemism not merely as a religion but as a system of classification and a way for human societies to conceptualize their relationship with nature.
• Decline of classical theories: Modern anthropology often discusses totemism as a category constructed by early ethnographers, questioning whether it constitutes a single, unified phenomenon across different cultures.

Variants and Related Words

• Totem (n): The animal, plant, or natural object that serves as the emblem or symbol of a family or clan.
  • The bear was the sacred totem of the northern clan.
• Totemic (adj): Relating to or characteristic of a totem or totemism.
  • The carvings had deep totemic significance for the community.

Synonyms

• Animism: (Note: While related, animism is a broader belief that spirits inhabit natural objects and phenomena, not necessarily creating kinship-based group identities.)
• Clan system: (Specifically when the system is organized around symbolic totemic affiliations.)

Idioms and Phrases

(While there are no common idioms using "totemism" itself, the concept is central to phrases involving "totem.") * Totem pole: Literally, a pole carved with totemic symbols. Figuratively, it can refer to a hierarchy. * He is low on the corporate totem pole. (This idiom uses the concept but is a distinct cultural reference.)

Noun

1. belief in the kinship of a group of people with a common totem