Totem: Difference between revisions
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{{Anthropology of religion|Basic|image=[[File:Kwakiutl1.jpg|center| 255px]]|caption=A [[totem pole]] in [[Ottawa]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]}} |
{{Anthropology of religion|Basic|image=[[File:Kwakiutl1.jpg|center| 255px]]|caption=A [[totem pole]] in [[Ottawa]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]}} |
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A '''totem''' ([[Ojibwe language|Ojibwe]] ''dodaem'') is a spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem of a group of [[people]], such as a [[family]], [[clan]], [[lineage (anthropology)|lineage]], or [[tribe]]. While the term "totem" is Ojibwe, belief in [[Tutelary deity|tutelary spirits and deities]] is not limited to [[indigenous peoples of the Americas]] but common to a number of cultures worldwide, such as Africa, Arabia, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Arctic. However, the traditional people of those cultures have words for their guardian spirits in their own languages, and do not call these spirits or symbols, "totems". Contemporary [[Neoshamanism|neoshamanic]], [[New Age]] and [[mythopoetic men's movement]]s not otherwise involved in the practice of a tribal religion may [[cultural appropriation|misappropriate]] and use "totem" terminology for the personal identification with a tutelary spirit or [[Spirit guide|guide]].<ref name="Hobson">Hobson, G. "The Rise of the White Shaman as a New Version of Cultural Imperialism." in: Hobson, Gary, ed. ''The Remembered Earth''. Albuquerque, NM: Red Earth Press; 1978: 100-108.</ref><ref name="Aldred">Aldred, Lisa, "Plastic Shamans and Astroturf Sun Dances: New Age Commercialization of Native American Spirituality" in: ''The American Indian Quarterly'' issn.24.3 (2000) pp.329-352. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. |
A '''totem''' ([[Ojibwe language|Ojibwe]] ''dodaem'') is a spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem of a group of [[people]], such as a [[family]], [[clan]], [[lineage (anthropology)|lineage]], or [[tribe]]. While the term "totem" is Ojibwe, belief in [[Tutelary deity|tutelary spirits and deities]] is not limited to [[indigenous peoples of the Americas]] but common to a number of cultures worldwide, such as Africa, Arabia, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Arctic. However, the traditional people of those cultures have words for their guardian spirits in their own languages, and do not call these spirits or symbols, "totems". Contemporary [[Neoshamanism|neoshamanic]], [[New Age]] and [[mythopoetic men's movement]]s not otherwise involved in the practice of a tribal religion may [[cultural appropriation|misappropriate]] and use "totem" terminology for the personal identification with a tutelary spirit or [[Spirit guide|guide]].<ref name="Hobson">Hobson, G. "The Rise of the White Shaman as a New Version of Cultural Imperialism." in: Hobson, Gary, ed. ''The Remembered Earth''. Albuquerque, NM: Red Earth Press; 1978: 100-108.</ref><ref name="Aldred">Aldred, Lisa, "Plastic Shamans and Astroturf Sun Dances: New Age Commercialization of Native American Spirituality" in: ''The American Indian Quarterly'' issn.24.3 (2000) pp.329-352. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.</ref> |
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==North America== |
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[[Image:Pro-Independence Flag of New Caledonia.svg|thumb|265px|Cultural flag of the [[Kanak people|Kanak community]], showing a ''flèche]] |
[[Image:Pro-Independence Flag of New Caledonia.svg|thumb|265px|Cultural flag of the [[Kanak people|Kanak community]], showing a ''flèche]] |
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The word totem comes from the |
The word totem comes from the [Ojibwe language|Ojibwe]] word ''odoodem'' [oˈtuːtɛm] or ''dodaem'', meaning "his kinship group".{{cn}} It is the symbol of hereditary clan affiliations. People from the same clan have the same clan totem and are considered immediate family. It is taboo to marry someone of the same clan.{{cn}} |
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The Ojibway scholar Basil H. Johnston defines dodaem, or totem, as "that from which I draw my purpose, meaning, and being |
The Ojibway scholar Basil H. Johnston defines dodaem, or totem, as "that from which I draw my purpose, meaning, and being."{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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In North America, there is a certain feeling of affinity between a kin group or clan and its totem. There are taboos against killing clan animals, as humans are kin to the animals whose totems they represent. In some cases, totem spirits are clan protectors and the center of religious activity.<ref>Encyclopedia of Native American Religions, page 307.</ref> |
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{{Main|Totem pole}} |
{{Main|Totem pole}} |
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[[Image:Totem Park pole 1.jpg|thumb|right|100px|A [[totem pole]] in Thunderbird Park, [[Victoria, British Columbia]]]] |
[[Image:Totem Park pole 1.jpg|thumb|right|100px|A [[totem pole]] in Thunderbird Park, [[Victoria, British Columbia]]]] |
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[[Totem pole]]s of the [[Pacific Northwest]] of [[North America]] are [[monument]]al poles of [[heraldry]] |
[[Totem pole]]s of the [[Pacific Northwest]] of [[North America]] are [[monument]]al poles of [[heraldry]]. |
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They feature many different designs (bears, birds, frogs, people, and various supernatural beings and aquatic creatures) that function as crests of families or chiefs. They recount stories owned by those families or chiefs, and/or commemorate special occasions. |
They feature many different designs (bears, birds, frogs, people, and various supernatural beings and aquatic creatures) that function as crests of families or chiefs. They recount stories owned by those families or chiefs, and/or commemorate special occasions. |
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==Possibly totemic culture in ancient China== |
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The [[Sanxingdui]] Culture in southern [[China]], dating back more than 5000 years, possibly placed bronze and gold heads on totems.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} Chinese transliterates ''totem'' as ''tuteng'' (圖騰). Sanxingdui bronze masks and heads ([[radiocarbon date]]d circa 1200<small>BCE</small>) appear to have been mounted on wooden poles. Some scholars{{Citation needed|date=October 2012}} have suggested that totemic culture spread from ancient [[Asian people|Asian]] populations to the rest of the world. Others conclude that [[totemism]] arose separately in numerous cultures; totemic cultures in North America are estimated to have been more than 10,000 years old.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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==Korean Jangseung== |
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A ''[[Jangseung]]'' or village guardian is a Korean carving, usually made of wood and bearing a resemblance to the [[totem pole]]s of North America. ''Jangseungs'' were traditionally placed at the edges of villages to mark village boundaries and frighten away demons or welcome people in. They were also worshipped as village [[tutelary deity|tutelary deities]]. ''Jangseungs'' were usually carved in the images of janguns (equivalent to admirals or generals) and their wives. Many ''jangseungs'' are also depicted laughing but in a frightening way. Many of the villages felt that the frightening laughter of the ''jangseungs'' would frighten away the demons because the ''jangseungs'' have no fear.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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== Totem beads in the Himalayan region == |
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In the Himalayan region as well as on the whole Tibetan plateau area and adjacent areas, certain beaded jewelry is believed to have totemistic capabilities. Tibetans in particular give much importance to heirloom beads such as [[dzi bead]]s. Though dzi beads were not produced in ancient Tibet, but by an unknown culture, most ancient dzi beads are owned by Tibetans. Different protective qualities depend on design, number of eyes, damage, color, shine, etc.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} They are decorated with the faces of lots of different birds like eagle's and hawks's. |
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==The ancient Polish ''rodnidze''== |
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The ''rodnidze'' known among the pre-Christian ancestors of the [[Poles]] is considered to have been roughly similar to the totem as mentioned above. In historical times, scholars considered that the animals and birds represented on the coats-of-arms of various Polish aristocratic clans may have been remnants of such totems (see [[Ślepowron coat of arms]] and [[Korwin coat of arms]], possible remnants of a raven-rodnidze).{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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==Anthropological perspectives== |
==Anthropological perspectives== |
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{{Main|Totemism}} |
{{Main|Totemism}} |
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[[Image:Chief Tantaquidgeon Totem KevinPepin.jpg|thumb|270px|Personal Totem of [[Mohegan]] Chief [[Tantaquidgeon]], commemorated on a plaque at [[Norwich, Connecticut]].]] |
[[Image:Chief Tantaquidgeon Totem KevinPepin.jpg|thumb|270px|Personal Totem of [[Mohegan]] Chief [[Tantaquidgeon]], commemorated on a plaque at [[Norwich, Connecticut]].]] |
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Totemism |
Totemism is a [[religion|religious]] [[belief]] that is frequently associated with [[animism|animistic]] religions. The totem is usually an animal or other natural figure that spiritually represents a group of related people such as a clan. |
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Totemism was a key element of study in the development of 19th and early 20th century theories of religion, especially for thinkers such as [[Émile Durkheim]], who concentrated their study on [[Indigenous peoples|Indigenous]] societies. Drawing on the identification of social group with spiritual totem in [[Australian aboriginal]] tribes, Durkheim theorized that all human religious expression was intrinsically founded in the relationship to a group.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
Totemism was a key element of study in the development of 19th and early 20th century theories of religion, especially for thinkers such as [[Émile Durkheim]], who concentrated their study on [[Indigenous peoples|Indigenous]] societies. Drawing on the identification of social group with spiritual totem in [[Australian aboriginal]] tribes, Durkheim theorized that all human religious expression was intrinsically founded in the relationship to a group.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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In his essay "Le Totémisme aujourd’hui" (Totemism Today), the [[anthropologist]] [[Claude Lévi-Strauss]] argued that human cognition, which is based on analogical thought, is independent of social context. From this, he excludes mathematical thought, which operates primarily through [[logic]]. Lévi-Strauss argues that the use of physical [[analogy|analogies]] is not an indication of a more primitive mental capacity. It is, rather, a more efficient way to cope with this particular mode of life in which [[abstraction]]s are rare, and in which the physical environment is in direct friction with the [[society]]. He also holds that scientific explanation entails the discovery of an "arrangement"; moreover, since "the science of the concrete" is a classificatory system enabling individuals to classify the world in a rational fashion, it is neither more nor less a [[science]] than any other in the [[western world |
In his essay "Le Totémisme aujourd’hui" (Totemism Today), the [[anthropologist]] [[Claude Lévi-Strauss]] argued that human cognition, which is based on analogical thought, is independent of social context. From this, he excludes mathematical thought, which operates primarily through [[logic]]. Lévi-Strauss argues that the use of physical [[analogy|analogies]] is not an indication of a more primitive mental capacity. It is, rather, a more efficient way to cope with this particular mode of life in which [[abstraction]]s are rare, and in which the physical environment is in direct friction with the [[society]]. He also holds that scientific explanation entails the discovery of an "arrangement"; moreover, since "the science of the concrete" is a classificatory system enabling individuals to classify the world in a rational fashion, it is neither more nor less a [[science]] than any other in the [[western world]].{{citation needed|date=October 2014}} |
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===Carl Gustav Jung=== |
===Carl Gustav Jung=== |
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Revision as of 21:07, 17 February 2016
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A totem (Ojibwe dodaem) is a spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem of a group of people, such as a family, clan, lineage, or tribe. While the term "totem" is Ojibwe, belief in tutelary spirits and deities is not limited to indigenous peoples of the Americas but common to a number of cultures worldwide, such as Africa, Arabia, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Arctic. However, the traditional people of those cultures have words for their guardian spirits in their own languages, and do not call these spirits or symbols, "totems". Contemporary neoshamanic, New Age and mythopoetic men's movements not otherwise involved in the practice of a tribal religion may misappropriate and use "totem" terminology for the personal identification with a tutelary spirit or guide.[1][2]
North America
The word totem comes from the [Ojibwe language|Ojibwe]] word odoodem [oˈtuːtɛm] or dodaem, meaning "his kinship group".[citation needed] It is the symbol of hereditary clan affiliations. People from the same clan have the same clan totem and are considered immediate family. It is taboo to marry someone of the same clan.[citation needed]
The Ojibway scholar Basil H. Johnston defines dodaem, or totem, as "that from which I draw my purpose, meaning, and being."[citation needed]
North American totem poles
Totem poles of the Pacific Northwest of North America are monumental poles of heraldry. They feature many different designs (bears, birds, frogs, people, and various supernatural beings and aquatic creatures) that function as crests of families or chiefs. They recount stories owned by those families or chiefs, and/or commemorate special occasions.
Anthropological perspectives
Totemism is a religious belief that is frequently associated with animistic religions. The totem is usually an animal or other natural figure that spiritually represents a group of related people such as a clan.
Totemism was a key element of study in the development of 19th and early 20th century theories of religion, especially for thinkers such as Émile Durkheim, who concentrated their study on Indigenous societies. Drawing on the identification of social group with spiritual totem in Australian aboriginal tribes, Durkheim theorized that all human religious expression was intrinsically founded in the relationship to a group.[citation needed]
In his essay "Le Totémisme aujourd’hui" (Totemism Today), the anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss argued that human cognition, which is based on analogical thought, is independent of social context. From this, he excludes mathematical thought, which operates primarily through logic. Lévi-Strauss argues that the use of physical analogies is not an indication of a more primitive mental capacity. It is, rather, a more efficient way to cope with this particular mode of life in which abstractions are rare, and in which the physical environment is in direct friction with the society. He also holds that scientific explanation entails the discovery of an "arrangement"; moreover, since "the science of the concrete" is a classificatory system enabling individuals to classify the world in a rational fashion, it is neither more nor less a science than any other in the western world.[citation needed]
Carl Gustav Jung
In the chapter titled "The Importance of Dreams" in Man and His Symbols,[3] Jung wrote of the "resistance to the idea of an unknown part of the human psyche" and that "the individual's psyche is far from being safely synthesized; on the contrary, it threatens to fragment only too easily under the onslaught of unchecked emotions.... We too can become dissociated and lose our identity." However, Jung also characterizes cultures who hold totemic beliefs (as he sees them) as "primitive."[3]
Sir James George Frazer
In "The Golden Bough, a study of magic and religion" [4] (first published in 1890) Sir James George Frazer presents a plethora of totemic accounts.
Literature
Poets, and to a lesser extent fiction writers, often use anthropological concepts. For this reason literary criticism often resorts to psychoanalytic, anthropological analyses.[5][6][7]
See also
- Animal worship
- Animism
- Anishinaabe clan system
- Aumakua
- Axis Mundi
- Charge (heraldry)
- Devak, a type of family totem in Maratha culture
- Fylgja
- Jangseung
- Moiety
- Nature worship
- Religious symbolism in U.S. sports team names and mascots
- Tamga, an abstract seal or device used by Eurasian nomadic peoples
- Totem and Taboo by Sigmund Freud
- Arnold van Gennep Les rites de passage: étude systématique des rites. É. Nourry, 1909
- Totem (Cirque du Soleil)
- Vahana
References
- ^ Hobson, G. "The Rise of the White Shaman as a New Version of Cultural Imperialism." in: Hobson, Gary, ed. The Remembered Earth. Albuquerque, NM: Red Earth Press; 1978: 100-108.
- ^ Aldred, Lisa, "Plastic Shamans and Astroturf Sun Dances: New Age Commercialization of Native American Spirituality" in: The American Indian Quarterly issn.24.3 (2000) pp.329-352. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ a b Jung, Karl Gustav (1964) Man and His Symbolspp. 6-7, p. 8
- ^ Frazer, J., Sir. The Golden Bough, a study of magic andreligion, 1993
- ^ Maryniak, Irena. Spirit of the Totem: Religion and Myth in Soviet Fiction, 1964-1988, MHRA, 1995
- ^ Nikoletseas, Michael. M. (2012). The Iliad: The Male Totem. ISBN 978-1482069006.
- ^ Berg, Henk de. Freud's Theory and Its Use in Literary and Cultural Studies: An Introduction.Camden House, 2004
External links
