Totemic
/toʊˈtɛmɪk/noun
Relating to a totem, especially an emblem, animal, or natural object regarded as symbolizing a group or possessing spiritual significance.
Did you know?The word ultimately comes from Ojibwe odoodem, meaning “his kinship group,” referring to a clan identified through a symbolic animal or other emblem.
Etymological Timeline
Before 18th Century
Ojibwe
odoodem
“His kinship group or clan; a social group associated with a symbolic emblem”
18th Century
Ojibwe
doodem
“Kinship group or clan, commonly represented by an animal emblem”
1791
English
totem
“An emblem or symbolic figure associated with a clan; borrowed from Ojibwe through colonial descriptions”
19th Century
English
totemic
“Relating to a totem or the social and religious system surrounding totems”
Modern English
English
totemic
“Connected with a group’s emblematic identity, ancestry, or sacred symbolic system”