totemism
[toh-tuh-miz-uh m]
Origin of totemism
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Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for totemism
Historical Examples
Where there is no totemism the question of union, of course, does not come up.
Introduction to the History of ReligionsCrawford Howell Toy
See the authorities cited by Frazer in Totemism and Exogamy.
Introduction to the History of ReligionsCrawford Howell Toy
Totemism has not come to man fully equipped in all its parts.
Folklore as an Historical ScienceGeorge Laurence Gomme
We have, in point of fact, discovered the datum line of totemism.
Folklore as an Historical ScienceGeorge Laurence Gomme
In Central Australia there is a marked difference in the form of Totemism.
Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1Andrew Lang
totemism
- the belief in kinship of groups or individuals having a common totem
- the rituals, taboos, and other practices associated with such a belief
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
totemism
[(toh-tuh-miz-uhm)]
The belief that people are descended from animals, plants, and other natural objects. Symbols (see also symbol) of these natural ancestors, known as totems, are often associated with clans (groups of families tracing common descent). By representing desirable individual qualities (such as the swiftness of a deer) and helping to explain the mythical origin of the clan, totems reinforce clan identity and solidarity.
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.