- Related Topics:
- Northwest Coast Indian
Totem pole
News •
-
What is a totem pole?
A totem pole is a tall, carved, and painted log created by Native Americans of the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada. These poles are erected for different reasons, such as to mark graves, support houses, or welcome visitors.
The carvings emphasize the symbolic animals and spirits with familiar, standardized forms. The word totem refers to a guardian or ancestral being, and the animal images identify with the lineage of the household head, displayed as a family crest. The poles can also relate an entire family legend in the form of a pictograph. The meaning of the symbols can only be interpreted with an understanding of the culture and history of the clan.
Totem poles also signified the owner’s wealth because hiring an artist to carve a pole was expensive.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Who traditionally makes totem poles?
Traditionally, the Native Americans of the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada construct totem poles. Northwest Coast tribes such as the Tlingit, Haida, and Kwakiutl are known for their unique styles and contributions to totem pole art.
These poles serve as memorial documents, reflecting the social standing, wealth, and significance of the individual who commissioned them. The carving of totem poles reached its peak in the early and middle 19th century because the introduction of better metal tools and wealth from the fur trade enabled many chiefs to afford them. The role of the tall totem poles was to record family lineage, class status, wealth, and other social facts.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What materials are used to create totem poles?
Totem poles are carved and painted logs constructed by Native Americans of the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada. The poles emphasize flat, painted surfaces of symbolic animals and spirits.
The poles are typically made of cedar, which unfortunately means they rot and fall in about 60 to 70 years due to the moist coastal atmosphere. The carving of totem poles peaked in the early and middle 19th century because the introduction of good metal tools and wealth from the fur trade made the displays affordable for many chiefs.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What do the figures and symbols on a totem pole mean?
Totem poles are created by Native Americans of the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada and feature carvings and paintings of animals and spirits. The figures and symbols on totem poles are standardized forms familiar to Native Americans of the Northwest Coast. For example, beavers always have cross-hatched tails, and eagles have downward-curved beaks.
Each animal or spirit on the pole has meaning, and when combined, they tell a story or myth. The animal displayed on a totem pole identifies with the lineage of the household head, like a family crest. The word totem refers to a guardian or ancestral being that is respected, but not always worshipped.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How are totem poles used in ceremonies or storytelling?
Totem poles of the Northwest Coast Native Americans serve various functions, including memorializing ancestors, marking graves, supporting houses, and even ridiculing individuals. The carvings on totem poles depict symbolic animals and spirits associated with the lineage of the household, acting as a family crest.
These poles also narrate family legends through a sequence of animal images, each carrying significant meaning within the clan's history and customs. While not easily deciphered, the figures embody important symbols of a story or myth, requiring a knowledgeable narrator for accurate interpretation. The creation of totem poles also signified the owner's wealth because hiring an artist to carve one was expensive.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How has the significance of totem poles changed over time?
Initially serving as memorial markers, family crests, and depictions of legends, totem poles evolved to reflect social status and wealth, especially in the 19th century when trade and metal tools made them more accessible. They were commissioned to exalt chiefs and nobles, with the size and detail indicating affluence.
However, with the arrival of Euro-Americans, the economic benefits for the Northwest Coast people soon disappeared, and the creation of totem poles declined into curio-shop products, with artists abandoning the craft. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, there was a limited revival of some crafts, but the creativity of the original was largely lacking. Today, totem poles are recognized as significant cultural and artistic achievements of the Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Totem pole, carved and painted log, mounted vertically, constructed by the Native Americans of the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada. There are seven principal kinds of totem poles: memorial, or heraldic, poles, erected when a house changes hands to commemorate the past owner and to identify the present one; grave markers (tombstones); house posts, which support the roof; portal poles, which have a hole through which a person enters the house; welcoming poles, placed at the edge of a body of water to identify the owner of the waterfront; mortuary poles, in which the remains of the deceased are placed; and ridicule poles, on which an important individual who had failed in some way had his likeness carved upside down.
The carving on totem poles separates and emphasizes the flat, painted surfaces of the symbolic animals and spirits depicted on them. Each pole generally has from one (as with a grave marker) to many (as with a family legend) animal images on it, all following standardized forms which are familiar to all Native Americans of the Northwest Coast; beavers, for example, always include cross-hatched tails, and eagles show downward curved beaks.
The word totem refers to a guardian or ancestral being, usually supernatural, that is revered and respected, but not always worshipped. The significance of the real or mythological animal carved on a totem pole is its identification with the lineage of the head of the household. The animal is displayed as a type of family crest, much as an Englishman might have a lion on his crest, or a rancher a bull on his brand. More widely known, but in fact far less common, are the elaborately carved tall totem poles that relate an entire family legend in the form of a pictograph. This legend is not something that can be read in the usual sense of the word; only with an understanding of what the symbols mean to the Native Americans and a knowledge of the history and customs of the clan involved can the pole be interpreted. Each animal or spirit carved on the pole has meaning, and when combined on the pole in sequence, each figure is an important symbol constituent of a story or myth. An exact interpretation of any set of symbols, however, would be almost impossible without the help of a knowledgeable narrator from the family.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
The totem pole was also a sign of the owner’s affluence, for hiring an artist to make a pole was an expensive proposition. The carving of totem poles reached its peak in the early and middle 19th century, when the introduction of good metal tools and the wealth gained from the fur trade made it possible for many chiefs to afford these displays. Few examples of this period remain, however, as the moist coastal atmosphere causes the cedar poles to rot and fall in about 60 to 70 years.