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How can a totem be passed down through a family or clan?

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totem fish mask — Totemism Totem fish mask from the Orokolo Bay area of New Guinea. Painted bark cloth over rattan frame with fringe of dried grass. Height 1.63 m.

In the context of totemism, the transmission of a totem depends on whether it is a group totem or an individual totem.

Group Totems

Group totems are typically tied to clan membership, which is usually determined by birth and lineage. Depending on the culture, this follows specific descent patterns:
* Matrilineal descent: A child automatically inherits the totem of their mother’s clan, as seen among many Iroquoian peoples.1
* Patrilineal descent: A child inherits the totem of their father’s clan, a practice found among groups like the Birhor and various Algonquian tribes.21

Individual Totems

Individual totems, which often serve as personal guardian spirits, are passed down through specific cultural rituals or hereditary lines:
* Hereditary transmission: Individual totems can be passed from parent to child, such as from father to son or mother to daughter.3
* Ritual transmission: Among the Wiradjuri, medicine men pass individual totems to novices through a ritual where the totem is symbolically "sung into" the candidate by a blood relative, such as a father or grandfather.4
* Assignment: In some traditions, individual totems—particularly plant totems—may be assigned at birth or later in life.3