totem

noun5

1. •
   Any natural object or living creature that serves as an emblem of a tribe, clan or family; the representation of such an object or creature.
2. •
   (figurative) A symbol or personification.
3. •
   A tall object resembling a totem pole.

   • Out the front of the Drive-in rose the town’s main tourist attraction, a totem of signs to bizarre places with impossible distances such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and so on. — 2014
4. •
   The clan whose kinship is defined in reference to such an object or creature.

   • The totem members were forbidden to eat the flesh of the totem animal, or were allowed to do so only under specific conditions. — 1921
5. •
   An arbitrarily chosen object serving as a reminder to check whether one is awake or not, to aid in having lucid dreams.