<P> Totem poles are monumental carvings, a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures . They are usually made from large trees, mostly western red cedar, by indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America (Washington, Oregon, and Canada's western province, British Columbia). The word totem derives from the Algonquian (most likely Ojibwe) word o doodem (oˈtuːtɛm), "(his) kinship group". The carvings may symbolize or commemorate cultural beliefs that recount familiar legends, clan lineages, or notable events . The poles may also serve as functional architectural features, welcome signs for village visitors, mortuary vessels for the remains of deceased ancestors, or as a means to publicly ridicule someone . They may embody a historical narrative of significance to the people carving and installing the pole . Given the complexity and symbolic meanings of totem pole carvings, their placement and importance lies in the observer's knowledge and connection to the meanings of the figures and the culture in which they are embedded . </P> <P> Totem poles serve as important illustrations of family lineage and the cultural heritage of the Native peoples in the islands and coastal areas of North America's Pacific Northwest, especially British Columbia, Canada, and coastal areas of Washington and southeastern Alaska in the United States . Families of traditional carvers come from the Haida, Tlingit, Tsimshian, Kwakwaka'wakw (Kwakiutl), Nuxalk (Bella Coola), and Nuu - chah - nulth (Nootka), among others . The poles are typically carved from the highly rot - resistant trunks of Thuja plicata trees (popularly known as giant cedar or western red cedar), which eventually decay in the moist, rainy climate of the coastal Pacific Northwest . Because of the region's climate and the nature of the materials used to make the poles, few examples carved before 1900 remain . Noteworthy examples, some dating as far back as 1880, include those at the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria and the Museum of Anthropology at UBC in Vancouver . </P>

In what region of the united states were totem poles common forms of native american art