totem pole vs emblem

totem pole and emblem both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
totem pole	Yes	No	No	No
emblem	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, emblem is a hypernym of totem pole; that is, emblem is a word with a broader meaning than totem pole:

totem pole: a tribal emblem consisting of a pillar carved and painted with totemic figures; erected by Indian tribes of the northwest Pacific coast
emblem: special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.

Other hypernyms of totem pole include column, pillar.

totem pole (noun)	emblem (noun)
a tribal emblem consisting of a pillar carved and painted with totemic figures; erected by Indian tribes of the northwest Pacific coast	special design or visual object representing a quality, type, group, etc.
	a visible symbol representing an abstract idea