This may sound silly because I have had all my esteemed elders and my cemetaries have all been filled and I have played quite a few games now. But why the different totems?
What actually determines what totem the elder gets? I think there are 7 or 8 different ones.I have had a game with quite a few of one certain totem and in another game I have had quite a few of a different totem.What determines the totem selection for the elder?

i think the totem selection is random

Yes, it's totally random. The first time I played I got four identical totems running and thought that there was only one design. Then the fifth was different. The next game I played the first five were all different.

There are eight different designs of totem, by the way.