[ic=Banastre Lornebridge]Good chaps, I've left these scraps and my scribblings all about, and have yet to fill them all in. Tit-tuppin, I'll get to finishing them, due time, due time, the carriages in Belgraine run too slow to arrive at Temple every day. May the Nine Heavens forgive me.
'Tis my sincerest hope to have this Almanac in top form in some time, but I'll leave these bulletins strung about should the monks or passerby have queries or questions. I've an evil liver and am prone to bouts of pain and disappearance, so please do not regard a temporary silence as an abandonment of this glorious project. Be advised that my papers are scattered and difficult to read; I intend to polish them for final publication in due time, due time.
First off, we'll get the current map, sorry for the size, wouldn't fit on the postboard. I'll slice it down to summink manageable in good time, godswilling, just pique up and scribble somesuch should you have a question.[/ic]
[spoiler=Revised Map of Ornaea and North Bethra](http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/12/ornaeaandnorthbethracop.png)[/spoiler]
[ic]I'm advised we have some foreigners unaccustomed to our styling of maps, so be advised the lower left is the continent of BETHRA, the uppermost continent is ORNAEA. I'm filling in the gaps and bodies of waters, but alas, these take time, tip-tuppin.
The ethnic groups of Ornaea and North Bethra, as well as their larger categories, are as follows:[/ic]
[spoiler=Ethnic Identities]CAPITALIZED groups are PRIMARY ethnic identities. Lowercase groups are SPECIFIC ethnic identities associated with a larger culture.
AZRANI
Oka
Adivi
Shi
Zhan
Pang
AGANA
Shansho
Wu
Pan
Qan
KETTAN
Rannish
Baltian
Avonese
Callistonian
NORTH BETHRAN
Zalban
Sulfan
Taga
Thesulinn
REMARDIAN
Siclorian
Cynian
Vestinite
Nautian
ARVIAN
Bainish
Synesh
Malbarran
Elish
Lurian
XANTHIAN
Angol
Lamberg
Thanish
Vultish
DEKARRAN
ASUULIAN
ZOLAN
TORRAN
TEBALTHRAN[/spoiler]
[ic]And lastly, the first batch of my Almanac Entries, with more to come in good time, in good time.[/ic]
[spoiler=Al-Asuul]Al-Asuul (Blessed Kingdom of Al-Asuul)
Government: Hierarchical monarchist state with strong theocratic tradition
Head of state: King Abu al-Jahir
Population: 2,540,300
Capital: Qadir
Primary language: Asuulian
Currency: Jaqra
Ethnic majority: Asuulian
State religion: Salinism
Definitive volume: The Seven Rubies of the Sand Kings by Ibrahim al-Aqdar
Excerpt: When one speaks of the glorious history of Al-Asuul, one is reminded that of her unique position in the annals of yore. Blessed by vast riches and connected to the great civilizations of the Molodorian sea, hers was the first true civilization, hers were the greatest wonders of pre-Kettonian antiquity, and hers is the tale of the greatest dispute. May the spirits of al-Jahir guide my pen to preserving her sacred past.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Aloria]Aloria (His Lordship's Province of Aloria)
Government: Traditional aristocracy
Head of state: Lord Akun Bai
Population: 423,700
Capital: Aloria
Primary language: Aganese (Shansho dialect)
Currency: Azrani Imperial Standard
Ethnic majority: Shansho (Agana)
State religion: None
Definitive volume: The Fortunes of the Shansho Realms by Kuna
Excerpt: But then there is Aloria. Poorest of the states, isolated from the rest of the Shansho, functionally a puppet regime for the Azranis; none of this has deterred the blackguards and thieves from calling its rocky impasses "home."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Angoth]Angoth (Kingdom of Angoth)
Government: Weak monarchy
Head of state: King Anatos d'Auneur
Population: 1,450,300
Capital: Sal Surret
Primary language: Angali
Currency: Strane
Ethnic majority: Angol (Xanthian)
State Religion: Ancient Church of Rionisis
Definitive volume: The Kingdoms of the Beast by Ludwig son Samire
Excerpt: The suffrage of the commoner within the western republics is nearly extinct, with no more alarming a case than the now-Kingdom of Angoth. In two short decades, civil war and resultant tyranny have replaced a strong democratic tradition. The tradespeople and minorities suffer under foolish rule; could Ketta become involved?[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Anklaas]Anklaas (Principality of Anklaas)
Government: Kin network with central authority
Head of state: Prince Jiu
Population: 434,900
Capital: Bukao
Primary language: Azrani (Shin Dialect)
Currency: N/A, barter system
Ethnic majority: Shi Azrani
State religion: None
Definitive volume: History of Ornaea vol. XII: Northeastern Territories by Amagus
Excerpt: Less a realm than a loosely-organized confederacy of fishing villages. Anklaas has no coherency and little relevance, save for those who wish to traverse frozen wastes or trade with backwards xenophobes.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Arvia]Arvia (Hereditary Kingdom of Arvia)
Government: Strong monarchy with aristocratic tradition
Head of state: King Demarkus
Population: 2,597,600
Capital: Balthus
Primary language: Arvian
Currency: Arvus
Ethnic majority: Synesh (Arvian)
State religion: Ancient Church of Rionisis
Definitive volume: Serpent & Crown by Wolfgang Nolhartz
Excerpt: Stability is another historical oddity of the Arvian people. Rarely is the lineage of Kings contested, and rarely are uprising or coups seen. [Ancient historian] Sallador once suggested that this is due to rich farmland and easily-defended borders, but Arvians as a whole are historically conservative and gravitate toward monarchial rule, even during the Era of Republics. Its northernmost reaches remain nearly unpopulated.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Aurus]Aurus (Sacred Station of Aurus)
Government: Theocratic republic
Head of state: High Prophet Hi-Keth
Population: 367,400
Capital: Onar
Primary language: Azrani (Jizao dialect)
Currency: Azrani Imperial Standard
Ethnic majority: Adivi (Azrani)
State religion: Adiv-kai
Definitive volume: The Onar Prophecies by Un Kai-Shun
Excerpt: The prophet and his thirty disciples were subsequently granted full reign over the territory through Imperial mandate, a recognition of sovereignty made more for political convenience than a for a sincere desire for the precedent of cessation. Aurus has since flourished and has continued its theocratic rule for the subsequent seven decades after its creation, though Hi-Keth, the third of the High Prophets, is not the hero Adivi still within Azrani territory and abroad were hoping for.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Azan]Azan (Sanctified Holdings of Azan-Ku)
Government: Ecclesiastical dictatorship
Head of state: Blessed Father Azan-Ku
Population: 46,000
Capital: Aka
Primary language: Azrani (Zhan dialect)
Currency: Azanian gold piece
Ethnic majority: Zhan (Azrani)
State religion: Cult of Azan-Ku
Definitive volume: The Mad God-King by Kim Asuke
Excerpt: When Azan-Ku rebelled against the Church of the Seven Fortunes, he was considered a nuisance. When he declared sovereignty over the small village of Aka, the courts of the Azran Emperor were filled with laughter. But when he bested the second most powerful military in the world for seventeen years of grueling warfare, the laughter died. It is easy to see why the people of the Azan worship their leader, even under the looming specter of Azrani reprisal.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Azran]Azran (Azran Empire)
Government: Imperial monarchy with tributary system
Head of state: Emperor Kozuma
Population: 6,310,500
Capital: Gozhen
Primary language: Azrani (Zhan and Kunjen dialects)
Currency: Azrani Imperial Standard
Ethnic majority: Oka, Pang (Azrani)
State religion: Church of the Seven Fortunes
Definitive volume: Seventeen Golden Palaces by Kuna
Excerpt: The riches of the Empire should not be understated, nor should its impressive military. Second only to perhaps its once-nemesis Ketta, the Azran Empire exercises unprecedented influence over the realms east of the Xurask mountains. Most of southeast Ornaea, with the notable exception of the Qan holdings, is ethnically Azrani, and strong cultural ties remain throughout the Azrani Diaspora.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Bainland]Bainland (Commonwealth of Bainland)
Government: Parliamentary government
Head of state: Chancellor Aleistar Malvaux
Population: 1,550,700
Capital: Ranier
Primary language: Bainish
Currency: Denarius
Ethnic majority: Bainish (Arvian)
State religion: Ancient Church of Rionisis
Definitive volume: Obsolescence of Monarchial Rule by Piccolo Sauviere
Excerpt: Three centuries have proven the Bainish folk do not suffer from their want of a monarch, and that their ability to repel external militants has not been diminished. The formation of political parties has continuously fractured the Bainish system of government, but only once has it erupted into true civil war. The pattern is thus: tensions only become apparent when the sizable agrarian communities are unable to farm.[/spoiler]
>>State religion: Church of the Seven Fortunes
Definitive volume: Seventeen Golden Palaces by Kuna
The idea of listing the church's definitive volume is an interesting and nice touch.
~LD.
Quote from: Light Dragon>>State religion: Church of the Seven Fortunes
Definitive volume: Seventeen Golden Palaces by Kuna
The idea of listing the church's definitive volume is an interesting and nice touch.
~LD.
I should clarify; the "definitive volume" is the single most important historical, religious, and/or literary work on the nation, but not necessarily just religious. Also, the entries are intentionally vague; I still have 22 pages to fill out.