Pilhaouer
Naming Traditions
Family names
The surnames of the Pilhaouer are drawn from the cities and towns they were born close to, rather than a particular family unit. For example, a Pilhaouer from near Ker-Ahes would be known as [Given Name] of Ker-Ahes. Those born on the road between settlements are often named after a nearby landmark. as a result of this unusual nomenclature, the surname of a parent and child may differ.
Other names
For the most part, Pilhaouer follow Lethaned naming conventions, as most originate in the mountains of the Meneziou Are deep in the ar goat of the Armorican Peninsula. Others may choose to adopt names of regions they travel in, with Akitanian, Islander, and Manchais given names being frequently adopted.
Pilhaouer guard their Fis with great secrecy, adopting nicknames reflective of the region they are in and making frequent use of a wide variety of self-descriptors and aliases.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
The Pilhoauer most commonly speak a heavily accented dialect of Brezhoneg, often identified with the Poher region. It is common for the well traveled Pilhoauer merchants to pick up smatterings of other languages used in the port cities of Breizh and Akitania.
Pilhoauer have adapted their dialect to match the obfuscating tendencies of the Fae populations they interact with, sometimes speaking in riddles and often substituting words with slang or wordplay in a way that often confuses and frustrates outsiders. While the Pilhoauer dialect has not actually been adapted by the thieves guilds in cities like Naoend, Gwened and Gwitreg, some slang words have been adapted, furthering the populations undeserved reputation as unsavoury.
Culture and cultural heritage
The Pilhaouer are largely itinerant merchants on the Armorican Peninsula, traveling the Imperial roads and unmarked footpaths from the mountainous interior to the coastal merchant towns and port cities. These merchants operate on a barter system, exchanging manufactured items, such as tableware, hand tools or decorative trinkets, for loose items such as rags, animal hides or metal scraps, which in turn are sold to the wholesale merchants and paper mills in Montroulez and Lannuon, as well as other cities in the Penn-Ar-Bed. Typically, the Pilhaouer travel by foot or by donkey, dragging a small cart loaded with their wares, often filled with all manner of miscellaneous items that clink as they move along the rocky paths, giving the Pilhaouer the nickname of "Jinglemen".
Pilhaouer tend to settle on small plots of land, subsistence farming the acidic soil of the Meneziou Aree, building small villages until the land must be rested or they are driven out by local lords, who typically view them as squatters, despite their remoteness and claim of otherwise difficult to maintain farmland.
Shared customary codes and values
As a society, the Pilhaouer people are primarily dedicated to their families, as well as their larger communities, offering aid and refuge to any of their kin who seek it. While this is largely focused on the Pilhaouer themselves, the society also strictly follows the rules of Hospitality , granting aid and shelter to any who would ask it of them. This in turn has ingratiated them with the local Korrigan populations, which often live closely to Pilhaouer villages, but sometimes placed them at odds with human authorities, who view the Pilhaouer as cover for roving gangs of thieves, fleeing murderers and other outlaws.
The Pilhaouer have adapted to life in the Bleed of the Meneziou Are and Menez Du Mountain ranges and consider themselves as denizens of both Bedouar and Faerie, travelling between the two realms with great ease and regularity. This has made them invaluable as guides and as a refuge for fleeing Boermerzh and Milliget, as well as refugees from Faerie.
Common Etiquette rules
When traveling along the mountain roads, a Pilhaouer will loudly call out ahead of themselves to warn of their approach to avoid startling the fae, announcing their local nickname, destination and what wares they have for sale. Operating on a barter economy and with their impoverished reputation, pilhaouer are rarely targeted by brigands, save for the most stupid, desperate or vicious.
Pilhaouer will often refer to themselves in generic terms, such as "this one", and typically will refrain from introducing themselves unless another introduces themselves first. It is considered rude to give or accept unsolicited gifts, and something of perceived equal measure must be given to even the exchange.
Common Dress code
To an outsider, the dress of the Pilhaouer can be described as motley, an eclectic mixture of found rags and discarded bits of other clothing, cobbled together into makeshift outfits. Typically clad in subdued hues and simple clothing, Pilhoauer often will also have accessories with bright splashes of colour, such as ribbons and kerchiefs, which can be removed and used as bargaining chips with solitary Korrigan or other creatures of Faerie.
Women wear headscarves of mute colours to cover their hair, while men wear wide-brimmed black hats.
Art & Architecture
Most Pilhaouer reside in simple houses of mud and stone, typically a dirt floor and one or two rooms, with a loft raised on rafters above, housing the family and their possessions, while their animals, kitchens and gathering spaces take up the majority of the buildings. Pilhaouer houses are notorious in Gallia for their crowded, smelly and hot conditions, and held up as examples of the backwater and rural nature of Breizh, despite largely being confined to the remote interior of the peninsula. These houses are typically roofed with thatch, with slate being the next common material. Pilhaouer houses are typically lacking in large furniture such as the Bretoned Gwele-kloz (Box-Bed), allowing the population to move more freely when needed.
Embroidery is a common craft among the Pilhaouer used for both clothing and small decorative trinkets, but lack the delicate and complex lace coiffes that are popular among the rest of the Bretoned population. Pilhaouer decoration is often well-executed, but with a rough and homespun feel, consisting of simple organic representations like vines, flowers and leaves.
Common Customs, traditions and rituals
Birth & Baptismal Rites
Upon birth, a Pilhaouer child is immediately given a name, then a nickname shortly thereafter. If possible, the family secures the blessing and protection of a friendly Korrigan or Sidhe for the child for this first nickname, adding layers of magical protection to the name. A pair of small shoes are often burnt in the home in the days following the birth in an effort to ward off Changelings.
Coming of Age Rites
A Pilhaouer is given a Truename and first nickname at birth, but adds more of the latter upon reaching age 12, the age where one can set out as a ragpicker, gaining additional nicknames when they are married, have their first child, and die. At each event, the previous nickname is no phased out and no longer used by others within the culture, but merchants and acquaintances outside of the community will typically continue to use the second nickname without correction by the Pilhaouer. Pilhaouer will often gain informal nicknames that are used outside of the community as well, but these have less important cultural significance.
Funerary and Memorial customs
Upon death, the Pilhaouer is given a final nickname, one that sums up their life achievements. Upon death, all doors and windows in a home are left open, a tradition shared with non-Pilhaouer communities throughout Breizh. All mirrors in a home are turned inwards and left as such for a lunar cycle. At burial, the family is given a small feast by the community, Lastly, the cart and rags of the individual are burned, the ashes offered to the local Korrigan patron, if one exists.
Common Taboos
Rings and other signets are discouraged by the population, and in fact ownership of these are banned by many sovereigns, on the basis that the Pilhaouer's itinerant lifestyle makes them difficult to tax or poltically control, and are thus forbidden from owning property or claiming title.
Common Myths and Legends
The Charcoal Coat
A popular tale centering on a pilhaouer tailor. The tailor, possessing a great reputation for his craft, attracted the ire of a powerful and wicked lord. The nobleman had the tailor imprisoned, demanding the man, if he was as great as the stories said, create him a set of clothes for the following day to spare his life. Left without tools or textiles, it became clear that the demand was an impossible task, meant to be failed. But the clever tailor noticed a bit of charcoal near the door, and managing to grab it, sketched out a black coat on the white wall. When the lord arrived, the tailor presented the two-dimensional drawing to the lord "Your coat is ready, Sire. All you need do is put it on’. Impressed by the tailor's quick thinking and audacity, and confronted with a solution to his impossible demand, the lord freed the man, but walked him past the gallows that had been erected for him as a final warning.Ideals
Beauty Ideals
The Pilhaouer, in a mix of impoverished frugality and wary discretion, usually favour a simple and humble appearance, taking care not to make the notoriously shallow Sidhe jealous of their beauty. Plhaouer women wrap their hair in scarves of colourful, but muted fabric, while men wear the simple wide brimmed black hats used widely in the larger Bretoned culture. Makeup and dyes are discouraged and hairstyles are kept simple and natural, groomed and styled, but not overly so. Simple jewelry is often worn by members of both genders, ranging from earrings to bracelets. These objects are usually handcrafted, rather than purchased.
This intentional simplicity is a marked contrast to the elaborate Gallian-influenced fashions popular in the cities along the Ar Mor. This, and the dirt picked up while traveling gives the Pilhaouer a reputation of being a dirty, disheveled and generally unkempt people, adding to their general and often unfounded reputation of untrustworthiness among many urban populations.
Gender Ideals
Many Pilhaouer divide tasks by gender, with women typically maintaining the land and homestead, weaving and farming, while the men travel as ragpickers along the mountain roads crisscrossing Breizh. While these roles are common, they are by no means universal, and women often undertake the "ragman's journey" in smaller numbers. Men unable to travel due to age or infirmity often take leadership or administrative roles.
Courtship Ideals
Pilhaouer often prefer courtship and relationships within their own population, with only a brave few, often young, ragpickers striking out to woo partners in the wider population. Unlike Bretoned culture at large, male suitors are expected to take the first steps in establishing a relationship, bringing special gifts from their ragmen's journey for their beloved. Oftentimes, several suitors will present a gift, with the object of their affections selecting a partner based on these tributes.
Encompassed species
Related Locations
Comments