Bajou: Sea Nomads

Written by Pookas Kreations

The Bajou are a group of Sea Nomads who were able to stay out of the way of the Atlanteans. Several small groups of humans were able to escape from the Atlantean, and hide from them over the years. Many Bajou were highly sensitive or immune to GSD. Some of them were failed experiments as well.  

Some of the scientists were attempting to alter their physiology to better adapt them to aquatic life. There were many fatalities and mutations on the way. Many of them did have useful adaptations, oddly each person only had one or two that worked correctly and there were many side-effects. Some of these included GSD immunity, GSD Hypersensivity, enlarged spleens, oversized eyes, large lungs, shortened lifespans, sunlight sensitivity, etc.

Sadly most failed experiments were just killed or fed to the Giant Rock Crab. Enough of the Bajou escaped forming their own family groups. Amazingly with the combining of their DNA through breeding, the separate adaptations joined together to create a cohesive whole. They are not fully aquatic but can hold their breath for long periods of time, adjust their eyes to see better, endure the cold and pressure at extreme depths.

They are expert at traveling on the surface of Aquatica and have made Oceania their home. Rarely venturing onto land, they live on large houseboats called Lepas. Making their living primary off of fishing and anything they can retrieve from the sea. 

The children are exposed to the sea young, are taught to swim as infants and to fish as toddlers. Most are able to fend for themselves by the time they are 8 years old. A couple of tribes don't live on boats, instead, they live in stilted houses in shallow sheltered waters. Some only visit these "towns" to shelter from storms, visit family, trade, have conclaves, for celebrations, etc.

Naming Traditions

Masculine names

Ilardo, Bayubu, Kepala

Unisex names

Desa

Family names

Hasan

Culture

Average technological level

They have a primitive tribal society, that is barely out of the bronze age.

Common Dress code

Except for around strangers and in times of ceremony/ritual. They have little use for clothes, of course, those with skin sensitivity, need to keep their skin covered with either clothes or mud. Those that don't have this problem, wear a bare minimum or no clothes at all. They have no nudity taboo.

Art & Architecture

They are excellent carpenters and boat builders. Often making boats from the bare minimum but strong materials.

Coming of Age Rites

The males need to do two things: build a seaworthy boat, and prove themselves by killing a dangerous animal like a shark and returning with the body.

Funerary and Memorial customs

When someone dies, they are carried away from the houseboats and given a sea burial. They are either buried under stones, in a sea cave, or left to be eaten by sea creatures.

Common Taboos

• Dying on land.
• Giving birth near a cemetery.
• Use of Atlantean technology.

Historical figures

Bajou, the first of them to escape the Atlanteans.

Their name is pronounced as baa-jow, bi-joo, or bjow, depending on the tribe.

Diverged ethnicities

• Seafolk Society