Kenku
"Never trust a kenku's papers." - A common saying among guards
"Don't let a kenku steal your voice. You never know what else they might take from you." - A warning often passed in rural communitiesKenku, a species of bipedal avian people, are known for a few things: resembling corvidae, having no wings, and having no voice of their own. It is common knowledge that kenku live on the fringes of respectable society in small communities of vagrants.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Very similar to a birds, talons, a beak and feathers. Different from a bird are the fact that instead of wings there are now arms.
Kenku are short humanoids with heads that resemble various species of corvidae. They have no wings of their own, but do have feathers along the back of their upper arms. In addition, many have feathered tails. Their forearms, hands, and legs are largely covered in a tough, leathery skin.
They have digitigrade feet that end in talon-like claw with four frontal digits and one rear digit. Their hands have four fingers and one thumb each with hard, black nails.
Kenku have no lips, but they possess very complex vocal chords capable of mimicking almost any sound they can hear. Their ears are capable of hearing slightly higher pitches than humans.
Genetics and Reproduction
They are egg laying and take great pride in protecting their young.
Growth Rate & Stages
They mature at about the age of 12 and living to the age of 60 is considered a feat worthy of celebration.
Ecology and Habitats
Kenku have adapted to survive in many conditions, over time resembling the corvdae life found in the local area they have lived in.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Kenku forage mostly, though they can consume meat, it has to be small enough to consume whole as they have no teeth.
The common kenku diet is centered around grains. breads, and dried fruits.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Kenku are adventurous by nature, and rarely stay in one place for long. They are often at the fringes of society and serve as messengers, spies, and thieves due to their incredible memory.
The concept of voice and self-expression is core within a kenku community. Over time, a collection of kenku would share enough learned voices among each other that they begin to develop a shared verbal dictionary. This is called the communal song and new kenku readily learn it. Within a community, a family may develop a separate verbal dictionary called a familial song. A mated pair, sharing only two voices, would form a dictionary just for them called the lover's song.
Most precious of all to a kenku is the song in their heart. When they feel, think, and yearn, they hear their inner voice censored from the world. It can take a kenku a lifetime to find a means to express this heart's song, and it would only be shared in auspicious moments. No kenku would ever want their heart's song echoed by another and it is considered taboo to do so.
Aside from verbal dictionaries, kenku find body language, pantomime, and sign language as valid routes to express themselves. Song, dance, and visual art are also precious commodities to have their identity known.
Kenku have a strong familial hierarchy. The parents, usually the mother, leads the family unit and provides guidance on life paths.
Facial characteristics
Their most standout facial feature is their beak, which is usually about eight to ten inches long and a dark gray.
Average Intelligence
A kenku is insightful and perceptive with a mind that is capable of remembering any sound heard, including speech. They have a keen eye for identifying details, which has earned them a reputation of being excellent forgers and eavesdroppers.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
While their senses are not heightened, their memory of sounds and voices is impeccable.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Because Kenku cannot speak for themselves, their names tend to be given to them by others, or they adopt a regular pattern of sound or phrasing that they use every time they refer to themselves.
Beauty Ideals
Kenku pride themselves on the care of their plumage. Clean feathers, well-groomed beaks, and bold colors are frequently identified as attractive.
Kenku frequently enjoy bobbles and jewelry to decorate themselves with. Some paint and decorate their beak when courting.
The most alluring part of a kenku is its tail. These feature some of the largest and usually most colorful features on a kenku. Even kenku with dark feathers have an iridescent sheen in their plumage, and this most visible in their tails.
Gender Ideals
Many kenku are difficult to identify as either male or female due to few secondary sexual characteristics. Some ethnic groups of kenku exhibit different feather patterns between biological sexes.
The kenku identity is unusually constructed. So much of their self-expression is determined by how other beings around them express themselves due to their limitation on verbal communication. Some kenku, thus, do not particularly identify with any one gender. They would speak and adopt personas using many gendered voices. Others fiercely latch onto a gender as some aspect of identity that they can control and express.
Relationship Ideals
The ideal kenku relationship is a lifelong mated bond.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
The kenku understand the auran language first, which is a major component of the communal song. Many familial and heart songs are auran-based and their written script is auran.
The kenku have a variation of auran based on gestures and body language. This allows for communicating more complex ideas without being impeded by their inability to verbally express unique ideas.
Common Etiquette Rules
Kenku have little qualm in mimicking non-kenku, but find it difficult to justify taking a fellow kenku's voice without permission.
Common Dress Code
Kenku are almost always clothed. It is considered crass to see a kenku without a shirt on and most kenku wear loose pants or skirts to accommodate for their tails.
In mixed company, a kenku's tail will be hidden behind clothing. The tail is the most intimate display of comfort around people due to its prized beauty, but also do to an unfortunate history of outsiders trying to take a kenku's tail feathers for their own.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Kenku usually sleep in shared quarters with their families. These quarters are guarded with iron totems that are polished to a sparkling glean to protect them from untoward supernatural influences. The efficacy of these totems is suspect.
Common Taboos
Kenku do not mimic another kenku's heart song if they hear it.
Kenku are not supposed to form mated bonds with non-kenku.
History
The kenku keep a strong tradition of written histories of their individual communities.
A large kenku population lives in small communities within the elven cities of the Empire of Umenor. These communities are not often mixed with other races and they are usually socially segregated.
Historical Figures
While different communities name this figure different sounds, the first kenku was the figurehead that performed the act of hubris that cursed their people. Outsiders frequently view this figure as an antagonist, but the relationship to modern kenku is more complicated. A typical kenku feels anger at the loss of their voice, but admires the progenitor kenku for their courage and ambition.
Common Myths and Legends
Legend has it that the kenku were originally aarakocra, but lost their wings and their ability to speak for themselves a long time ago. The legend blames a great curse due to the actions of a banished clan of aarakocran who had attempted to manipulate time itself or take control of an artifact claimed to control the winds, depending on the version. Their hubris was rewarded with the curse of their voice forever being stolen.
There are different morals that are taken from this myth. Many anthropologists view it as a tragedy story which warns the kenku from being too prideful and trying to obtain what isn't theirs to have. Kenku, however, interpret it differently. The curse was unjustly inflicted upon their people for pursuing a power that they should be able to wield. It is a cautionary tale -- the world may be cruel and strip you of dignity when you try to assert yourself. It is an injustice that they will not soon forget.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
An aarakocran is rarely seen with a kenku, though neither really explains why they avoid each other.
A large population of kenku live in the Empire of Umenor, where they reside in small communities under the ruling of elves. A common elven term for a kenku is heyaða.
It is rare for a kenku to form a deep bond with a non-kenku.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Origin/Ancestry
Aarakocran
Lifespan
50 to 60 years
Average Height
5 ft.
Average Weight
90 to 120 lbs
Average Physique
Their lightness and shorter size provides them with a dextrous quickness, though they are rarely intensely strong and avoid direct confontation if they can.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Varies depending on the kenku ethnic group.
Related Ethnicities
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