Ihhir
Ihhir is an authoritarian isolationist Free State located on an island south east of Urushee. Before The Collapse, it was a mercantile state ruled by the Great Wyrm Ivayim, who functioned as a Benevolent Dictator and ruler of the island. With his disappearance in The Collapse, the state made the decision to cut itself off from outsiders entirely and purely focus on its own reconstruction. Other than limited and strictly controlled trade exports, it is largely inaccessible to the common populace of Erra.
Culture
Society
The society of Ihhir puts heavy emphasis on social engagement and cultural enrichment. The vast majority of residents live in district housing, designed to comfortably accommodate a middle class family of four, with ease of access prioritized in the city's planning towards community locales. These generally include entertainment venues, such as theatres and art galleries, places of study, public workshops, and other such Third Places. Individuals are heavily encouraged to engage in activities with others at these locations by a variety of societal pressures, including reinforcement of these concepts through education at an early age. Goods are primarily acquired and traded for using a Barter economy, with prices on a variety of goods being highly variable dependent upon the volatile markets of Ihhir, taking factors such as supply and demand to an almost extreme level. Almost everything purchasable outside of basic necessities is bartered for in Ihhir. Ihhir is perhaps notorious for its discriminatory views towards non-conformity to their traditions, or the expectations provided by the culture at large. Introverted or poor individuals in particular were often observed by Posluszny to report less satisfactory experiences with the larger populace, leading to ostracization from social groups, whereas those that put a heavy emphasis on their work or discipline to spend time with others would frequently find themselves berated and pressured over the matter. Infamously, homelessness is outlawed in Ihhir, under threat of deportation and/or exile. The exact reasons for why this is the case are unclear, though some scholars speculate it is to avoid dealing with the potential issues of lower class citizens in a society that typically demands individualism. Within recent decades, the free state of Ihhir has begun to allow individuals to apply to immigrate to the island, with key caveats to the process.- No currency from outside of Ihhir is permitted within the island.
- All material possessions are to be sold immediately upon arrival at the primary docking facility - Citizens will be compensated with Boulons proportional to the usefulness of the goods provided.
- In order to be allowed immigration status, the value of these goods must exceed 2,500 Boulons per individual. This will ensure the ability to afford residence in one of Ihhir's districts, as well as demonstrate the capacity to be a productive member of Ihhirian society.
- Immigrating individuals are subject to a strict background check performed by an affiliated service before setting off for Ihhir.
- Individuals that are unable to find meaningful employment within Ihhir within 1 month of arrival will be deported from Ihhir, and their Boulons confiscated. Possessions brought in during arrival will not be returned.
As a Mercantile state
Ihhir's economy primarily functioned off of its trading and exports. While the island offered plentiful produce to sustain itself, supplies typically offered little leniency or reserves for its own population to truly thrive off of. Under Ivayim's direction, Ihhir began to focus on the creation of luxury goods such as fine art and jewelry, using the island's abundance of precious stones - Including the Ihvirayim, found only on the island and named after their benefactor. This would prove to be a lucrative business for the state, becoming renowned as words of their items began to spread among the wealthy. At first, Ihhir primarily traded for valuable resources, such as building materials, complex schematics and commodities to shore up their own reserves, with much of this being brought to their patron dragon as offerings before being redistributed among the populace. With this, they would begin to develop their society to a technological extent that, at the time, far exceeded the capabilities of other nations, allowing them to increase the scale of their operations and their effective capacity to conduct business. Today, Ihhir has since resumed trading operations in limited quantities, with a mere fraction of the vessels it once traded with being in active service since The Collapse. As a result, the exports from the state are now considered extremely valuable, typically falling in the hands of collectors or those with vast accumulated fortunes."By the time Ihhir adopted trading with the Boulon, it is estimated that they were the third richest independant state in the world - Even without substantial liquidated assets." - Emil Posluszny
History
Origins
The exact origins of Ihhir can be difficult to trace, between the state's walled-off nature and the immense history of it - It is believed by some that Ihhir as a state has existed even long before Urushee did in some form, though under a completely different name. If we are to believe the dictated words of Ivayim, the island upon which Ihhir is situated had hosted Draconic residences for several millennia, including many before his existence. Some scholars claim that Ihhir has the potential to be the first proper civilization that existed in Erra. Past names that could potentially have referred to Ihhir include Bydlar, Cherec, and Vakatow. The first recorded mentions of Ihhir that I have been able to procure are trading records from some of Urushee's coastal settlements, listing the location (often misspelt due to the coarse pronunciation of the double consonant) and its vessels having sold luxury goods such as jewelry and precious minerals. It is believed that Ivayim, while considered the ruler of the state, was not the primary individual that managed the operations of Ihhir. The Ihhir Ruling Committee (IRC) were a body of citizens formed in 547 that governed the day to day operations of its society, and oversaw a wide berth of its functions. From domestic law to trading strategies, Ihhir was effectively micromanaged by those at the top of the committee, with little input being offered by those outside of the group.Relationship with Dragons
(The following chapter is adapted from the works of the scholar Emil Posluszny, as I have to this day not been able to visit the state of Ihhir myself. Due to the sensitive nature of discussing their missing ruler, Ihhirians are reluctant to discuss their past with Dragons.) With the alleged history of Ihhir in mind, it would seem that the free state has been tied to the lives of its Draconic rulers as far back as it exists, with the dictatorial ownership being something of a time-honored tradition by its populace. While most societies write of Dragons as something to live in fear or awe of, as a menace or protector, Ihhir seemingly worshipped their leader, devoting their lives to the maintenance of its abode. In exchange for absolute protection from the outside elements and potential threats, including one notoriously failed military campaign by Enphune, Ivayim lived a life of complete luxury, where his every need was met by the populace. Using the state's immense wealth, Ivayim's abode, which is restricted from access to the public, is said to be a lavish temple of sorts, where he was revered "as a god". While the island primarily governed itself under the Ihhir Ruling Committee (IRC), any requests or demands by Ivayim were held with a regard higher than any other, with a few noted examples of changes in policy or conduct by his request. These include;- The discontinuation of Blast Mining to extract the Ihvirayim crystal, a precious mineral exclusive to Ihhir, as Ivayim felt the usage of explosives would be harmful to the island in the long term
- Cessation of trade operations with the Enphunian Empire due to a reported lack of trust, which would directly lead to the Enphunian-Ihhirian War of 785
- The unexplained removal of Konrad Podol from head of the IRC
- Other dragons were only welcome on the island as guests of Ivayim, and he had no children.
Post-Collapse
The Collapse had the potential to hit Ihhir the hardest of all nations. Heavily reliant upon Arcane technologies in their way of life, including their mining operations and methods of transportation, they also suffered the loss of their storied Leader. Ivayim vanished following The Collapse, much like all other dragons upon Erra, with no explanation offered as to his disappearance. Effectively stranded in the ocean with their previous means of subsiding off of trade no longer feasible, as well as the status of their citizens abroad being unknown, Ihhir found its entire means of life uprooted. After the initial months, during which the IRC restored order and tended to those immediately affected by the event, an order was made; Ihhir was to cut itself off from the outside world entirely and focus only on its own reconstruction. Done in order to preserve their own supplies of valuable building materials and resources, ships that came to Ihhir seeking greener pastures were rejected if they were not of the island's origin, and help was refused, with a simple message being delivered back to the mainlands of Erra: Do not come to Ihhir. To re-establish a relative normalcy in their way of life, the IRC reinstated the Boulon as the primary currency of the nation, even as those outside of it no longer used the coin due to logistical difficulties and scavengers. All amounts of the currency were strictly controlled by the IRC, and the introduction of Boulons from outside was made illegal. To read more about Ihhir's usage of the currency after The Collapse, refer to the Ihhir section of the Currency article. Reconstruction efforts and daily lives were placed under the cautious, controlling eye of the IRC, with the nation transitioning from its Benevolent Dictatorship to an Authoritarian regime, an act deemed as "necessary" by the committee to ensure the state's survival. While the necessity of such actions is debated by modern scholars to this day, the effectiveness is hard to deny, as by 962 the state had almost fully recovered from the effects of The Collapse, living as a picturesque window into a world before the devastation.
Founding Date
Unknown
Alternative Names
Bydlar, Cherec, Vakatow
Demonym
Ihhirian
Government System
Democracy, Parliamentary
Power Structure
Thalassocracy
Economic System
Barter system
Currency
Boulons
Legislative Body
Ihhir Ruling Committee
Executive Body
Ihhirian Executors
Location
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