Savannah Folk

The Savannah Folk (aji-telukaa, whistling people in Ǧafetse) are one of the three cultural groups of humans, living in the grasslands and savannahs on the western coast of Mundus Major. In terms of territory and population, they are the smallest human civilization. Most of them live under the rule of the setzá, and the few independent aji-telukaa realms pay tribute to the reptilian lords of the plains.

Etymology

The term aji-telukaa (or whistling people) comes from the whistling tradition prevalent among the savannah folk. It originally came about as a method of long term communication in the grasslands. A sentry posted atop a tree could reach hunting parties and farmers for miles around using a sharp whistle, to warn of danger or to simply call people together.

History

Savannah folk are descendants of the so-called Ocean folk, the original human civilization which arrived from across the western ocean. In the years between 1200 and 1000 before the current era, a group of these ocean folk sailed across the The Abyssal Divide, and their descendants gradually came to be known as the aji-telukaa.
Between the 8th and 9th centuries of the current era, the setzá conquered most of the savannah folk's territories. They lorded over their human subjects with little empathy for their well-being, exacting harsh tribute in the forms of food and slaves. These reptilian kith eventually grew to outpopulate the humans in much of their former territories.
Several independent humans still exist in the northern reaches of the coastal savannahs. They border realms of the wild elves, whom they have become culturally intertwined with. Though they do not live under setzá rule, they still pay great amounts of tribute to them to keep them happy.

Customs

Though descendants of ocean-faring folk, many of the aji-telukaa have long since shifted their gazes from the blue waves to a sea of grass. They are people of the open plains, and riding various beasts is an important part of their culture and myth. They herd great packs of animals across the grasslands and live a semi-nomadic lifestyle.
In response to the constant threat of the setzá, some aji-telukaa banded together and formed settlements on the marshy deltas and islands of northwestern Mundus Major. These settlements eventually grew and were further fortified, and became some of the greatest human cities on the continent. Setzá raiders rarely bother these city folk, as their kind fare poorly on sea and river, and thus lose the mobility of the razorbeaks they so heavily rely on.
They venerate the birds of the sky, and the god Argadain is an important deity to them. They do not bury their dead, but rather cremate their remains under the open sky or leave them on wooden platforms, to be devoured by vultures.