Mihurite Republic, or the Adherents of Poeorec and the Caradian Coast
Old Reckoning 1489, 2nd Anater-arur
Yesterday was the one to gather all those Adherent to the City, and celebrate the escape from the Empire.
Mihur. A great man. Prophet, was he? The Dissident, that fellow Mihur. I know not. Speaking the tongue of God - perhaps-- I say he was a real politician, who gathered around him men of all races and creeds, and convinced them to die for him. That is more than what a prophet, by definition, can do - or perhaps a prophet is to be expected to do no less. I know not. Still, even I, a Taergaledian and once loyal to the King and himself alone, found myself ensnared by what was no strap of depriven slavery, but a teather to a faith, or belief - philosophy - which acts a people. Hundred races to follow the central tenets posed by a single pillar, and not five or five hundred. 'Believe in that which Is.' And nothing more binds this nation.
For how else to describe yonder republic, that of Mihur? They were once invaders. Now, they are colonists in a distant place, having marched for months and lost all, and having come over the Poeorec, established and thrived. Trade with the Kiri brought wealth to both-- yet the Mihurite always gained more, that is their lives. And were amongst those to have locked borders with the Blight of 7-334. Truly the chancellors and presidents of the nation seek to protect all that is Adherent-- even to the point of alienating themselves from the rest of the world, even risking a crisis in letting a generation die of plague. Seen so, who can say which would fall first, the City or the Sea?
I, for one, will not critique a nation to suffer me employment, and good pay as long as I pay tax, and less tax if I convert and marry an Adherent, pious and proper. Still, being part of yon society and republic, one to suffer *all* landed to vote, paints a bright mark of blood, a cross truly, upon my back, all our backs. We have enemies. Taergaled would stand with Mihur, come war with the Houses - yet against the might of the Land-Empire, they have made no promises. We are mighty in our diversity and our hundreds creeds. However, many consider us with envy and seek to peel away layers of our defence, which is arguably the presence of the Temple, and strike at the heart of our problems and bereavement, which is the hatred we carry against the Orthodox, and their hatred of us. These are matters to be settled on the field of battle, I fear-- yet the most terrifying weapon may not be, after all, the faithful and his blade, but the godless and his imagination on how to destroy those who possess that which he needs. We *have* often turned away those whose weapons would insult the Creation-- Many a time have the Kiri armies crossed rivers, and with the Empire as their ally, they could besiege. And what then? Even if the City were never to fall, what good does it do, if our God and his priests have fallen, having promised victory if the faithful would simply endure with patience.
But these are thoughts for the soldier. I have the utmost trust in the leadership of the Republic, and the Sarlükkan chancellor we now have. One may say what one would, if the man is of the blood to stand the line of politics, yet he endures still. And he reforms, seeks allies in his Sarlükkan kin, and is never pushed or pulled by those he fears, for fear he has not. We must be brave, and wise, for enemies surround us.
Tharel Anker, and may God keep us, until the light takes us. (Above a diary dated 7-635 unknown author. Found amongst the the dead buried in a mass grave after the City fell.)
Mihur. A great man. Prophet, was he? The Dissident, that fellow Mihur. I know not. Speaking the tongue of God - perhaps-- I say he was a real politician, who gathered around him men of all races and creeds, and convinced them to die for him. That is more than what a prophet, by definition, can do - or perhaps a prophet is to be expected to do no less. I know not. Still, even I, a Taergaledian and once loyal to the King and himself alone, found myself ensnared by what was no strap of depriven slavery, but a teather to a faith, or belief - philosophy - which acts a people. Hundred races to follow the central tenets posed by a single pillar, and not five or five hundred. 'Believe in that which Is.' And nothing more binds this nation.
For how else to describe yonder republic, that of Mihur? They were once invaders. Now, they are colonists in a distant place, having marched for months and lost all, and having come over the Poeorec, established and thrived. Trade with the Kiri brought wealth to both-- yet the Mihurite always gained more, that is their lives. And were amongst those to have locked borders with the Blight of 7-334. Truly the chancellors and presidents of the nation seek to protect all that is Adherent-- even to the point of alienating themselves from the rest of the world, even risking a crisis in letting a generation die of plague. Seen so, who can say which would fall first, the City or the Sea?
I, for one, will not critique a nation to suffer me employment, and good pay as long as I pay tax, and less tax if I convert and marry an Adherent, pious and proper. Still, being part of yon society and republic, one to suffer *all* landed to vote, paints a bright mark of blood, a cross truly, upon my back, all our backs. We have enemies. Taergaled would stand with Mihur, come war with the Houses - yet against the might of the Land-Empire, they have made no promises. We are mighty in our diversity and our hundreds creeds. However, many consider us with envy and seek to peel away layers of our defence, which is arguably the presence of the Temple, and strike at the heart of our problems and bereavement, which is the hatred we carry against the Orthodox, and their hatred of us. These are matters to be settled on the field of battle, I fear-- yet the most terrifying weapon may not be, after all, the faithful and his blade, but the godless and his imagination on how to destroy those who possess that which he needs. We *have* often turned away those whose weapons would insult the Creation-- Many a time have the Kiri armies crossed rivers, and with the Empire as their ally, they could besiege. And what then? Even if the City were never to fall, what good does it do, if our God and his priests have fallen, having promised victory if the faithful would simply endure with patience.
But these are thoughts for the soldier. I have the utmost trust in the leadership of the Republic, and the Sarlükkan chancellor we now have. One may say what one would, if the man is of the blood to stand the line of politics, yet he endures still. And he reforms, seeks allies in his Sarlükkan kin, and is never pushed or pulled by those he fears, for fear he has not. We must be brave, and wise, for enemies surround us.
Tharel Anker, and may God keep us, until the light takes us. (Above a diary dated 7-635 unknown author. Found amongst the the dead buried in a mass grave after the City fell.)
Naming Traditions
Feminine names
Ildi, Hareri, Lesoh, Vianin
Masculine names
Korot, Oskime, Vudaja, Orhean
Unisex names
Rutu, Sammo, Tahu. Uncommon. Associated with animals and pet-names for children.
Family names
Kavestin, Rimumn, Hestuvento, Sanaviar, Liitor
Other names
Names have power. Knowing ones name is having power over him or her. It is typical to go with a pseudonym, or rather being referred to as 'that Greybeard of Nerhok', or 'the Caradian Plank' referring to someone's age or exceptional posture.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
Mihurite Republic speaks some dozen tongues, including Tuartergi, tuarkiri and Qaran and Mölqaran dialects. The official tongue is the Poearan dialect of Qaran, referred to Poearic, which is written in the Mihurite script. Said script is considerd the most valid writing method with which to create documents and official letters east of the Border River.
Shared customary codes and values
Having been a elective theocracy in that the head priest of the City has the final say in matters law and judgement, the Republic is fairly young, having been declared in 7-440, with elective elements existing since the beginning. The priest is not the one to decide in matters military, or agriculture: they possess no expertise for such judgements! Thus, the City stood for hundreds of years an island with nearly independent satellites. The Republic was declared, and the franchise became a shared value for all, even the noble. The priest is yet the highest noble, yet the land owner is powerful as well, much like the general. They are followed by the City artisan, as well as their craftsmen, as well as the local elites in commerce and academy. All are practically equal in the senate, and have votes to decide matters of great importance, e.g. taxation and changes in budget, practices becoming law (such as contraceptive plants being made legal) and should military intervention be made in a foreign war.
Mihurite priests no longer dictate what is said, or done. Laws change constantly, and have changed for decades - marriage can be deemed null and void, one only has to find an Adherent priest to bribe. Many priests are truly fundamentalist: other estates as well. There is speak of the values competing in Mihur likely breaking the entire nation! The Kiri, somewhat sardonically, often ask if the City will fall first, or the Sea. Meaning, if the Kiri will fear less the raging North Sea, which represents to them afterlife and the final boundary, or the City - the most formidable fortress in the world. There is corruption and turmoil in the Mihurite system. In 7-600s there has been reform, yet the competition between the truly Adherent, or those to see themselves as the Scions of God, and the republican liberals is a growing, perhaps soon to be infected wound.
Mihurite priests no longer dictate what is said, or done. Laws change constantly, and have changed for decades - marriage can be deemed null and void, one only has to find an Adherent priest to bribe. Many priests are truly fundamentalist: other estates as well. There is speak of the values competing in Mihur likely breaking the entire nation! The Kiri, somewhat sardonically, often ask if the City will fall first, or the Sea. Meaning, if the Kiri will fear less the raging North Sea, which represents to them afterlife and the final boundary, or the City - the most formidable fortress in the world. There is corruption and turmoil in the Mihurite system. In 7-600s there has been reform, yet the competition between the truly Adherent, or those to see themselves as the Scions of God, and the republican liberals is a growing, perhaps soon to be infected wound.
Average technological level
Very advanced in the 7-600s. The City, with its universities, drew immense numbers of academic and student from all over the world.
Common Etiquette rules
It is considerd polite to smile, and shake hands. Friends embrace, and the grieving are given sympathy, and a hand on the shoulder. In general, genuine care and empathy are nursed from early childhood, being rules taken into the Adherent canon by Mihur and especially his scions.
Common Dress code
Virtually all males in Mihurite lands wear trousers, even very often the priest, who in the Land-Empire is by law robed. Women may expose their shins and shoes, and have begun to wear Mölqaran cavalry boots with high-heels in order to pronounce their buttocks and hips. Form-fitting dresses are common, with women having started to wear drawers or trousers themselves, beginning in the armed forces. Traditional uniform was the knee high robe.
This is considered controversial, as exposing the crotch is considered overly suggestive, with the priests at times seeking to abolish the fashion by law. A typical, fashionable winter garb for wealthy women is leather boots which reach the shins or knees, form fitting, thigh high wool coat, with likely dyed fur embellishments, with long, modestly cut trousers, a soft leather cap equally embellished by fur, or bird feathers. Women tend to wear either more modest, or no corsetry, as opposed to Taergaled and Tvbéra, with the ideal being a slim woman who excels, or has excelled at sports.
Men wear strikingly similar clothing, and the ideal is the same: slim and dexterous in body. However, in the country side fashion is quite different. Mihurite lands are extensive, and house several cultures. Poeorec River is the most wealthy, after the City: these have their own variations in fashion and dress code, and tend to favor more flowing and loose garb, as the weather is more warm. Women wearing trousers is far less common, and heeled shoes and boots are considered to be for cavalrymen, or perhaps mail runners. Loose, long dresses, wide hats, often robes for the men is the norm. In the far North East, what is referred to as the Small Fringe, locals wear felt, leather and full fur, as the Kiri they neighbor. Islanders in the North Sea are wildly eccentric in garb and hairstyle, and dye their clothing in bright colors, with the dyes being extremely desired in the City.
In short, Mihiurite fashion boils down to the City being the center, and the further west one ventures, the more traditionalist the garb. East, the more Kiri, as the weather is also far more brutal. The City itself experiences cold winters, and is thus something of a mix. The politics of men and women both being, if even modestly wealthy, of voting franchise shows in that few husbands will raise an eyebrow if his wife were to venture out to the City with a servant, or even by herself. These show in fashion.
This is considered controversial, as exposing the crotch is considered overly suggestive, with the priests at times seeking to abolish the fashion by law. A typical, fashionable winter garb for wealthy women is leather boots which reach the shins or knees, form fitting, thigh high wool coat, with likely dyed fur embellishments, with long, modestly cut trousers, a soft leather cap equally embellished by fur, or bird feathers. Women tend to wear either more modest, or no corsetry, as opposed to Taergaled and Tvbéra, with the ideal being a slim woman who excels, or has excelled at sports.
Men wear strikingly similar clothing, and the ideal is the same: slim and dexterous in body. However, in the country side fashion is quite different. Mihurite lands are extensive, and house several cultures. Poeorec River is the most wealthy, after the City: these have their own variations in fashion and dress code, and tend to favor more flowing and loose garb, as the weather is more warm. Women wearing trousers is far less common, and heeled shoes and boots are considered to be for cavalrymen, or perhaps mail runners. Loose, long dresses, wide hats, often robes for the men is the norm. In the far North East, what is referred to as the Small Fringe, locals wear felt, leather and full fur, as the Kiri they neighbor. Islanders in the North Sea are wildly eccentric in garb and hairstyle, and dye their clothing in bright colors, with the dyes being extremely desired in the City.
In short, Mihiurite fashion boils down to the City being the center, and the further west one ventures, the more traditionalist the garb. East, the more Kiri, as the weather is also far more brutal. The City itself experiences cold winters, and is thus something of a mix. The politics of men and women both being, if even modestly wealthy, of voting franchise shows in that few husbands will raise an eyebrow if his wife were to venture out to the City with a servant, or even by herself. These show in fashion.
Art & Architecture
Delicate and massivea tht same time, involving a great deal of wood, gold and stone in harmony. Mighty halls and grand bed-chambers exist in the City virtually everywhere. Even the modestly wealthy live in very well built houses, mostly with plumbing and fresh water.
Taergaled has a grand stairway of green and black marble in the Lithen Senate; Cal Mihur has an entire palace.
Taergaled has a grand stairway of green and black marble in the Lithen Senate; Cal Mihur has an entire palace.
Historical figures
The Dissident, founder of the Adherent Temple, as well as a great political infighter and military leader.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
Mihurite ideals for beauty are many, and varied; fashion and make-up for women is amongst the great businesses in the City. Men ought to be masculine, exercised and slim, able to play ball and wrestle. However, many men and women find themselves complacent in the wealth of their lands. There is too much-- Being slim as if a peasant is deemed oddly erotic and attractive for women as well - an oddity in the world!
Gender Ideals
The philosopher king is amongst the ideals for Man. Woman ought to be as well knowledgeable, yet aware of her class and norms regarding marriage and sex - she is not useless, even if she may come second. Loyalty is important - however, being able to, by oneself, function in a complex society some hundreds years old, with no true patrons from the state-- this is seen for both the male and female as the most important role of all. Whilst democracy is limited, and corrupt, both genders vote, as long as they are Adherent, and own at least a minuscule amount of land.
Courtship Ideals
One could consider the City to be modern in that young couples 'date', and casually engage in congress, as long as they keep matters private, and buy Taergaledian contraceptives and use them. Children are never considered heirs if born out of wedlock, and tend to gain their mothers name, which is considered a mark of shame.
Being a heavily 'clad' nation, whence it comes to priests and their role in law-making, certain laws are kept in place to retain an atmosphere of dignity. The City itself is a center of romantic relations and at times notions of nobles and them fighting for their favored lady-- Even fi, with time, these are being replaced by an air of commercial desire to profit from the reputation of Adherent ceremony being 'good luck' whence it comes to marriage. Many convert due to the Orthodox having little flexibility in matters love - Kiri may convert due to the poorly defined notions of who is mature and able to consent, meaning many a Kiri has ventured west in order to marry a young teenager, with no reprecussions.
Being a heavily 'clad' nation, whence it comes to priests and their role in law-making, certain laws are kept in place to retain an atmosphere of dignity. The City itself is a center of romantic relations and at times notions of nobles and them fighting for their favored lady-- Even fi, with time, these are being replaced by an air of commercial desire to profit from the reputation of Adherent ceremony being 'good luck' whence it comes to marriage. Many convert due to the Orthodox having little flexibility in matters love - Kiri may convert due to the poorly defined notions of who is mature and able to consent, meaning many a Kiri has ventured west in order to marry a young teenager, with no reprecussions.
Relationship Ideals
Mihurites are seen quite the romantics - they are sexually liberal, and wealthy enough to generally evade debauchery in form of Bub-lanes typical to Eastern cities in Cal Carad and Tvbéra. The City is considered an excellent place to marry in. Men and women both buy gifts to give to their partner - these can be as simple as a 'pops it apple' which the Kiri propose with, or an exquisite golden ring with jewels, which is considered a princely gift. Some Mihurites in the islands prefer matching piercings instead - wild differences in ideals, whence it comes to making *the* move, speak volumes of a culture considered sensual and erotic. Sex is present in the arts, and even ornaments decorating bath-houses or certain temples. It is not uncommon to have life-sized nudes of God-created mythical creatures in their element of sky, or water, decorating halls and private rooms.
Major organizations
Mihurian Republic stands largely on its own, with short-lived alliances with the Kiri, Tvbérans and Mölqarans all. Temple of the Adherent, a powerful force in the world, is synonymous with the Mihurite. The Republic senate, as well as her parliament have considerable connections as well. Mihurian state bases itself mainly on working low echelon bureaucrats, who see to their charges according to law, with minimal interference from the 'middle' or 'top'.
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