Astraea
Astraea, a quiet and insular community. The people of Astraea are incredibly adapted to the unique cold climate. They rarely leave the island and rely on the icy and harsh terrain to keep unwanted visitors or threats from roaming Astraea. Despite their habit of keeping to themselves, Astraea has a close relationship with the neighboring Isles of Ennea and has great respect for the kingdom of Dianata, a community with very similar values of culture and community.
Structure
Council of Elders
Members voted on by the community. Any community member aged 20 and older are eligible to run as a delegate. Each community member over the age of 10 gets a rock or stone from the beach and places it in a bowl darning the delegate's name. The delegates with the most votes serve on the council for the year.
The Council of Elders listen to the wants and needs of the people, organizing resources and administering jobs as necessary.
Chief
Leader of the Council of Elders, highest voted experienced delegate during voting periods. Only restrictions is delegate must be 21 years of age and has served at least one year on the Council of Elders. If a delegate has never served on the council before, the highest voted experienced member receives the honor.
Culture
Community
Astraeans have a very close-knit community and are very focused on moral code and following community rules. They offer a road to redemption for most accidents or criminal offenses. The people are very forgiving of children and childhood mistakes as they are still learning and beginning to understand the community rules. Adults often include children in daily chores to learn the processes of making, helping, cooking, and overall learning skills to take care of the home, family, and community members. The Astraeans typically have a balanced relationship with work and time for self, family, and community.
Connection to Nature
Astraeans show an abundance of respect towards nature. When hunting, cooking, or creating tools, they use every part of natural resources, living or non-living. A large part of Astraean culture is entwined with the religious beliefs and practices of grounding or connecting oneself with nature. They consider themselves a part of the landscape. Everything is done with intention and admiration. Respect for nature is built into every stage of life.
Culture and Arts
Hair weaving and decoration
An important element of personal grooming and familial and fraternal bonding. Hair is grown long to allow for intricate braiding or weaving. Individuals will learn braiding skills from a very young age and will be encouraged to practice on their own hair and to help decorate other's braids. Hair braiding and weaving are important parts of the community as they provide time for community members to be platonically intimate with one another and assist with delicate and intricate designs. As each person grows and learns, they will each develop their own favorite braiding style and are encouraged to express their individuality through their hairstyles. Hairstyles can vary by number, orientation, complexity of the braid, and decoration using ribbons, strips of leather or twine, beads, and other ornaments.
Embroidery
Used as a marker of individuality and ownership of a textile or fabric. Usually seen on bedding or an adult's clothing, typically at the edge of one's sleeves or on a cloak. Children's clothes usually do not have embroidery since the clothes can be passed between many children within a few years, depending on the fit. Once grown, teens and adults will typically keep their clothes for many years, especially if they can be easily patched and repaired. Older adults typically have more intricate embroidery as they've added to the images and patterns over the years. Parents will embroider the names of their children among the other images, and young lovers will embroider the constellation that appeared in the night sky on an important day of their budding relationship.
Door Painting
Doors of homes are often painted with symbols and repetitive patterns, unique to the family or inhabitants of the home. When a new couple is wed or moves into the home to begin their lives together, or a child is born, it is a symbol of good luck for community members close to them to darn their door with new artwork unique to them to symbolize the change in their family. Since each door painting is unique to each family, the designs can serve as a family crest of sorts. Families will often use the same images or symbols in other parts of the home/ decoration and art (symbols on jewelry, embroidery, wood carvings, etc.)
Jewelry making
Jewelry in Astraea is fairly simple compared to the other artistic elements in the community. Necklaces are the most common form of decoration, usually made of sea rocks and twine or thin strips of leather. Instead of being carved or decorated like the many other forms of Astraean arts, the rocks are kept plain as a reminder of the natural beauty and simple perfection of nature.
Wood carving
Walking sticks
Since nature meditation is so sacred, especially to elders who have communicated with nature for decades and often have their own sacred places on the continent, the elders of the community often need mobility aids like walking sticks to get up the hillsides. When these are needed, wood carvers will carve walking sticks with decorative and symbolic images of animals, star constellations, etc that hold significance to the individual
Comb handle carvings
Similar to walking sticks, individually carved comb handles are carved with small, delicate (but still relatively smooth) symbols and patterns on the handle of combs. These combs are used when brushing, braiding, weaving, and decorating their hair.
History
Conflict with Icarria
During the era of the Wars of Every People (9151 - 9325), the people of Astraea did their best to avoid conflict with other kingdoms. They reduce their travel and trade with outsiders. What was once a seafaring people quickly became a stationary and increasingly insular community.
In this era, Icarria was especially ruthless, expanding its empire by conquering smaller, independent nations and powerful cities. As a few Astraean boats were returning home, they were intercepted by royal Icarrian ships. Instead of letting the Astraeans pass, the Icarrians attacked. The battle was especially brutal, with numerous casualties and hundreds of wounded soldiers. Battered and bruised, the few remaining Astraeans nursed their wounds and returned home.
When the survivors recounted the tale, the Council of Elders decided to take additional precautions to keep their people safe. The majority of the people moved away from the coastlines and traveled further inland.
Demography and Population
Astraea generally spans across the entire Astraean continent, and the population is mostly located in the southeastern part of the small continent.
There are higher rates of older residents, people live longer on average due to regular disability accommodations, regular exercise, and connection to the community.
Tenets of Faith
The Astraean people do not have a recognized organized religion, though they have religious-like beliefs that taking care of yourself and grounding yourself with nature is just as important as taking care of your family and your community.
Children are taken in small groups with one or two adults or older children/ teenagers for guided meditations to begin their relationship with nature and themselves. As they grow, they can have one older mentor, and then as teenagers will begin having extended solitary time on hillsides, near the sea, etc. Adults will routinely find time for solitary meditation. Other family/community members will assist with childcare if needed for these times.
As individuals age, they will continue the cycle and will help guide others in their own spiritual journeys. Individuals typically choose one part of the region that is special to them that they repeatedly use as their meditation spot. If this location is hard to reach, older community members will often get walking sticks with special ornamentation or wood carvings to help them get to their sacred place.
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