Sangaji (saŋ.ɡa.d͡ʒi)
"We may be small compared to our neighbors to the west, but you will find that we have products they do not. I challenge you to find better limes anywhere in the world than those grown in the groves of Sangaji." - a Sangajian merchant speaking to a potential customer
Sangaji is one of the Harafora Islands in the Mangimoi Archipelago. It is ruled by the Kingdom of Sangaji, which was founded by Mangimoi who migrated east during the consolidation of the much larger Kingdom of Pagi. The ancestors of the Sangajians opposed the formation of Pagi, and were driven out of the Nofo Islands as a consequence. When they arrived on Sangaji, the island was mostly populated by the Pulawan, the most common ethnic group in the Harafora Islands. The newcomers rapidly outnumbered the natives, and when they formed the Kingdom of Sangaji a generation later, the remaining Pulawan repeated history by choosing to move to other islands in the region.
Like most of the Mangimoi Archipelago, Sangaji is a wealthy island due to its trade in spices and other rare agricultural products. It is particularly known for the quality of its citrus fruits, and the Sangaji lime is widely considered to be the finest varietal of the fruit found in the Great Ring.
Notable Spirits
Sangaji is a place of hybrid gods. When the Mangimoi brought their traditions of ancestor worship to the island, it began to place a pressure on the local Hyang, the gods of the Pulawan. The early Mangimoi immigrants adopted the local divinities, but quickly began to associate them with whichever of their ancestral spirits they most closely resembled. Over a few centuries, this syncretization was implemented upon the gods themselves via the Egregoric Force, resulting in gods that truly are a mixture of both cultures.
The most significant of these deities is Limalang, the goddess of the groves. She is the embodiment of the island of Sangaji, and according to Pulawan mythology, she created the Sangaji Lime at the behest of Tabarunai when humans first appeared in the Harafora Islands. Since the arrival of the Mangimoi to the island, she has also taken on the name Halue Malaha, after one of their earliest ancestors who is said to have first cultivated citrus trees on the island of Gimoi. The priests of Limalang claim that their goddess is the apotheosis of Halue Malaha, and that she followed them to Sangaji, as a parent follows their children.
Geography
Sangaji is a crescent-shaped island, mostly covered in tropical forests. A range of hills dominates the central region, and the southern portion is higher and less densely forested than the north. The island is approximately 43 miles from north to south, with an average width of about 14 miles. The largest city on the island is Malutunga, located on the northern tip of the island.
Geographic Details
Location: Southern RegionLatitude: 4.11 degrees South
Longitude: 10.93 degrees West
Average Elevation: 44 ft
Highest Point: 931 ft
Lowest Point: 0 ft
Area: 619.3 sq mi
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This article was originally written for Spooktober 2024. You can find all of my Spooktober Articles at Spooktober Central.
This article was originally written for Spooktober 2023. You can find all of my Spooktober Articles at Spooktober Central.
I love the idea of syncretic religions in fantasy. Like, how do the gods themselves react to sharing a hybrid pantheon with others, assuming they do at all?
"It's like reading TvTropes" -- Kroww
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I've been toying with what syncretism does to the gods in this world in my head - since it actually changes their identity, how do they feel about it?