Culture Name: Arelgon
Starting Location: East of Edemu, in the foothills and valleys of the mountains, next to the river basin therein.
Society: Arelgonian culture is familial/feudalistic. The different Arelgonian city-states are arranged into a proto-republic organization known as the Confederation of Arelgon, or simply the Confederation. Representatives from the city-states of Arelgon meet yearly or in time of emergency to operate as a unit. In recent years, however, the centralization of the Confederation has grown exponentially, with the city-state of Wessarin gaining power and influencing politics throughout the city-states. Many are calling this Wessaric revolution the beginning of a new era for Arelgon and the Confederation. Before the Confederation, much of the land that the Arelgonics lived in was agricultural, and the few centers of urban life there were had been built around the citadels and homes of the feudal lords that founded the city-states of Arelgon. As agricultural techniques improved, and farming became more efficient, more citizens of the city-states took up living within cities, and by the time of the War of Confederation, urban centers had become larger and more common. Increasing with the urbanization of Arelgonian life was the quality of living the average Arelgonic could expect to have, and now as the Confederation becomes more and more centralized, a middle-class of Arelgonic is burgeoning.
Lineage: The archives kept by the different nations of the Confederation are rarely rivaled, and the lineage of all the families of Arelgon is diligently documented. These archives, however, are having their funding stripped from them by their localized governments. Their usefulness has now decreased, with the Wessaric Revolution, and the centralization of the Confederation. In the times before the Confederation, one's worth in society was determined entirely by one's family's status and history, but as politics becomes more and more centered around the urban, and not the agricultural land-owner, worth is being determined by merit, as opposed to lineage.
Values: The Arelgonics value honor, fidelity, and courage above all other things. Honor in battle and in commerce, fidelity in marriage and policy, and courage in the face of adversity. Though Arelgonian society is anything but perfect, the values instilled to many generations of Arelgonics through tales of glory in battle and truth in word have served to advance Arelgonian society over the years.
Religion: Arelgonian religion is polytheistic, holding faith in the existence of a pantheon of eight gods and goddesses who they hold responsible for the universe. Many of these gods are various aspects of nature and life, but the "king", deity that the majority of Arelgonics worship and has a large hold over Arelgonian society is Naeroth. Naeroth, the God of Light, is also known as the Truth-Bringer. Naeroth, it is said, brought light and justice into the universe, but this light and the universe it illuminated was corrupted by Gorrulth, the "evil", deity of Arelgonian religion. Thus, ever since, it is believed that the universe is constantly in flux between the Light of Naeroth and the Dark of Gorrulth. This is seen as a metaphor for the fact that the universe is imperfect.
Language: Arelgoric, the language spoken by all the nations of the Confederation, is composed of a base writing system of thirty-eight symbols representing multiple sounds, and numerous punctuations. The Arelgoric language favors the sounds, "ae", "var", "ar", "der", "nel". The symbols that represent these sounds are some of the most used letters in the Arelgoric alphabet.
Mythos: It is thought by the Arelgonics that after the nature-gods shaped the universe that Naeroth illuminated and created for them, Naeroth and his chief lieutenant and would-be wife, Sarinne created a people to inhabit it. This people was the Arel. A just, righteous and pure society they did create and rule under the guidance of Naeroth and Sarinne before being corrupted by Gorrulth. Thus did Naeroth and Sarinne shun their people, until they yet again found the light, and the battle for good and evil manifested itself in the Arel, who ever afterward named themselves Arelgonians in shame for their corruption.
Economic Base: Arelgonian economics is based around the mining of the large mountains and cliffs that surround the Valley Durren in which the more prosperous city-states are located, and the fishing of the river that flows through this valley and its tributaries. Alongside the fishing and mining is of course agriculture, which the Arelgonics excel at, but is taking a back-seat to the centralization of the Confederation, and the growth of Arelgon.
Nation Names: Wessarin, Fordella, Carrintar, Bethell, Vorren.
Place Names: Valley Durren, Carrin Mountains, Beth Mountains, Wessaric Sea, Vorr Plains, Fordellan Hills.
Names of Famous Persons: Dorgannon, Lord of Wessarin - Living. Aeruq, Lord of Fordella - Living. Sarilinea, Lady of Vorren - Living. Mendarr, Lord of Carrintar - Living. Aenar, Lord of Bethell - Living.
Velar, Hero of the Confederation Wars - Deceased, Approx. 150 years prior. Nentaral, Lord of Wessarin - Deceased, Approx. 20 years prior. Getharin, Lord of Vorren - Deceased, Approx. 30 years prior. Lelquarie, Lady of Bethell - Deceased, Approx. 15 years prior. Atharril, Lord of Carrintar - Deceased, Approx. 45 years prior. Fathgoren, Lord of Fordella - Deceased, Approx. 50 years prior.
OOC: I'm going to take a stab at this, since it looks pretty interesting to me.