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This page refers back to the Ailor Cultures on the Ailor Page. While these fall under Ailor Cultures, they are not exclusive to Ailor. Other people like Eronidas, Elves, and even Asha or Kathar, can be raised in these Cultures as the Regalian Empire is a cultural blend where multiple people live together in culturally distinct regions. Each of these Cultures is briefly explained, trusting that the player knows what accurate information to source from Wikipedia or other media, to avoid copying and maintaining vast sections of text from other places. It is possible for a Character to be of none of these cultures and to have their own distinct culture or a mixed culture, though these things are not recorded on this page for the sake of brevity. While many of these cultures have real life references that follow a particular inheritance (like how Dutch and modern German flow from old Germanic), the direction of Cultural development is somewhat different in Aloria. As such, this page will reflect the ancient cultures at the top, and the newer ones at the bottom, while also explaining how and where those Cultures fit within world history.
Velheim
Velheim is not strictly a culture in itself, but rather a term that groups together many similar cultures all coming from one root people. The Velheim Culture together with the Dunden and Thaler Cultures (though these have changed over time) is the oldest Culture hailing back from the Oldt Era days (what the Ailor refer to as their native home continent of Old Ceardia), almost 15,000 years ago. Much of Velheim history is intertwined with their Religion Fornoss, which can be sourced from that page. Most Velheim Cultures form unions together with others. As such, some of them will be grouped together when reviewed. It should be noted, while all these groups have different languages, because they all inherently come from the same ancestor, there is a great deal of intelligibility between them, so long as they speak slowly. Serdi is considered "more melodic", while Skodje is very "flat and simple", Ørsti is difficult to understand for the others because it uses a lot of old phonetics, and Dasigyl is considered "guttural" and difficult to understand due to their habit to drop vowels. ===The Hvali and Søri=== Velheim Cultures (light pink and red on the map respectively) have held the closest to their Old Ceardian roots, many of the Søri even being refugees who fled the destruction of the Ceardian continent many years ago. The Hvali and Søri are based on early medieval Swedish culture, and also speak real-life Swedish with the in-lore Language called Serdi. They are Fornoss worshipers, but out of all of the Velheim people, are less obsessed with their cultural freedoms and independence, and have adopted a number of cultural habits of the nearby Thalder and Dunden people. The Hvali and Søri mostly subsist on whaling (for the Hvali), and farming (for the Søri). Whaling is a very important cornerstone of Hvali culture, with whale bones and imagery being common in their works of art. Søri on the other hand have developed a very strong agricultural society that has mostly abandoned the militarist roots of the Velheim people. As such, whhile Eili and Vola worship can be found among the Hvali, the Søri mostly only worship the Eili. ===The Driksi, Nordi, Hvitsi=== Velheim Cultures (dark blue, light blue, gray-blue respectively) are sometimes also called "The Three Skags", because they were once all one people called the Skeggi. Skeggi as a Culture was violently destroyed by the Regalian Empire as they subjected the ancestors of the Driksi in the Regalian Archipelago, while the ancestors of the Hvitsi and Nordi fled to their western brethren to avoid becoming part of the Regalian Empire. The Hvitsi then split off from the Nordi when they too became subject from the Regalian Empire, and so in the modern era, only the Hvitsi remain outside of the Regalian borders. Each successive people has a lower opinion of the previous (the Nordi look down on the Driksi for being subjugated, and the Hvitsi look down on the Nordi for falling in turn). There is a great deal of "no true Skeggi" happening among the three Skag Cultures, but the reality is that all of them have long moved past what it means to be Skeggi, and become their own distinct people. These three Cultures are based on late-era Viking Norse, and also speak real-life Norwegian with the in-lore Language called Skodje. The Driksi are fiercely independent while trying to preserve their cultural independence from the Empire's homoginization, while the Nordi are more embracing of Regalian customs, while maintaining a strong militaristic sentiment. The fiercest are the Hvitsi, who reject all forms of modern civilization, and are considered barbaric even by Velheim terms with their customs. The Driksi have a very complex mortuary culture that has spawned most of the Fornoss traditions surrounding the dead, while the majority of the necropolises are also found in Driksi territory. The Nordi are famed warriors, with the Nordskag Kingdom having one of the largest armies in the Regalian Empire. And the Hvitsi are just remembered for hating everyone that is not them, including other Velheim. ===The Kaini and Hjordi=== Velheim Cultures (light green and dark green on the map respectively) are much more solitary than the other Velheim cultures, and far less interconnected with the wider world. Both Cultures are also at risk of being lost in the figurative sense, as many of them are converted to Urlan by the local Urlan tribes, causing them to lose part of their customs and traditions as they merge into the more melting pot Cultures of the Urlan. The Kaini are still somewhat free from this slow death-fate, having built vast fortifications on hilltops and cliffsides, keeping the Urlan at bay. Kaini are mistrusting of outsiders, and like a metaphorical expression of their walled cities, put up many walls in their own heart before they let anyone in. The Hjordi as a Culture are not expected to exist for longer than 100 years, as their populations have plummeted to the few thousands. Hjordi are considered the most rustic or hick among the Velheim, masters at being unseen and survivalist skills, but lacking the refinement of higher cultures. The Hjordi come from a truly inhospitable landscape, nearly permanently covered in snow and permafrost, with Urlan constantly hunting them to convert, and with strange cultural traditions like turning the dead into compost, and using their skins as wall art to remember their lives in the tattoos on their bodies. The Hjordi have a very nihilistic outlook on life due to the very high child mortality rate, and their average life expectancy being very low. Both the Kaini and Hjordi are based on late-Viking era Iceland/Greenland settlers, and also speak real-life Icelandic with the in-lore language called Ørsti. ===The Tryggi and Hedri=== Velheim Cultures (dark yellow and yellow on the map respectively) are remnants of a once larger Hedri Kingdom that spanned much of the southern coast of Ellador. Due to a combination of the Vampire Wars, Isldar Wars, and conflicts with the Dwarves, this realm was broken in two and isolated from one another, allowing distinct cultures to come into existence. The Hedri were once a great trader people, and the modern day Hedri still have kept much of this alive, hiding behind a massive wall they say was built by the Gods to keep them safe from what else lurks in Ellador. The Tryggi have adopted many Dwarven customs and beliefs, with their society intermingling with Dwarves that live underground beneath their Kingdom, sharing many resources and knowledge. Both the Truggi and Hedri are based on early medieval Danish, and also speak real-life Danish with the in-lore language called Dasigyl. ===The Sunnvi=== Velheim Culture (isolated far south on the map) are an oddity that has been isolated from the other Velheim cultures for thousands of years. They were only recently discovered when exploration further south revealed landmasses to exist beyond Terra Incognita. The Sunnvi hold onto some of the old proto-Velheim customs, but have diverged very far indeed from the commonalities shared by the other Velheim Cultures. They are exclusively Vola worshipers, and have a culture strongly integrated with the summoning and bending to their will of Void Spirits. Their whole culture is brutal, tribal, war-like and seemingly crude to the female gender, a direct opposition with the gender-equality found in other Velheim Cultures. The Sunnvi are not based on any real-life culture, and speak a fantasy language called Suval, which only shared scant similarities with the other Velheim languages, and is not mutually intelligible. Sunnvi Velheim as a Culture are not currently playable, though Event Characters of this Culture may appear in Regalia on occasion. ===The Höge=== Velheim Culture (purple on the map) is a very modern occurrence, in which The Nordi people of Nordskag have started emulating the High Cultures of the Regalian Empire, building large Manorial Estates, ditching furs and chainmail for brocade and wide dresses, and adopting formal aristocratic habits. This culture is based on 18th-century Swedish aristocratic Culture, adopting elements of Ithanian and Wirtem (French and German respectively), while still holding onto many traditions to do with Fornoss Religion and their Nordi roots. Many non-Höge look down on them for submitting to the civilized realms and abandoning some of their wilder habits, while the Höge consider themselves to be the first freed from the yoke of dying customs, and able to weather the erosion of tradition by modernizing. Höge Velheim still speak Skodje, but do so with more pompous regality and over-enunciated syllables.
Ithanian
Ithanian is one of the Regalian Empire's most dominant cultures with wide reach in every layer of society and also having a disproportional representation in the halls of power, along with its archrival Wirtem Culture. Ithanian is a culture in and of itself, but it also has so-called sister cultures which have diverged from the Ithanian main but remain closely related with only a few notable differences. Ithanian Culture came about from the peaceful mixing of post-Allorn Empire collapse Elves and Ailor coming together peacefully. The Elven slavers saw the fall of the Empire coming and emancipated all their Ailor slaves (though kept all others), which took enough pressure off a potential slave revolt, that the Ailor were thankful for this peaceful gesture. The Ailor population was uplifted and merged with the Elven population, where cultural exchange formed an entirely new culture that lies somewhere in between Allorn and Ailor in style. When discussing the sister Cultures, this text will mostly cover differences, as opposed to re-stating the same customs. When juxtaposing these sister cultures, Haute Ithanian will be referred to just as Ithanian, while the sister Cultures will always be defined by their adjective.
Haute Ithanian
When people refer to Ithanian, they actually mean Haute Ithanian or High Ithanian, but this distinction is merely performative, to distinguish it from the other sister cultures. Haute Ithanians (in light pink on the map) are the source root of all Ithanian culture, and also the most extravagant. Haute Ithanian is based on Versailles Court style French, and also speak real-life modern French with the in-lore language called d'Ithanie. Unlike many other Cultures, all Ithanian sister cultures also speak this language perfectly mutually intelligible, with only minor accent variations that allow Ithanians to recognize each other by tone alone. Haute Ithanian is a culture of rediculous excess and opulence, of showing off and being seen, of personal liberties and freedom of choice and of opinion and speech. It is a culture that engages in mindboggling traditions, like dining with the busts of one's deceased grandparents, or rejecting a dress after it has only been worn once, but refusing to give it to the poor. Haute Ithanians are wealthy, a wealth that is built on the continuation of slave-labor that they have held onto since the Allorn days. This moral quandry is often deflected by Ithanians in that only the Elven Ithanians engage in it, the Ailor Ithanians do not keep slaves. This however, obviously does not address that Elven Ithanians are just as much Ithanian as Ailor Ithanians, and they are just using the disdain towards old Allorn memory to deflect blame from a lack of abolition in the Ithanian homeland. Haute Ithanian is a strongly matriarchal society where women hold all the power, and make all the decisions. Men are not debased to the point of misandry, but in some places can become objectified, such as gladiatorial rings or modeling shows that are commonly also called meat markets. It comes as no surprise that Haute Ithanian is obsessed with fashion and looks and above all appearances both in the literal sense and the societal figurative sense. Haute Ithanians are over the top, provocative, and the mortal enemies of the Wirtem Culture due to their strong opposing traditions and customs.
Toulonne Ithanian
Toulonne Ithanian (in lavender on the map) is a sister Culture of Haute Ithanian that came about due to a modesty and diplomacy movement on the far east coast of Ithania. While Ithanians are proud of their traditions, the merchants from the eastern cities found that their ostentatious behavior was difficult to stomach for the more sober and reserved other Ailor cultures. In their attempts to neuter some of the extravagance and strong expressions of Ithanian Culture as a whole, they diverged and created new traditions and customs. One notable difference is the Toulonne love for full body cover for women and men. Toulonne Ithanians wear wimples and headscarfs, as in their culture, it is believed hair is something intimately private and unknowable to outsiders. Toulonne women show no face except for the face, believing that the fruit is all the sweeter when its wrappings are removed for the right person. Furthermore, while Ithanians are dominated by pinks and reds, Toulonne Ithanians prefer black, grays, and blues. A strong aspect about Toulonne culture, is their troubadour culture of lyric poetry in themes of courtly love and chivalry. Even though women and men dress extremely chaste, this is purely a deception, as Toulonne Ithanians believe in very open loving of a wide range of people and cultures. Out of all Ailor cultures, Toulonne is perhaps the most prone to polyamory. Another notable difference, is that Ithanian has a strong Unionist element, while religious freedom is extremely important to Toulonne Ithanians, so much so that a very wild range of religions are openly practiced among their people. Finally, the Toulonne Ithanians are the financial grease that makes Ithania so wealthy, they are more often the merchant class that interact with foreign lands, selling and shipping goods, and making barter and deals.
Burdigala Ithanian
Burdigala Ithanian (in burgundy on the map) is a sister Culture of Haute Ithanian that came about due to heavy mixing with Heartlander Cearden people in the Regalian Heartlands. While Ithanian is a strongly Imperial-themed culture, Burdigala has gone in a different direction and glorifies the concept of Feudalism and all this entails. They reject Imperial administrators and governors, and believe firmly in the administrative division and rule of barons and counts. Burdigallic culture is also considered more gregarious and kind natured than Ithanian, which focuses heavily on court intrigue, treason, and plotting. Burdigallic Ithanians are far more likely to host friendly drinking parties that other Ithanians might look down upon for appealing too strongly to the approval of commoners. Burdigala Ithanians are also more culturally centrist, while all other Ithanian Cultures fight great political theatre with especially Wirtem at court, the Burdigala enjoy changing sides and playing both sides off against each other. They are nominally Ithanian, but their fortunes mostly lie with their independent thought and action that can sway with the changing of political fortunes. Additionally, Burdigallic cuisine is considered experimental and unique, with distinct wine, mustard, and snail eating additions, fine gastronomy and experimental cooking being greatly prized skills. Finally, Burdigallic Ithanians are renowned patrons of the arts, especially tapestry and illuminated manuscripts. A Burdigallic Ithanian wouldn't be found dead without at least one court weaver or illuminator on retainer, and several volumes of illuminated historical accounts of their families, and their feudal subjects recorded in great detail. While Ithanians wear mostly pinks and reds, Burdigalians wear burgundy, wine, and brown tones, while the Chaperon and the Hennin are extremely distinct Burdigallic pieces of headdresses. Burdigala Ithanian is the only Ithanian Culture that does not engage to some degree in Slavery because they are Regalia domestic.
Perrion Ithanian
Perrion Ithanian (in dark purple on the map) is a sister Culture of Haute Ithanian that is relatively modern in comparison to the others, mixing strongly with Fin'ullen locals in the l'Elvellen Principalities. Perrion Ithanian's single most massive distinction is that unlike Haute Ithanian and its sister cultures, it is not matriarchal, and has a strong masculine theme. This does not distinctly mean that it is patriarchal, it means that they have a very high preference and worship of the concept of masculinity, regardless of gender. Butch-coded women are in fact also praised to this standard, and held to the same esteem as a hairy brawny man might. Perrion Ithanians perpetuate the chivalric traditions of Ithanian, but make them very male-dominated, and prefer a standard of roughness and brutish skill, over-refined and decorated grace. Perrion Ithanian is a power-driven culture where duels over honor or just to show superiority are extremely common. It should come as no surprise that Perrion Ithanians have mostly an army made up of sellswords and mercenaries, as opposed to the highly paid standing Ithanian army of conscripts and wage soldiers. Perrion Ithanians love all the same vices of Ithanian culture like fine dining, drinking copious amounts of wine, and spending obscene amounts of money, but they are far less obsessed with appearances, and just with self-satisfaction and control over the people around them. Their culture is born and baptized in war, and sieging of castles is something they are distinctly good at, with Fin'ullen Perrion Ithanians, being considered land-oriented war elves, as opposed to other Fin'ullen being naval Elves.