Argentstan

Argentan People's Republic ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາຊົນຈັນ Sathalanalad Pasason Chan
Flag Emblem
Capital	Vien Chan
Largest city	Ao Mangkon
Ethnic groups (2019 est.)	Argentan 84.3% Sylvan Creole 15.1% Other 0.6%
Demonym(s)	Argentstani
Government	One-party state
• President	Buphavanh Tauaenthong
• Vice President	Thongsing Bunphan
Sovereign State
• Vien Chan founded	312 CE
• Independence from Menghe	1519
• Independence from Innominada	6 June 2019
Area
• Total Land	180,316.15 km2 (69,620.45 sq mi)
• Water (%)	1.2%
Population
• 2019 census	10,659,000
• Density	59.11/km2 (153.1/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2019 estimate
• Total	$97 billion
• Per capita	$9,061
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	$46 billion
• Per capita	$4,315
Gini (2019)	39.8 medium
HDI (2016)	0.694 medium
Currency	Argentstani Kip (ARK)
Time zone	UTC+5 (Vinh Chan Time)
Date format	yyyy-mm-dd; CE(AD)
Driving side	right
Calling code	+96

Argentstan (ປະເທດຈັນ, Pathet Chan), officially the Argentan People's Republic (ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາຊົນຈັນ, Sathalanalad Pasason Chan) and also known as the Chan People's Republic, is a country in South Hemithea. It is bordered to the northwest by the People's Republic of Innominada, to the south by the the Republic of Innominada, and to the northeast by Menghe, with its western coast running along the South Menghe Sea and facing Isla Diamante across the Diamante Strait. It became independent on June 6th, 2018, making it the youngest state in Hemithea and one of the youngest in Septentrion.

A collection of small kingdoms existed in the are of present-day Argentstan from the 3rd century until the late 10th century, many of them centered around the city of Vien Chan in a loose tribute system. These small kingdoms were briefly united under the Sultanate of Ao Mangkon, which collapsed in 1142 but did succeed in converting most of the population to Shahidism. In the early 14th century these kingdoms came under the control of the Menghean Yi dynasty, regaining independence in 1519 after the Menghean Black Plague weakened Yi control. In 1563 the northern section of Argentan territory was reintegrated into Menghe's Myŏn dynasty, and in 1671 the remaining southern area was annexed by the Sylvan colony of Innominada. For the next 347 years, the Argentans were a stateless people, who faced persecution and discrimination on the Innominadan side of the border. After Innominada collapsed into civil war in 2014, Menghe and Maverica intervened to prop up rival states, partitioning the country into Northern and Southern zones. The Southern zone was partitioned again in 2018, this time with unilateral Menghean assistance, after tensions between Argentans and Sylvan Creoles escalated into widespread violence.

Today, Argentstan is a one-party state led by the Movement for Argentan Freedom, which previously played a major role in advocating for independence. It is led by President Buphavanh Tauaenthong (ບຸບຜາວັນ ຕາເວັນທອງ), who concurrently serves as General-Secretary of the Movement. Bupavanh and his government enjoy strong support from the government of Menghe, which maintains a large military force on Argentstan's soil. Menghean investment has also played an important role in revitalizing Argentstan's economy, which was previously weakened by war, civil unrest, and regional discrimination under Innominada. Argentstan claims ownership over three majority-Argentan provinces in the People's Republic of Innominada, as well as the island of Isla Diamante, both of which are backed by Maverica and the members of the Able Vigil Accords.

Name

Argentstan is the official Anglian-language name for the country, and is derived from the name of the Argetnan people. Argentan is an exonym which Sylvan colonists applied to the people in northwest Innominada. It comes from the name of the Río Argento, or Argent River, which was named by Serenoran explorer Emmerico De Cesare. From there, the term became standard in all Casaterran languages, including Anglian, and it remains in use up to the present day.

In their own language, the Argentan people refer to themselves as the Chan (ຈັນ), an endonym likely derived from the old word for sandalwood. This term was imported into the Menghean language, in which they are known as the Chan (儧 / 찬) and their country is known as Changuk (儧國 / 찬국). Both terms date back to the 10th century, and long precede the use of Argentan.

Chan forms the basis of the Argentan-language name of the country (ປະເທດຈັນ, Pathet Chan or "Chan Nation") and its full, formal version (ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາຊົນຈັນ, Sathalanalad Pasason Chan, "Chan People's Republic"). In the leadup to its secession, Anglian-language media coverage referred to the new country as Argentstan, even though this name has no basis in the Argentan or Chan language. Official Argentstani documents initially accepted this standard-use form, though in August 2019 some Argentan activists began encouraging the use of "Chan" or "Chania" in English translations, denouncing "Argentan/Argentstan" as a colonial label. As of November 2019, official Argentstani documents still use the term Argentstan in Anglian translations. Note also that Argentstani is the demonym for a citizen of the country, while Argentan is the demonym for a member of its largest ethnic group.

Foreign relations

The Movement for Argentan Freedom claims to be the rightful governing authority of all former Innominadan territories in which the Argentan people comprise a majority of the population. This includes the Innominadan provinces of Mojana and Cauca, which are controlled by the People's Republic of Innominada, and the island of Isla Diamante, which was annexed by Sylva in 2014 and later promoted to commonwealth status. The Movement officially disavows any claim to the Argentan Semi-Autonomous Province in Menghe, though some of its members have expressed criticism of this policy in private.

These claims put Argentstan in a hostile relationship with the People's Republic of Innominada, which claims authority over the full territory of what was once Innominada. The People's Republic of Innominada is backed by Maverica, which is a member of the Able Vigil Accords. A number of states have refused to extend official recognition to Argentstan, regarding both it and the Republic of Innominada as Menghean puppet regimes.

Argentstan's main international ally is Menghe, which backed its secession process after invading Innominada in 2014. Menghe maintains a large military presence on Argentstani soil, with some 350,000 ground troops of the 4th Army stationed along the border with the People's Republic of Innominada. Menghe also provided generous logistical support for the transition process, training Argentstani military officers at the Menghean National Defense Academy and assigning ethnic Chan from Menghe to serve as military officers and upper-tier civil servants until an adequate number of Argentstani trainees are available. President Buphavanh holds a particularly favorable view of Menghe, having lived in asylum there after being exiled in 2008, and has actively modeled the new Argentstani state on Menghe's system of government. This close dependence does not sit well with some lower-ranking Argentstani officials, who fear that Menghean oversight has compromised Argentstan's sovereignty and note that Menghe itself rules over a large Argentan population.