Aiyaca

Lacasine Republic of Aiyaca Lacasina República de Aillaca
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Dios concede la victoria" (Veleazan) "God grants victory"
Anthem: Grandiosa Marcha ("Grandiose March")
Capital	La Sagrada
Largest	San Luis
Official languages	Veleazan
Ethnic groups	57.4% Mestizo 28.8% Indigenous —19.7% !Andean ——16.0% Runakuna ——2.1% !Paez ——1.1% !Qulla ——0.4% !Cañari ——0.1% Other —8.5% Moreian ——7.6% !Lokono ——0.8% !Akawaio ——0.1% Other —0.6% Other 6.1% White 4.7% Black 1.2% !Indian 1.8% Other
Religion	Puritan Alydianism
Demonym(s)	Aiyacan
Government	Presidential constitutional republic
• President	Guillermo Velázquez
Legislature	Lacasine Congress
Independence from Veleaz
• Declared	18 January 1797
• Recognised	26 August 1800
Population
• 2020 estimate	21,334,272
• 2018 census	20,817,882
GDP (PPP)	2020 estimate
• Total	$262.4 billion
• Per capita	$12,383
GDP (nominal)	2020 estimate
• Total	$169.8 billion
• Per capita	$7,961
Gini (2019)	40.5 medium
HDI (2019)	0.771 high
Currency	Aiyacan Florin (AFL)

Aiyaca (/'aɪ:jaka/, Veleazan: Aillaca; [ai'ʎaka]), officially the Lacasine Republic of Aiyaca (Veleazan: Lacasina República de Aillaca; [laka'sina repub'lika di ai'ʎaka]) is a sovereign state located in northern Rennekka. It has a population of over 21 million as of 2020 and a GDP of over $250 billion. It shares borders with Rocia to the east, X to the south and X to the west. Its capital is La Sagrada, where most of the country's administration is located, and its largest city is San Luis. Aiyaca has one of the largest native populations in Rennekka, with around 6.3 million living within the country – 30% of its population.

Aiyaca has been home to advanced human civilisation for as much as 5000 years. Early human civilisations that spread across eastern Rennekka around 3000 BC, most notably the Pioquinto civilisation, originated within modern-day Aiyaca. The Pioquinto people established agriculture and substantial architecture within the region, building many monuments, shrines and temples, some of which continue to exist. Historically a centre of native cultures, the area was eventually subjugated by Amaru Empire around the late 13th century, who established an advanced network of navigation and roads within its empire, connecting Aiyaca to nearby Rocia. The region was later conquered by the Kingdom of Veleaz in a series of conquests that saw most of the continent subjugated by the Eucleans. The Viceroyalty of Rocia was established in 1553, and encompassed both Aiyaca and Rennekka, however had its capital in Verbo Divino, which stunted development within Aiyaca due to its distance from the capital. Veleazan settlers and colonialists eventually pushed the native Runakuna peoples more inland as they settled both La Sagrada and San Luis in the 1600s. Its high mestizo population saw it become one of the fiercest pro-independence audiencias within the Rennekkan viceroyalties during the Rennekkan Wars of Independence, most notably being the birthplace of Manuel Lacasa, who secured much of the continent's independence from Veleaz. He established the Aillacan-Rocian Union, a confederation of the two states, and became one of Rennekka's more powerful states. Internal strife and external influence saw the Union break apart during the War of the Four Nations in 1906.

The modern Aiyacan state was established in 1906, with its constitution drafted and ratified two years later. In 1908, J.A. Curbelo was elected as the country's first president, enacting a series of reforms that included universal healthcare, free high school education and a limited work week, paving the way for an early left-wing Aiyacan state. His politics eventually came to be known as Curbellism and was later adopted by the Estadistas as one of its official ideologies. Following a series of corruption allegations, president Simón Molina was removed from the presidency and eventually charged with bribery and murder by the military junta that followed. The military, under general Pablo Pardo, would rule the country from 1927 to 1948, before eventually being ousted from power by mass defections and the Illescas Revolution in 1948. Pardo was imprisoned and killed and free elections were re-established in 1949. Since then, the country has been ruled exclusively by the left-wing Estadistas, and the country has been described as a dominant-party state. In modern history, it has a political rivalry with its neighbour Rocia, with Aiyaca supporting the independence of and rebels in Chawpisuyu, a native-majority region of Rocia.

Aiyaca is a member of [organisations], and is a founding member of !Mercosur. It is also known for its extensive amount of co-official native languages, around 35, which are spoken throughout the country.

Etymology

Aiyaca's direct etymology is unknown, however it more than likely originates from one Rennekka's native languages. Veleazan linguist and etymologist Joel Xirau proposed that the Veleazan name Aillaca originated from the Runakuna word allillachu - meaning "hello". Xirau theorised that Veleazan settlers attempted to initially communicate with the natives in Veleazan, but were met with a greeting when their language was not understood. The first mentions of the name Aillaca were in 1538, when the coast of the continent was first chartered, however the name did not enter any official usage until 1701, until which it was known as Upper Rocia, or Roca Superior in Veleazan.

Historically, the nation has been spelt with its Veleazan spelling Aillaca, pronounced [ai'ʎaka], which has seen the country gain an archaic pronunciation of eye-LACA abroad. The country officially renamed itself to Aiyaca in Newreyan in 1908, when its constitution was ratified, but renamed the Veleazan spelling of Aillaca, with both being pronounced virtually identically.