Rhodevan Natives

Native Rhodevans, are the indigenous people who inhabited the islands of Rhodevus prior to colonization. The first documented records of humans in Rhodevus date back to 14,000 BCE when humans crossed the land bridge from the Corentian continent. Humans most likely crossed from Ventismar over the Cantabraian Ice Bridge around 12,000 BCE.

Native Peoples

There are over 40 unique native peoples that fit under the title of 'Rhodevan Native'.

Etymology

The conventional names for almost every native people group comes from pre-translation communication between the natives and Ventismarien explorers and settlers. Often, these names came from other native peoples commenting on their rivals, such as "Waraa", which more literally translates to "Coastal Annoyances" in Iwi Moanan. Names also came from natives misunderstanding what colonists were asking, so names also often translate to 'home' or 'village', such as "Iwi Moana" which translates to "My home" in Iwi Moanan.

Only a single tribe is known in English and its native tongue as the same word. This being the "Laaban", which translates to the "People of Ban" and is what the Laaban people call themselves and their tribe.

Language

There is no one singular unified language which encompasses all native people in Rhodevus. Although the official name for all these languages are Rhodevan Dialects, most are not related to one another and are unintelligible between each other. The reason behind this overarching name for all native languages comes from the first interactions between Ventismarien explorers and native peoples along the south-eastern shores of the mainland. The two native groups which control the majority of land initially explored are the Laaban and Laaban Tutzo, whom do share a similar language. From these meetings, it was assumed that all languages spoken by natives were dialects of one another.

There is a lot of diversity among languages, with Suhk-Ti being famed as one of the fastest spoken languages in the world and Waraa being among the most complex.

The most commonly spoken Rhodevan dialects today are the Laaban and Ghong languages.

Tribes

Tribe is the highest of the social naming class. There are only 12 tribes allowed at any given point in history. A tribe is actually just a clan that has gained favour with the native gods, through military prowess, diplomacy or culture. By the 15th century CE, the 12 tribes became solidified and unchanging. The Tanto Tribe is considered an honourary 13th tribe and has been since 1702.

Common Tribe Name	English Translation	Official Tribe Name
Ghong Tribe	The Elder Ones	Inuit (The People)
Iwi Moana Tribe	My Home	Mi'kmaq (Many of the Coast)
Tanto Tribe	Tanto Moose	Nuu-Chah-Nulth (The People)
Setan Confederation	Tiny people	Algonquin (The People)
Wun-Di Tribe	Traders with Nomads	Rurkunisakkan (People of the Harvest)
Tuuk-Di Tribe	Traders by Waters	Tulkunisakkan (Eastern People of the Harvest)
Jiuyud Tribe	Those with Dark Skin	Oot Oot (unknown translation)
Frugah Tribe	Made of Fire	Anishinaabe (Original People)
Qetzcoatl Tribe	Servile Ones	Dene Tha (True People)
Bontswei Tribe	People Climbing Trees	Kwakwaka'wakw (Speakers of Out Language)
Dezlohra Tribe	Living in Caves	Meskwaki (Red Earth People)
Laaban Tribe	The People of Ban	Laaban
Toa te Awa Tribe	The River Warriors	Miquisinti (People Born of the Water)

Confederation

A confederation is a cluster of clans that have chosen to become one, with a single chieftan. There is only one confederation in Rhodevus:

1. The Setan Confederation

There are over 30 unique tribal clans within the Setan confederation. The confederation itself was named after the area in which all the tribes are located, that being the Setan Plains.

Clan

A clan is the middle ranking in the native Rhodeve naming system. A clan is a group of people that all live within the same shared borders, which are often set through the use of militaristic and diplomatic means. Each clan has a single chieftain (clan leader) and a soothsayer (religious leader). The clans vie for military, diplomatic and cultural prowess, in order to be granted the title of tribe. The Rhodeve clans are:

1. The Suhk-Ti Clan 2. Waraa Clan 3. Laaban Tutzo Clan 4. DeMalha Clan 5. Sung Yong Clan

Lands

Whether it be Nomadic Lands, Holy Lands or Native Lands, this grouping consists of native peoples who are not fully organized, or in the case of the holy lands, are not allowed to become organized. There are three groups that have the 'Lands' title:

• 1. Tanduki Native Lands
• 2. Rond-So Holy Lands
• 3. Jhong-Ti Nomadic Land

The Tanduki Native Lands refers to a collection of about forty-eight native groups, all inhabiting the Tanduki Lowland Ridge in central Yztal.

The Rond-So Holy Lands are a section of territory in the Rond-So Crater which are home to a collective of tribal elders. In an agreement which spans across the entirety of the islands of Rhodevus and Rhode, the elders and wise-women living in Rond-So were tasked with documenting the strongest tribes. These shamans and wise-women woudl read the clouds and the stars to determine which tribes were the strongest for that cycle of seasons. This was done in order to ensure fair trade and peace among the peoples. While the date in which the Rond-So Holy Lands were established is a mystery, it has been made clear that the original purpose failed almost immediately, yet remained to be a cultural focal point which united the largest tribes and clans from across the islands. Those people who wished to form long lasting alliances would make a journey together from Rond-So to the Soul Tree in modern day Kingstown. The journey from Rond-So was considered a rebirth and the people on the journey became closer than a brother or sister. They were considered closer family than one's actual siblings and parents themselves. It became tradition for Rond-So to be neutral territory for negotiations, a tradition which remains to this day. The Treaty of Statehood, which created the Republic of Rhodevus in 1715 was signed in the Chateau Nouvelle in the town of Makias, located in the Rond-So Crater.

People

People constitute the lowest ranking tier of the native groups. they are often the smallest in population.

1. Matawa People 2. Petawawa People 3. Killaloe People 4. Saguenay People 5. Madawaska People 6. Chapais People

Culture

Songs and Dances

Song and dance play an important role in almost every native people group in Rhodevus, with the notable exception of the Killaloe, who use clicking tunes instead of songs, and Chapais, who don't have any songs. Most indigenous music uses rhythmic vocal sounds and loud breaths; there are rarely ever words in music, and if a song does contain one, it often holds extreme cultural or historical significance.

Betrothal or Engagement Gifts

Most indigenous cultures possessed some form of betrothal ceremony or gift exchange between those who wished to become married. While not all native societies had marriage or marriage in a similar form to what is common in the modern days, the linking of two or more people for child-rearing purposes was a common practice almost all across Rhodevus.

The Laaban Tribe's males gave a hand-carved or hand-made knife to the person they wished to marry, called Laaban blades. It was very important for both men and women to know how to defend themselves, but the males were the ones to make the weapons. So, to show that a male was worthy of marriage, he would need to demonstrate this capabilities as a knife-maker. Usually, these knives would take between 6 months to a year to make and would fall into two varieties; incredibly sharp (a weapon) or incredibly intricate (a decoration). It would be shown to the father of the potential-betrothed for his approval, then the mother for her approval and then finally given to the potential betrothed for her approval and acceptance of the knife, which would thus denote the acceptance of the engagement.

Similar traditions take place in the Ghong tribe, who made hunting spears. These however would be a more symbolic a gesture, as women did not do the hunting, nor use the spears, except in extreme circumstances (See Myth of Sackeguahene). These spears were more so what is now called History Canvases, which the woman would engrave important parts of her life during and after marriage on. These have now become incredibly important sources of historical information for the Ghong tribe. As men were not allowed to touch these spears or choose what gets to be engraved, it has become the only source of records for Ghong women in pre-colonial time.

The Toa te Awa Tribe, used carved fish hooks as betrothal gifts. The male or female would carve a fish hook for who they would want to marry. . The two would then go fishing at night and if they caught a fish before the sun rose, their marriage would be accepted. If not, it would be rejected and they would not be allowed to wed for a full season.

These engagement gift customs have since influenced modern Rhodeve traditions, which tend to stick to two types: the classical engagement ring or an engagement necklace. The rings come in similar varieties to elsewhere in the world. The necklaces come in many varieties, but what has stayed pretty much the same, is that the pendant hanging off of the necklace is always one of a fishhook, spear or Laaban Blade.

The Tanto held a traditional hunt between the betrothed husband and wife. Both would leave to hunt at different times of the day; first the woman at night and then the man, just before daybreak. The two would hunt an animal and then return to prepare it for the marriage feast. It was seen as bad luck for either betrothed to see each other before, during or after the hunt. During the marriage feast, the wife would tell the story for her hunt. Afterwards, the husband would tell the story of his hunt, noting the similarities between his hunt and hers. It was seen as a good sign if their hunts were similar. Wise women and village elders would then compare the two animals. If it was determined that they were too similar, too different or broke some strict marriage taboo, the marriage would be considered violated and the wife would be banished from the village.

Native Blades

Rhodeve soldiers carry a curved knife called a Laaban Blade with them at all times.

While Laaban Blades are used regularly in the Rhodeve military, they are often also given as gifts to international leaders or other significant people. This is because dulled versions are made that can be extremely ornate, made from metal, wood, stone or bone (inlaid with precious metals, gems and other valuables). Ornate Laaban Blades can sell for between 5,000 to 200,000 NSD. The most valuable blade ever made, was made for Gabriel Hopplin, the first president of Rhodevus, now valued at 1.8 million NSD.

All Laaban Blades are made by a single company run by the Laaban Tribe. There are also cheap knockoffs available that can be bought at souvenir shops, but to get a real Laaban Blade, it needs to be made by this company.

The company in question, Brevin Arms, while called Brevin Arms, is actually based out of the Imperial City of Rhode and not Brevin, like its name suggests. Similarly, while it does make plenty of military gear, that is only one part of the company, which also deals with specialty metal work and art.

While Laaban Blades are the most used and well-known military knife in Rhodevus, two more are also used. Tanto blades and Moanan Short Swords.

Tanto Blades are the throwing knives of Rhodevus. They were, of course, first designed and used by the Tanto tribe, which threw them from horseback (well, ‘mooseback’, due to the tribe riding Tanto Mooses).

Moanan Short Swords, just like their names says, are short swords. While they had once been used in combat roles, they are now ceremonial. High ranking members of the military have them and wear them with their military ceremonial uniforms. When a person is knighted or is given an important medal, they are also given a Moanan short sword. When the monarch knights a person, it is done with a highly decorated Moanan short sword.

Tanto Blades are the shortest, usually sized to be as long as a person’s hand, from their palm to the final knuckle of their middle finger.

Laaban Blades are slightly longer by about 5 to 15 cm depending on the person’s preference.

Moanan Short Swords are usually between 50 to 80cm long, while the monarch’s blade is 90cm long.

Gabriel Hopplin is often quoted in history books as being the first foreigner to receive a Laaban Blade, in 1715 when he became the first president of Rhodevus, but this is actually a misnomer.

Hopplin was the first to receive a ceremonial Laaban Blade from the Laaban tribe.

The first laaban Blade ever gifted to a foreigner was a stone blade given to Howard LaSoulette Croix, a French soldier who had been a colonist in Rhodevus, but fought alongside the native tribes against the colonists in the Rhodevan Colonial War. He was given the blade by the father of his soon-to-be native wife in the year 1593.

The oldest ever found Laaban Blade in existence is a carved stone blade presumed to have been carved in the year 1100 CE. There are some who believe that some of those made from bone or wood could be older, but due to the material degrading, none have been found.

Various Myths

The Myth of Kuken and Sira (Laaban)

Kuken and Sira are brother and sister; twins and spirits. Kuken is the spirit of the gentle spring breeze and Sira is the spirit of the strong summer storm. Sira, just like her storms, is noticeable. Humans know when Sira is with them, because they feel her temper. Her rage and anger which show themselves as thunder and lightning. Kuken, like the spring breeze, is not. He is hidden behind the greater spirits. Those of the Kahala, the great sun spirit. Or Setunbei, the spirit of life. Unable to be noticed by those around him, he was able to wander through the land and learn much about the life living there, like only a minor spirit could. He would become friends with them. He would give their grasses a gentle push, or send their smoke signals high into the sky. He was forgotten, but those he touched felt joy and that was enough for him. They were his friends, even if he was not theirs.

Sira enjoyed her storms and enjoyed using them to cause injury and chaos among life. In her psychotic glee, she would send waves crashing against the shores, and strong winds to throw around trees. Rain to cause floods and lightning to cause fire. Her thunder was her laughter, to show her amazement and excitement. And to let Kuken know what she was doing to his friends. Kuken summoned up all his strength to stop her, but the gentle breeze is no match for the mighty storm. But he still fought her. For millennia they would battle. Sira winning and Kuken running away. Sira causing destruction whenever Kuken found peace.

Kuken was lost for what to do, so spoke with the Unspoken One, Ke’etunbits Taharei. Who had no voice to speak, nor ears to hear, no eyes to see or fingers to touch. But, He felt Kuken’s pain and anguish. How he needed help, not for himself but for those he cherished as friends. The Unspoken One granted Kuken with a gift, an eyelash of Reta; the first of the true spirits. The spirit of imagination.

With his new gift, Kuken would try to stand up again to Sira. They fought. And Sira almost lost. In her immense anger at Kuken’s new gift, she tore through life, killing as many as her storms could. Kuken felt lost. Even with the greatest of gifts, he could not defeat his twin. But, imagination is not but everlasting. He chose to stop fighting his sister. There was no way to defeat her. But, there was a way to save his friends.

Kuken stayed ahead of Sira. Whenever life needed warning, he would find ways to help them. He would will his light winds to rub the stomachs of cattle, willing them to lie down. He would push the light bugs towards trees, keeping them hidden. For man, he would fill his winds in their ears, giving them headaches and feelings of unease. No more would life be caught off guard by Sira and her storms. Life would be given their best chances to survive. And Kuken would keep his friends.

Kuken is now the Laaban word for headache.

The Creation Myth (Laaban)

Ke'etunbits Taharei was born from the Great Unknown. The Great Unknown itself is sometimes referred to as the God of Gods by the Mythological texts, but other interpretations believe it to be the Universe itself, or even Chaos. This first nature spirit was unable to speak, being alone, and was unable to communicate as it does not possess a mouth. As such, it was deemed the Unspoken One.

Sad and lonely, the Unspoken One created Setunbei, the spiritess of life. Together, Taharei and Setunbei shaped chaos and molded the entire universe, giving name to this spirit, as Retah.

So, the spirits thus far are Ke'etunbits, Setunbei and Retah. Reta was the first of the spirits to have all 4 senses, being feel, smell, search, and hear. She was also granted the sense of imagination. This would play a pivotal role in the creation of humanity.

So, these 3 spirits set to work creating and building and have children of their own. First, from The Unspoken One and Setunbei the spirits Seto, Waten, Dena, Sucro and Flava were born; the spirits of water, earth, fire, air and wind. From Ke'etunbits and Reta, the spirits Broton and Secumba were born, the spirits of good and bad luck. Now, with 10 spirits, things start to get confusing. Each spirit mated with their parent spirits, sibling spirits and other relative spirits, creating almost all the spirits which make up the earth. Every rock spirit, tree spirit, animal, flower and insect.

With all these multitude of spirits, Ke'etunbits still felt lonely, like he was missing a brother. He saw Dena and Setunbei close together. The spirits of fire and life working together. He decided it was time to bring actual life into this world, so, he stole some of their power and fused them together to give birth to Kahala, the spirit of the sun. Seeing his creation as if it were his first child, he decided to act once more and fused the powers of Seto and Reta together, the spirits of water and imagination, to create Ohtawa, the Spirit of the Sea.

Now, the 3 major spirits were born.

But, Ke'etunbits still felt lonely. He was surrounded by spirits for all these beautiful things, flowers, plants, trees and rocks, yet no such thing existed. So, he tasked Reta, Broton and Secumba to create all the mortal things (although, at this time they were still immortal.) They created all the natural life in the world, as well as all the birds, insects, fish and animals which walk the earth. But, they were all wild, with no proper minds of their own. They all acted chaotically, eating and destroying. So, Ke'etunbits placed Ohtawa on this land and tasked him with dividing up the land, into sections. With each section he created, new life was granted to these land masses. The last of which. The one which Ohtawa fell in love with, was Redento Vihus. Ohtawa and Redento Vihus were married, being the first ever spirits to do so. But, Vihus was trapped in the land which she grew from, and Kahala was a spirit, meant to stay in the heavens (although the heavens are normally called The Chaos). Ke'etunbits needed Ohtawa to stay with him up in the Chaos/Spirit World, so brought him back, forbidding him from returning to the world. In his anger, Ohtawa asked Kahala to help him make the Unspoken One retract his sentence. Together, the spirits of the Sea and the Sun killed Ke'etunbits Taharei, banishing him to the Spirit World forever, unable to travel between realms like he used to. As a spirit and unable to die like a normal mortal, he cursed the world which Ohtawa loved so much, bringing death and disease to it. But, while Ohtawa felt that this was a curse, Ke'etunbits actually gave the world his blessing. Although it may seem like a curse, he understood why Ohtawa wished him dead and forgave him for his actions of banishing him to the Spirit World/the Chaos for all time.

With the ability to die, the now mortal animals and plants were able to experience the emotions of life. Now, all was set in place for the final spirit. Ke'etunbits was now banished and unable to travel between realms like he once did before. He grew lonely again and decided to put an end to his loneliness for all time. He cut off his finger, and gave it as a gift to Reta, Broton and Secumba. He asked them to create one last being, using the knowledge and power of his finger. To make it a being which could understand loneliness, and pity and sadness, but also joy and happiness and anger to their fullest extent. To be able to imagine and create. Reta did not feel like she possessed enough power to do such a task, so asked help from Ohtawa and Kahala as well. It had been many centuries since Ke'etunbits' banishment, and Ohtawa wished to make amends for his actions long ago. He agreed, and with the powers of all the spirits, he and his wife Redento Vihus had their first children. Humans.

It was the humans who recorded the long histories of the Nature Spirits and granted certain spirits the title of God. Even though they are lesser beings than spirits, they were the ones to choose who rose above them and who would fall. And they were granted this honour for one reason, they had the power of death. They were able to see and experience life to its fullest, since it was so fleeting. Just like Ke'etunbits, the first of the spirits.

Qilalugaq Qernertaq (Suhk-Ti)

This is a Suhk-Ti legend about a Narwhal named "Qilalugaq Qernertaq" who will swim up from the deepest part of the ocean, break through the ice which blankets the earth; which is an important part of their end of the world myth, and lead the forces of nature against the armies sent to end the world. Qilalugaq will inevitably die in the ensuing battle by a whaling spear in the heart. Its blood will then seep onto the land and warm the permafrost allowing life to grow once more.

This legend had been passed down through the oral tradition until it was finally written down in 1903.

The One Who Sleeps (Bontswei)

The myth is one from the Bontswei Tribe about a warrior, who's name is lost, but has since become known as "Qebata", or "The One Who Sleeps". Quebata was a proud warrior, the son of the Chief's second son and a fisherman's daughter. As a child, the shamaness prophesied a gruesome death for him, but a fulfilled life. Quebata's father, always worried for his safety, could only hear about the gruesome death, while his mother, hoping Qebata can get everything out of life, only heard about the fulfilled life. Qebata's father forced him to stay inside his teepee the entire day. At night when the father was asleep, his mother would let him out to learn to hunt and fight and forage as any man normally would. This gave him the nickname Qebata, because he was always up all night, he would sleep the entire day. At night, Qebata would hunt some magical creatures, woo lovely ladies and gents and live as a hero. As an elder teen, he left the tribe to set out on an adventure, where he would inevitably find himself on a volcano face to face with a sorcerer and her daughter. Qebata and sorcerer's daughter fall in love. The sorcerer makes him do 100 tasks of which he completes them all. Some of them, with the help of the sorcerer's daughter's magic. Finally, they are allowed to marry. The sorcerer, unhappy that he got help on the tasks and proclaiming that he cheated, tries to renege on the agreement and instead of doing the rational thing, like talking it out, decides to blow up the volcano in hopes of killing Qebata in the ensuing eruption. One foiled eruption later, Qebata and his 'fiance' are both severely injured, and the sorcerer is dead. The sorcerer's daughter uses the last of her magic to put Qebata to sleep to heal him. This action kills her and his body falls into a swamp marsh where it is said he is still asleep today and will awaken in the greatest time of need.

Qebata's story was etched into stone in a massive cave and can still be found in it's original language to this day. The Chronicles of Qebata, when written down is a juggernaut of a story and describes the guy's entire life from inception until his final sleep, along with the many side-stories and tangents which accompany massive works such as this one. It goes into details about every single one of his 100 tasks.

Qebata is a central figure in Bontswei mythos, featuring in many other legends and stories, with many claiming to have been descended from his lineage.

Influence on Modern Rhodevus

Native Rhodevans had a profound influence on modern Rhodeve life and culture.

Naming Conventions

A strange tradition in rhodevus is not to spell spoken names with a Y (spoken name being the first name).

The reason for this comes from multiple different sources but they all relate to the same thing. a Y looks like a symbol commonly used to represent: death, misfortune, greed, murder, plague, famine, etc. Depending on the native group, it represents different things; all of which are negative.

According to Laaban tradition, which is the most popular reason for the continuation of the tradition, a 'Y' is called (translated to English) a 3 pronged scepter. each prong representing a different trait: the right one represents sickness from the water spirits, the left one represents sickness from the earth spirits and the bottom one represents sickness from the sky spirits . Laaban communities which had been struck by a sickness would mark this symbol outside the community. whichever sickness was thought to have killed people in the community would get a little tick on that point. if nothing is ticked, then the community possesses them all. So, a Y in a first name is considered bad luck on that person.

Nowadays, it is less so considered bad luck and more to do with tradition. people with 'Y's in their name generally are those without native ancestry or those recent to the country.

Important People of Native Rhodevan Ancestry

• Diana Wolff: Young Wolf (half-Toa te Awan)
• James Wolff: Rides Horses (half-Toa te Awan)
• Amelia Wolff: Sails Storms (Toa te Awan)
• Bellami Wolff: Shadow Dancer (quarter-Toa te Awan)
• Raisa May: Raven Song (half-Toa te Awan)
• Rachel High-Sparrow: Dances with Waves (half-Toa te Awan)
• April High-Sparrow-LeFleurar: Breathes Trees (half-Toa te Awan)

Historical

• Tanto Chief Mika: Catches Flies (First), Rides Alone (Second)
• Tanto Chief Soaring Eagle
• Sips Creek (Waraan)
• Laaban Chief Bull Bear
• Laaban Chief Dances with Wind (son of bull bear)
• Laaban Mikan Bowell: Bawaka/Thunderous Death (adopted son and blood-nephew of dances with wind)

People granted native names

• Princess Anne-Maria Angellos: Thunderous Death (Bawaka)
• Princess Heir Sierra Everen-Abrams: The Commander (Luka)