Saldia

Saldian Federation
Flag Coat of arms
Capital and	Bauskus
Official languages	Saldian Siluan
Ethnic groups	Vaunus
Religion	Saldian spirituality
Demonym(s)	Saldian
Government	Stratocracy
• Head of State	Queen Šarune
• Head of Government	Iron Wolf Aras
Legislature	High Council of the Saldian Federation
Establishment
• Defeat of Mone the Tyrant by Kaidre the Unforgettable	~631
Population
• 2020 census	11,053,433
GDP (nominal)	estimate
• Total	NS$ 561.216 billion
• Per capita	NS$ 50,773
Currency	Saldian litas
Driving side	right

The Saldian Federation is a landlocked country in northern Eracura with close political, economic and military ties with Silua. Saldia is bordered by Silua to the north, east, and south and by Shalum to the west. The country is a federated stratocracy composed of 45 brigades with federal authorities based in Bauskus. It is geographically divided between the Atrausine Mountains and the Rambynas Hills. The majority of the population of 11 million is concentrated in the Rambynas Hills, where the largest cities and economic centers are.

The establishment of the the Old Saldian Federation in the early medieval period resulted from the defeat of Mone the Tyrant by Kaidre the Unforgettable and the subsequent unification of the Saldian clans in approximately 631. The Bauskus Accord is considered the founding document of Saldia, whice is celebrated on Victory Day. After the unification of the Saldian clans, Saldia did not expand past the ethnically Saldian heartland. Saldian armies though did conduct numerous raids on surrounding territories and were highly sought after as mercenaries by rulers across a large swathe of Eracura. In 1522, after the decisive defeat of a Siluan invasion of Saldia, Saldia and Silua signed the Treaty of Bauskus. This treat saw Silua give up all claims to Saldian territory and also established a military alliance between the two states that would form the basis for the Bauskus-Ravumo Cooperative Sphere (BRCS) that was established in 1892.

Saldia occupies the crossroads between Nordic and Siluan Eracura, though very strict and long standing policies have prevented Saldia from hosting populations of any significant size from either of the two larger ethnic and linguistic families. Also due to its strict linguistic, cultural, and religious policies, Saldia is considered a culturally and linguistically monolithic nation. Despite its strict cultural and linguistic policies, Saldian citizens enjoy a great number of freedoms as the vast majority of Saldian cultural, social, and linguistic policies are applied to citizens of foreign nations.

Geography

Panoramic view of the Aukštojas massif in the Atrausine Mountains.

Demographics

With a little over 11 million people, Saldia is less populous than many countries in Eracura and Siduri.

Saldia is an outlier among developed countries, particularly in Eracura, for its relatively high rate of natural population growth. Between 2000 and 2020, Saldia saw the second-highest overall increase in population, relative to size, in Eracura and was of among the very few nations in which natural births accounted for most population growth. This was the highest rate since the Growth Spike following the Great Eracuran War and coincides with the rise of the total fertility rate from a nadir of 1.7 in 1994 to 2.5 in 2010.

As of January 2021, the fertility rate remains 2.4 children per woman, above the replacement rate of 2.1, but still below the high of of 4.72 in 1800. Saldia's fertility rate and crude birth rate remain among the highest in Eracura. Unlike many Eracuran nations, the population of Saldia is not aging as severly. The average age is 30.4 years while about a tenth of Saldian people are over 65. Average life expectancy is 84.25 years.

Ethnic groups

Almost all people are of Vaunus origin, with no significant admixture of Siluan or Nordic groups despite centuries of interaction. Unlike many of the larger nations of Eracura, Saldia did not incorporate large numbers of non-Vaunus ethnic groups as demonstrated by numerous comparitive genetic studies.

A lack of of large-scale immigration over the course of Saldia's over 1,300 years of nationhood, has led to a very monocultural society; beginning with the formation of the federation by Kaidre, and further enforced by Aiste in the Immigration Decree of 1601, the government prohibited immigration into Saldia in all but certain rare instances. In 2004, the Saldian Census Bureau recorded that 99.99% of people in Saldia identified as Vaunus.

Language

Almost all adults in Saldia are bilingual in the native Vanuasese and Siluan languages. Vanausese is the official language within the borders of Saldia and among Saldian citizens. The Siluan language is used as the official language outside of Saldia, the most prominent example of this being its use as the sole language of international politics and diplomacy.

The Vanausese language is only widespread within Saldia and there are no known extant populations of Vanausese speakers outside of Saldia.