Sylva
Commonwealth of Sylva Comudad de Esylvaña | |
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 Flag
Coat of arms
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| Motto: "La Antorcha de Fuego Para Siempre" (Latin) "The Flaming Torch Forever" | |
| Anthem: "Siempre Habrá una Esylvaña" (Spanish) In full “There’ll Always be a Sylva”. "Royal March" | |
| File:SylvaMap.png | |
| Capital | Chandler |
| Largest city | Los Olivos |
| Official languages | Spanish, Italian |
| Ethnic groups (2020) | Sylvan (59%), Sorenorean (12%), Merovingian (10%), Acoresian (8%), Ostlandian (6%), Other (5%) |
| Demonym(s) | Sylvan |
| Government | Constitutional Bicameral Parliamentary Federal Monocratic Commonwealth |
• Head of State | King Juan Sebastian de Campana |
• Head of Government | First Minister Stefan Serrano |
| Establishment | |
• Unified State | 1213 |
• Empire of Sylva | 1492 |
• Kingdom | 1918 |
| Area | |
• Estimate | 796,291 km2 (307,450 sq mi) |
• Water (%) | 5.7% |
| Population | |
• 2020 estimate | 47,128,470 |
• Density | 59.41/km2 (153.9/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2015 estimate |
• Total | $1.93 trillion |
• Per capita | $40794 |
| GDP (nominal) | estimate |
• Total | $1.787 trillion (2015) |
• Per capita | 37772 |
| Gini (2020) | 28.3 low |
| HDI (2020) | 0.947 very high |
| Currency | Dinero (DIN) |
| Time zone | UTC+6 (Chandler Mean Time [CMT]) |
| Date format | dd-mm-yyyy |
| Driving side | left |
| Calling code | +29 |
| Internet TLD | .web ; .cs ; .syl ; |
Sylva, formally the Commonwealth of Esylvaña, is a sovereign state located on the eastern coast of Casaterra in Septentrion. Sylva shares land borders with Batavia and Allancia in the south, Eisenmatt, Aurde and Carinthia to the west, and Erquin and Letnev in the north. It has a total area of 807,009 square kilometers. Sylva has the second largest economy in Casaterra and the third largest population, with more than 101 million citizens in 2015 and a GNP of $3.569 trillion. Sylva possesses two overseas territories, Valencia and Altagracia.
Sylva is considered Spanish officially but has a large Italian minority which has heavily impacted the culture and language. Sylva has historic social and economic ties to almost every nation on the Casaterran continent. The language and ethnicity are the consequence of widespread demographic migration between peoples from all of Casaterra although other Septentrion peoples from countries such as the Organized States have made lasting cultural impact, especially in modern times.
Etymology
The name Sylva derives from the latin Sylvanus (English: forest). The native Latin name for the region was shortened over the years to just “Sylva,” a reflection of the nations’ spanish heritage.
History
Prehistory
Ancient humans were present in Sylva at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons ever found anywhere in the world were discovered in a coal mine in Collserolla in 1995 where three 380,000-year-old wooden javelins 6-7.5 feet (1.8-2.3 meter) long were unearthed. Pre-human fossils found in Sylva are now known to be 40,000 years old. At a similar age, evidence of modern humans has been found in caves in the Sierra Sylva mountain range. The finds include 42,000-year-old bird bone and mammoth ivory flutes which are the oldest musical instruments ever found.
The Calunyan Kingdom (800-244 BME)
See also: Ancient Calunya
Prior to the invasion by the Republic of Reynes in 255 BME, the dominant power in much of modern Sylva was known as the Calunyan Kingdom. Following a period of expansionism in the 8th century BME, the Kingdom would reach its zenith, controlling much of the coastline of modern day Sylva.
In the mid-6th century BME, the Kingdom of Calunyan would come into conflict with the Ruso-Dorian Empire, which at that point had recently finished conquering much of modern day Sorenoro, including the then Kingdom of Reynes. Fighting between the two took place mostly in the Sierra Sylva mountains, where the large and unwieldy hoplites formations of the Ruso-Dorian Empire were defeated by the much lighter and more mobile light infantry tactics of the Kingdom of Calunyan. The empire would sue to peace right before it would fall to civil war in 535.
The kingdom would exist peacefully and become a local center of trade and industry. This would be ended as Mandonius, brother to King Indibilis, would usurp the throne from him in a violent coup in 255 BME. This would bring the kingdom in a gradual decline until it would come to conflict with the up-and-coming Republic of Reynes, as it was aggressively expanding northward. War would come shortly and the Calunyans would be matched by the Reynean’s new mobile infantry formations. Leader of the Reynean side would be Senator Cuinte Casni, who would lead an army of older veterans and young auxiliary troops to best the Calunyan troops in many fights.
The war would end with the Battle of Sucro, near modern day Saint Cruz City in 249 BME. Here the Reynean army would engage the Calunyan army in open battle. While the Calunyan army had numerical superiority against the Reyneans, the Reyneans were much more accustomed to open warfare, with the vast majority of the Calunyans being light infantry. This would be a massive Reynean victory and would see King Mandonius killed while attempting to flee. The conquest would be over by 244 BME, thus ending the kingdom.
The Second Republic/First Principate (75 BC - 489 AD)
After the Rape of Calunya in 65 BC, the political apparatus that once made up the Republic relocated to Esylvana, centered in Collserolla. Military strongman Sigsiustus I purged the Senate of what he called "leeches" responsible for the widespread corruption and infighting that had seen Calunya razed. After the demise of the First Republic, Sigsiustus restored the outward façade of the free Republic, with governmental power vested in the Senate, the executive magistrates, and the legislative assemblies. In reality, however, he retained his autocratic power over the Republic as a military dictator. By law, Sigsiustus held a collection of powers granted to him for life by the Senate, including supreme military command, and those of tribune and censor. He rejected monarchical titles, and instead called himself Princeps Civitatis ("First Citizen of the State"). The resulting constitutional framework became known as the Principate.
Sigsiustus succeeded in saving Calunyan culture and rule, but at the cost of its old homeland. Repeated attempts to retake Calunya, both during and after his death, resulted in failure. Throughout the next four hundred years, rulers of the Principate would focus on internal centralization, the repair and construction of infrastructure, and securing the borders from repeated attempts at foreign incursion. Though successful through Sigsiustus' reign and his immediate heirs, eventually the Principate fell to the same internal squabbling and political infighting that had led to the demise of the First Republic.
The first Germanic tribes to invade Esylvana arrived in the 5th century, as the Principate decayed. Numerous tribes settled in the fertile mountain valleys, often by deposing there original inhabitants. With the Principate reeling from multiple civil wars, little was done against the foreign invaders, as they gradually Calunized themselves and even participated in the internal civil conflicts that were destroying the Principate.
As the Principate declined, Germanic tribes invaded the former empire. Some were foederati, tribes enlisted to serve in Principate armies, and given land within the empire as payment, while others took advantage of the empire's weakening defenses to seek plunder within its borders. Those tribes that survived took over existing Principate institutions, and created successor-kingdoms to the Principate in various parts of Esylvana.
Warring States Period (500 - 1434)
Note: Due to a lack of substantial regional canon in the 1000 year gap between 500-1500, this section is considered a Work In Progress
With the collapse of a central authority of the Principate, successor kingdoms rose up in and around Esylvana with claims to rule the entire region as a single entity. Esylvana, unlike many post Republic and post Principate states, retained its regional identity, where as many former provinces broke into multiple states. Bloody and often endless warfare grappled Esylvana for nearly two hundred years as the balance of power shifted back and forth and then back again. The widespread warfare led to the gradual collapse of Principate-era infrastructure, local law, and culture.
By 1400, most of the smaller kingdoms of Esylvana had been annexed by there more powerful neighbors. The region was still divided, between the states of Collserolla, Carmi, Primavera and Sierra. The ruler of Collserolla, Caliphus The Great, managed to diplomatically align himself with Carmi before turning the united front against Primavera and Sierra separately, then using the spoils of that campaign to invade and annex his former ally. Following the war of conquest, Caliphus spent the next sixty-six years of his rule consolidating Esylvana, once again, as a single entity, in 1434.
The succession of the Sylvan throne to Caliphus II, the subsequent end of the regency of Queen Maria Antonia of Sardenya, and the long-tangled history between the two regions led to the White Wedding of 1477 where the two dynasties were bound by marriage. The result was a personal union between Sardenya and Sylva, one that, though interrupted briefly, continues to this day. The proclaimed Comunidad Unida ("United Commonwealth") marked Sylva's entry to the global stage as a major political, military, and economic force.
Imperial Ascendancy (1492-1914)
The year 1492 marked the arrival of Cristo Columbo in Meridia, during a voyage funded by the Sylvan crown. Columbo's first voyage crossed the oceans and reached Pillowlandia and Valencia with conquistadors. Miscegenation was the rule between the native and the Casaterran cultures and people.
Royal power was centralized at the expense of local nobility, and the word Esylvaña began to be commonly used to designate the whole of the two kingdoms. With their wide-ranging political, legal, religious and military reforms, Sylva emerged as the first world power. Sylva was the world's leading power for nearly five hundred years (approx. 1490 to approx. 1915), a position reinforced by trade and wealth from colonial possessions and became the world's leading maritime power. It reached its apogee during the latter half of the 18th century. Through exploration and conquest or royal marriage alliances and inheritance, the Sylvan Empire expanded to include vast areas in southern Columbia, northern Meridia, Valencia, and Hemithea.
The first circumnavigation of the world was carried out in 1519–1521. It was the first empire on which it was said that the sun never set. This was an Age of Discovery, with daring explorations by sea and by land, the opening-up of new trade routes across oceans, conquests and the beginnings of colonialism. Sylvan explorers brought back precious metals, spices, luxuries, and previously unknown plants, and played a leading part in transforming the Casaterran understanding of the globe. The cultural efflorescence witnessed during the early 16th century is now referred to as the Sylvan Golden Age.
In the late 16th century and first half of the 17th century, Sylva was confronted with new challenges. The rapidly-expanding Batavian Empire proved a thorn in Sylva's side, while in the meantime the nation was often at war with Letnev and Eisenmaat. The Great Schism dragged the kingdom ever more deeply into the mire of religiously charged wars. The result was a country forced into ever expanding military efforts across Casaterra, the Strachan Sea, and in the Westgulf. Through its strong economy and military tradition, the Sylvan Empire slowly expanded to rule over most of modern-day southern Casaterra.
In the latter half of the 17th century, Sylva went into a gradual decline, during which it surrendered several small territories to Batavia and Eisenmaat, as well as being forced to recognize Allancian independence. however, it maintained and enlarged its vast overseas empire, which remained intact until the beginning of the 20th century.
The 18th century saw a gradual recovery and an increase in prosperity through much of the empire. The government and economy was modernized, and Enlightenment ideas began to gain ground among some of the kingdom's elite and monarchy. Military assistance for the rebellious New Tyranese colonies in the Colombian War of Independence improved the kingdom's international standing.
In the late 19th century, crop failures at home and failed economic plans led to a gradual decline in Sylvan colonial dominance. Politically, Sylva was challenged by a resurgent Batavia, in which it engaged with trade wars frequently. Furthermore, a rising Eastern power in the form of the Menghe Dynasty saw Sylvan hegemony over Hemithea challenged and checked. Failed expeditions in Meridia cost the crown dearly both in money and blood. The decline culminated in the early 20th century in a dispute of the heir to the throne in the devastating War of Sylvan Succession.
War of Sylvan Succession (1909-1914)
The War of the Spanish Succession (1909-14) was the first world war of modern times with theaters of war in Sylva, Sardenya, Eisenmaat, Acores and at sea.
Emmanuel II, king of Sylva, died in 1908 without an heir. In his will, he bestowed the crown to the Sardenyan prince Salvatore de Campana. This enraged the Sylvan royal elite, who had led the personal union with Sardenya since the White Wedding in 1790. There power threatened, House de Carmen championed the late king's brother, Thiago de Campana, as the king.
Sylva's place as the lead world power had been crumbling since the latter years of the nineteenth century. Many rival Casaterran empires, such as Eisenmaat and New Tyran, saw the opportunity to curb Sylvan influence permanently and so pledged support to Salvatore, House Campana, and Sardenya. The result was a worldwide conflict that claimed nearly twelve million lives and resulted in the near-complete destruction of both Sylva and Sardenya, as well as the dismantling of the former's colonial empire.
Meridian Insurrection (1909-1929)
During the War of Sylvan Succession, Sylva extorted the colonies heavily for production, natural resources, and, in some cases, manpower (See Sylvan Legion). This policy was extremely unpopular with the Meridian colonies and gave rise to a growing anti-Western sentiment that was also growing across the continent. Small-scale insurrections broke out in 1930, mainly terrorist attacks and guerilla warfare against the Sylvan occupiers. The Sylvans failed to take the growing anti-colonial sentiment seriously, and were caught by surprise when in 1912 a former Sylvan colonel in charge of the Maracaibo garrison, Simon Romero declared a prononciumento against the Sylvans.
Rallying locals to his cause, Romero embarked on a swift campaign against the remaining Sylvans in Maracaibo. By 1932 Romero oversaw the writing of a Declaration of Independence alongside a constitution that proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Maracaibo. The Sylvans, preoccupied with their own civil war, were forced to recognize Romero's republic.
Spirited (and later supplied) by Romero's revolution, open rebellions began across Meridia against the Sylvan occupiers. Sylvan resistance to these were halfhearted at best, as even after the War of Sylvan Succession the wartorn, exhausted country could no longer field the armies and navies it once could. One by one, the Sylvan colonies broke off, with the exceptions of Altagracia and Valencia.
Pan-Septentrion War
Work In Progress
Modern-day Sylva
We got like...renewable energy and stuff
oh and we kill people
Sylvan Inquisition
The Sylvan Inquisition is an ongoing genocide in which The Kingdom of Sylva, aided by its collaborators, have systematically murdered approximately 69 million Slavs, mainly Yugoshits. Slavs were targeted for extermination as part of a larger event which involved the persecution and murder of other groups by the regime, including in particular the mentally disabled, and "incurably sick", as well as homosexuals, furries, bronies, transgenders, people who liked the color green, negroes, redheads, and anyone who played Fortnite.
Modern Sylva (1929-2017) =
Sylvan Inquisition
- snip -
Geography
Beach near Collserolla along the Majorca Bay.
Monteverde, the highest point in Sylva.
Mérida in north-central Sylva.
The Surland coastline, near San Sebastian
Mountain valley in the Sierra Sylva Mountain Range
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In general, climate in Sylva is temperate and typical to the region, with cold winters and hot summers. Sylva can be divided roughly into several geographic regions. The Tuscany Coast is the most populated region and is situated along the Strachan Sea. Multiple rivers run through the region, and as such has a comparatively warm climate. The average year round temperature is 20°C, and this remains fairly constant regardless of the season. This region contains most of Sylva's agriculture and more than 70% of its population.
Climate
WIP
Fauna and flora
The fauna presents a wide diversity that is due in large part to the geographical position of the country along the Strachan Sea and the great diversity of habitats and biotopes, the result of a considerable variety of climates and well differentiated regions.
The vegetation of Sylva is varied due to several factors including the diversity of the relief, the climate and latitude. Sylva includes different phytogeographic regions, each with its own floristic characteristics resulting largely from the interaction of climate, topography, soil type and fire, biotic factors.
Geography
Sylva’s Cloysteric Highlands consist of a large quantity of pine forest known also as the Woodlands, and are an extension of the Casacadian Mountain Range; in general the area is mountainous and heavily forested. Population density in this region is sparse although this area contains large reserves of natural resources, with most of the region’s denizens residing in the many river valleys that cut through the landscape.
Separating the Tuscany Coast from the Cloysteric Highlands is the Sierra Sylva Mountain Range, spanning from southern Erquin to central Sylva, and effectively dividing Sylva in to two parts. The Sierras are categorized by the many ski resorts and mountaintop seclusions on it’s peaks. The highest point in the Sierra Sylva is Monteverde.
The Primaveran Valley, also called the Chagan River Valley, separates the Sierra Sylva Mountain Range, and is considered the gateway to Sylva’s heartland on the western coast. The Valley is ninety-six kilometers in diameter at its widest point and twenty-one at it’s shortest. The Cal River, the longest river in Sylva, cuts through the valley’s center and empties into the sea. The Valley is dominated by the province of Chagas and the capital district, Chandler C.D.
The Strachan Sea is located directly west of Sylva. Most of the country’s population centers are located along its coast, and benefit from the warm precipitation it brings during the wet season.
Water
Sylva's interconnected water system is the world's largest, managing over 40,000,000 acre feet (49 km3) of water per year, centered on six main systems of aqueducts and infrastructure projects. Water use and conservation in Sylva, especially along the coast, is a politically divisive issue, as the nation experiences periodic droughts and has to balance the demands of its large agricultural and urban sectors, especially in the arid southern portion of the state. The state's widespread redistribution of water also invites the frequent scorn of environmentalists.
Administrative regions
Sylva has nine administrative regions, outlined by the zones of control of the remaining eight of the original ten cities (and the capital). They are, in order of population, South Carmi, North Carmi, Gladshiem, Cloyster, Gerencer, Smargovia, Chagas,
Cascadia and Sierra Sylva, and the Capitol District, Chandler C.D. There are also the non-continental territories of Grisham Island, Catalina Island, Argyle Island, and the peninsula of Concordia.
Government & Politics
See also: — Politics of Sylva
The Constitution of 1990 is the culmination of the Sylvan transition to democracy. After the 1989 Winter Revolution, King Juan Sebastian, known for his formidable personality, dismissed the intern First Minister, Carlos Navarra. The resulting general election in 1977 convened the Constituent Cortes (the Sylvan Parliament, in its capacity as a constitutional assembly) for the purpose of drafting and approving the constitution of 1990. After a national referendum on 6 March 1990, 88% of voters approved of the new constitution.
As a result, Sylva is now composed of 8 autonomous communities and two autonomous protectorates with varying degrees of autonomy thanks to its Constitution, which nevertheless explicitly states the indivisible unity of the Sylvan nation. The constitution also specifies that Sylva has no state religion and that all are free to practice and believe as they wish, a welcome change from the imposed Orthodoxy of Sylva's communist government.
The Sylvan administration approved legislation in 2007 aimed at furthering equality between genders in Sylvan political and economic life (Gender Equality Act). However, in the legislative branch, as of July 2010 only 128 of the 350 members of the Constituent Cortes were women (36.3%). Sylva's first female head of government, Maria Santangelo, was elected in 2013.
Government
Sylva is a constitutional monarchy, with a hereditary monarch and a bicameral parliament, the Cortes Generales (General Courts). The executive branch consists of a Council of Ministers of Sylva presided over by the First Minister, nominated and appointed by the monarch and confirmed by the Congress of Deputies following legislative elections. By political custom established by King Juan Sebastian since the ratification of the 1978 Constitution, the king's nominees have all been from parties who maintain a plurality of seats in the Congress.
The legislative branch is made up of the Congress of Deputies (Congreso de los Diputados) with 350 members, elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve four-year terms, and a Senate (Senado) with 259 seats of which 208 are directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the regional legislatures to also serve four-year terms.
Politics
The politics of Sylva takes place under the framework established by the Constitution of 1990. Sylva is established as a social and democratic state, wherein the national sovereignty is vested in the people, from which the powers of the state emanate.
The form of government in Spain is a parliamentary monarchy, that is, a social representative, democratic, constitutional monarchy in which the monarch is the head of state, while the prime minister is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government, which is integrated by the prime minister, the deputy prime ministers, and other ministers, which collectively form the Cabinet, or Council of Ministers. Legislative power is vested in the Cortes Generales (General Courts), a bicameral parliament constituted by the Congress of Deputies and the Senate. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature, administering justice on behalf of the King by judges and magistrates. The Supreme Court of Sylva is the highest court in the nation, with jurisdiction in all Sylvan territories, superior to all in all affairs.
Sylva's political system is a multi-party system, but since the 1990s, two parties have been predominant in politics, the Partido Conservador (Conservative Party) and the Partido Nacional (National Party). Minority parties, such as Partido del Trabajador Liberal (Liberal Workers' Party) and the Coalición de Independientes (Coalition of Independents) have also played key roles in Sylvan politics. Members of the Congress of Deputies are selected through proportional representation, and the government is formed by the party or coalition that has the confidence of the Congress, usually the party with the largest number of seats. Since the Sylva transition to democracy, there have not been coalition governments; when a party has failed to obtain absolute majority, minority governments have been formed.
Foreign affairs
See also: — Able Vigil Accords
See also: — Septentrion Treaty Against The Proliferation of Nuclear Armaments
Sylva is officially neutral, though shares common alignment with Eisenmaat and Mozria. In 2017 the three nations signed the Able Vigil Accords, cementing an alliance between the nations aimed officially at the common defense of each's nation's nuetrality. It has been criticized however as being a direct effort at containment towards both the Western Coalition and the Turov Pact.
Sylva supports the Meridian Economic and Defense Agreement, or more specifically, Neo-Pillowlandia and Valencia, which it considers important allies in the region. It criticized the Soodean Imperium for its involvement in the Ummayahan Civil War, and supported its ally Mozria in the Conflict in Volduria.
Sylva is also an exception state signatory to the STAPNA.
Military
See also: - Armed Forces of the National Republic See also: - Sylvan Land Forces TO&E See also: - Equipment of the Sylvan Armed Forces See also: - Structure and Organization of the Sylvan Military See also: - Sylvan Legion
Sylvan military spending is the second highest in Casaterra. Sylva has roughly 540,000 men under arms and spent $110 billion on defense in 2016; spending in 2015 approached $115 billion. Sylva has two military branches: the Combined Forces, which is the army and air force; and the the Maritime Forces, which is the country's navy, coast guard, and marine corps. Both fall under the jurisdiction of the Defense Ministry. Intelligence is handled by the Office of National Intelligence, a purview of the Defense Ministry.
The Combined Forces are divided into eighteen combat divisions and sixteen independent brigades, with more than 4,500 tanks and 2,500 aircraft in active service. The Navy fields 84 commissioned warships, including three aircraft carriers and eleven nuclear submarines. As an exception state signatory of the Treaty Against Proliferation of Nuclear Arms, Sylva retains a nuclear arsenal, although it also has a large stock of chemical and biological weapons. Sylva armed forces are principally deployed on the southern and northern borders, and train for symmetrical mechanized combined arms warfare.
Deployments
See also: Joint Strike and Expeditionary Force
See also: III Corps
Sylva is relatively isolationist when it comes to world affairs but is heavily involved in Casaterran affairs. This includes deploying forces to Eisenmaat as part of a defensive coalition with Eisenmaat and Mozria.
Sylvan Monarchy
Family tree of members
| King Santiago X | Crown Princess Margarita, Duchess of Servilla | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prince Diego, Duke of Huelva | Princess Sibylla, Duchess of Casistas | Mariana, Countess of Montejo | Adrián, Count of Collserolla | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prince Emilio, Duke of Syracusa* | Isabella, Crown Princess of Esylana | Prince Eduardo, Duke of Huelva* | Princess Sofia, Duchess of Huelva | Christopher O'Neill | Princess Florencia, Duchess of Granada* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Princess Mariana, Duchess of Casistas | Prince Javier, Duke of Tarragona | Prince Alejandro, Duke of Soldado del Sol | Princess María Camila, Duchess of Majorca* | Prince Nicolas, Duke of Santa Cruz* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Economy
WIP
Culture
Art and Architecture
Sardenya has given the world many important figures in the area of the art. Sardenyan painters internationally known are Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró and Antoni Tàpies. Closely linked with the Sardenyan pictorial atmosphere was the development of cubism. Other important artists are Ramon Casas, Josep Maria Subirachs and Marià Fortuny. The most important painting museums of Sardenya are the Teatre-Museu Dalí, Fundació Antoni Tàpies, Joan Miró Foundation, the National Art Museum of Sardenya the Cagliari Museum of Contemporary Art, the Center of Sardenyan Contemporary Culture and the CaixaForum.
In the area of architecture were developed and adapted to Catalonia different artistic styles prevalent in Europe, leaving footprints in many churches, monasteries and cathedrals, of Romanesque (the best examples of which are located in the northern half of the territory) and Gothic styles. There are some examples of Renaissance architecture and Neoclassical. Modernism (Art Nouveau) in the late nineteenth century appears as the national art. The world-renowned Catalan architects of this style are Antoni Gaudí, Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Josep Puig i Cadafalch. In the field of architectural rationalism, highlighting Josep Lluís Sert and Torres Clavé.
Cuisine
The cuisine of the islands can be grouped as part of wider Catalan, Spanish or Italian cuisines. It features much pastry, cheese, wine, pork and seafood. Sobrassada is a local pork sausage. Lobster stew from Cagliari, is one of their most well-sought after dishes, attracting even foreign dignitaries.
Languages
Both Catalan and Italian are official languages in the country. Catalan is designated as a "llengua pròpia", literally "own language" in its statute of autonomy. T Practically all residents of Sardenya speak Italian fluently. In 2003 74.6% of the nation's residents also knew how to speak Catalan and 93.1% could understand it. Other languages, such as English, German and Italian, are often spoken by locals, especially those who work in the tourism industry.
Literature
The golden age of Sardenyan poetry began in the early 13th century with the Sardenyan School of Giacomo da Lentini, which was highly influential on even modern literature. Some of the most noted figures among writers and poets are Luigi Pirandello (Nobel laureate, 1934), Salvatore Quasimodo (Nobel laureate, 1959), and Giovanni Verga (the father of the Sardenyan Verismo).
During the Reunificacion, the epic poem Cantar de Mio Cid was written about a real man—his battles, conquests, and daily life.
Other major plays from the medieval times were Mester de Juglaría, Mester de Clerecía, Coplas por la muerte de su padre or El Libro de buen amor (The Book of Good Love). During the Renaissance the major plays are La Celestina and El Lazarillo de Tormes, while many religious literature was created with poets as Luis de León, San Juan de la Cruz, Santa Teresa de Jesús, etc.
The Baroque is the most important period for Spanish culture. The famous Don Quijote de La Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes was written in this time. Other writers from the period are: Francisco de Quevedo, Lope de Vega, Calderón de la Barca or Tirso de Molina.
Traditional Clothing
Colorful and of various and original forms, the Sardenyan traditional clothes are a clear symbol of belonging to specific collective identities. Although the basic model is homogeneous and common throughout the island, each town or village has its own traditional clothing which differentiates it from the others.
Music
Sardenyan music is often considered abroad to be synonymous with {[wp|flamenco}}, a West Andalusian musical genre, which, contrary to popular belief, is not widespread outside that region. Various regional styles of folk music abound in the northern regions. Pop, rock, hip hop and heavy metal are also popular among the youth.
Thousands of music fans also travel to Spain each year for internationally recognized summer music festivals Sónar which often features the top up and coming pop and techno acts, and Benicàssim which tends to feature alternative rock and dance acts. Both festivals mark Sardenya as an international music presence and reflect the tastes of young people in the country.
The most popular traditional musical instrument, the guitar, originated in Spain. Typical of the north are the traditional bag pipers or gaiteros, mainly in Asturias and Galicia.
Religion
Nearly 50% of Sylvan people are Christian; non-believers make up the second largest demographic.
Sport
The most popular sport in Sylva is lacrosse,which found its origins in the country, however Sylva also has twenty-two football clubs.