Adelthon

Adelthon (Fritergic: 𐌰𐌳𐌴𐌻𐌸𐍉𐌽) is type of social organization in Gaia, especially in Finium in which members are associated by their school, their profession, or their place of residence. Often members will participate in several such organizations. The concept of the Adelthon is intimately related to Anx concept of kingship, under which the monarch has a responsibility to answer petitions from groups of his or her subjects, but not always from individuals or even from organizations that are not organized explicitly in the Adelthon model. Originally Adelthon were limited to men, but auxiliary groups for female relations were opened and later some groups have become heterosocial.

Etymology

Adelthon is a corruption of the Classical Setentrian ἀδελφός with the suffix -on, which cognates with the Fritergic -𐍉𐌽𐌳𐍃. Its approximate is "people who are brotherly" and excludes the blood relation.

History

The first Adelthon were formed by groups of petitioners who would travel together to the palace of an Anx or meet their Anx while he or she was traveling. They traveled together for safety and to express a sense of urgency for the community, which led to a tradition of monarchs admitting groups of petitioners before they would see individuals. Typically these early Adelthon were composed of several men from a village which had suffered from a flood or had some complaint against their own lords. There are many apocryphal tales of good kings denying audiences with their high nobles in favor of a group of two or three peasants.

There were many rights and protections for commoners "in fraternity" that they would not have otherwise had. For example, they could travel without the approval of their lord, they could carry weapons for their journey, they could not be conscripted, and they could seek an audience with the monarch. Because of these protections, Adelthon were formed on a regular basis and for many reasons. Some village leaders contrived to establish an Adelthon in the summer, but then forestall departure until the coming spring so that they would retain their privileges for most of the year.

As they perpetuated and became almost permanent fixtures in feudal communities, there were some requirements laid out for formation. They required some plausible cause for association, which mostly meant being from the same village or profession, though later Ditanist schools would also earn representation for themselves in the form of their alumni. They were also required to communicate with many officials before being granted an audience--mostly with the king's immediate representatives. Adelthon, which were primarily commoners or skilled laborers, could not afford to make constant journeys across the realm, so they began to depend heavily on letters to communicate. The Adelthon of the poor were called "Orders of the Letter" for this reason; most of their members being illiterate they would pay a scribe to write their petition for them and then all of them would sign it. Adelthon letters have since become an important textual source for historians.