User:Sentinel/Sungtap

Empire of Sungtap 庭霅純 Sûngta̍pthêng
Flag
Motto: 帆百飛中風 Hongdong hui pehhuâm ("Hundred sails flowing in the wind")
Capital	Laukeng
Largest city	Thianglau
Official languages	Sungese
Demonym(s)	Sungese
Government
• Emperor	Emperor Tsiukeng (帝景周)
Legislature	Hundred Colors
History
Population
• 2023 census	46,043,519
GDP (PPP)	2023 estimate
• Total	2.321 trillion UFM
• Per capita	50,418 UFM
GDP (nominal)	2023 estimate
• Total	1.517 trillion UFM
• Per capita	32,957 UFM
HDI (2023)	0.881 very high
Currency	Sungese bung (文) (STB)
Time zone	UTC+8
Date format	yyyy/mm/dd (SE)
Internet TLD	.st

Sungtap (Sungese: 霅純 Sûngta̍p), formally the Empire of Sungtap (庭霅純 Sûngta̍pthêng), is a country located on the eastern coastline of the continent Atusia. It is bordered to the south by Dongguo; It has a population around 46 million, the vast majority of which is urbanized and living in the Sungese Megalopolitan Zone. Its capital is Laukeng, the seat of the Sungese government and the House of Jiam (家冉), the imperial family; its largest city and financial capital is the coastal Thianglau.

Being the cultural heartland of the Sungese people, the region which Sungtap now encompasses was the site of numerous ancient Sungese kingdoms, beginning with the mythical Sianmai (邁先) in the 100s CE and succeeded by various ascendant branches of the original dynasty. Between the 5th and 12th centuries, the Sungese would be conquered by the southern ???, thereon alternating in status between an annexed territory and client state of the ???, beginning the belligerent history between the two states. In 1193, Sungtap emerged independent under the rule of the modern imperial dynasty, establishing itself as a notable thalassocratic power across much of Atusia and parts of Muanbia, best known for its Blossoming Fleets - an expeditionary navy and mercantile fleet which connected it to much of the Orient. This rise in mercantile power, sometimes known as the Sungese Gilded Age, would however weaken the authority of the imperial dynasty, leading to the rise of the Argent Princes, urban aristocrats who established their own capitals and covertly contended against the imperial house and one another for power. After a palace coup in 1668, the House of Hau (家濠) would be ascend as the regental custodian over the imperial dynasty and be acclaimed "first among equals" between the princedoms.

The 18th and 19th centuries were characterized by heavy competition with powers both in Atusia and further afield, including Zyang and what is now Dongguo. Considered a regional power at this time, Sungtap briefly held a sphere of influence with client states in ???, but mounting threats from Dongguo prompted Hau to reorient itself overland. A botched attempt at monopolizing Sungese trade away from the princedoms led to the Great Suiuang Fire and a resultant sea ban and lengthy reprisals, reflecting a gradual decline in Hau political control and corresponding Sungese influence on the high seas. The Dengkot War led to the unceremonious fall of Hau regency and the return of power to the imperial court, starting a campaign of industrialization and centralization spearheaded by the napzangs (莊業), conglomerates formed by an ascendant capitalist elite which overturned the olden aristocracy.

Today, Sungtap is nominally an absolute monarchy ruled through the divine authority of the Emperor, elected from the branches of the imperial dynasty, and is aided in governance by his Privy Court and the sprawling bureaucracy under it. In practice, this absolute authority is seldom exercised, and the Hundred Colors - an unelected council of imperial vassals and interest groups across the empire - legislates through advisories to the imperial body. Sungtap is a developed country and ??? power, boasting a world-renowned economy centering around a strong service sector and technically sophisticated manufacturing. It is also highly cosmopolitan, enjoying one of the world's densest high-speed railway networks and globally recognized educational institutions. Nonetheless, the oligarchic nature of the Sungese government and dominance of napzangs in the economy has contributed to significant economic inequality, and the country has been criticized for its poor human rights record, including significant constraints on freedom of speech alongside the systematic disenfranchisement of women and ethnic minorities.