Arachaea

The Principality of Arachaea Arachaean: Fyrstedømmet Arækøyskes
Flag of Flag
Motto: "Frihed, virðing, likhed, demokrati og rettfærdighed!" "Freedom, respect, equality, democracy and justice!"
Capital and	Stelberg
Official languages	Arachaean
Demonym(s)	Arachaean
Government	Federal parliamentary constitutional elective monarchy
• Monarch	Harald II
• Prime Minister	Anika Øie
Legislature	Folketing
Establishment
• Independence from Denmark-Norway	1814
Area
•	34,212 km2 (13,209 sq mi)
Population
• 2016 census	5,012,783
• Density	146.52/km2 (379.5/sq mi) (80th)
GDP (PPP)	2016 estimate
• Total	$261.582 billion (62nd)
• Per capita	$52,183 (13th)
GDP (nominal)	2016 estimate
• Total	$297.163 billion (37th)
• Per capita	$59,281 (7th)
Gini (2016)	21.9 low
HDI (2016)	0.934 very high
Currency	Arachaean Krone (ARK)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Driving side	right
Calling code	+234
ISO 3166 code	AR
Internet TLD	.fa

Arachaea (/ærəkeɪjə/), officially the Principality of Arachaea, is a Nordic country in Europe, southwest of Norway and northwest of Denmark, located on an archipelago of islands in the North Sea. Arachaea has an area of 34,212 square kilometers (13,209 square miles), and consists of four main islands, with the largest and by far the most populous being Arachøya. Arachaea is a federation, made up of 12 autonomous fylke.

Arachaea was taken as part of the unified Kingdom of Denmark in the 10th century CE, and was used as a launching point for raiding vessels to the North Sea. During the Norman conquest of Ireland, many Irish people settled in Arachaea in fleeing, causing the Scandinavian-Celtic culture seen today. It entered the Kalmar Union with Norway, Denmark and Sweden in 1397, and when Sweden seceded ended up within the state of Denmark-Norway. Many Celtic people fleeing the English Civil War and Plantations further settled in Arachaea in the 17th century, and by the 19th century the nation started to see itself as discernible from Denmark. It left Denmark in 1814, forming an independent nation, governed as an elective monarchy. Arachaea remained neutral in World War I and II, and introduced a social democratic welfare state during the interwar period.

The Constitution of Arachaea, signed in 1814, sets up a parliamentary democracy, headed ceremonially by a Prince elected for life by the people, divided into twelve autonomous fylke. The government is seated in the capital of Stelberg, which is the nation's capital and largest city. It is not a member of the European Union, but it is a member of the single market and customs union, and retains its own currency, the Arachaean Krone. It is a member of the OECD, the Nordic Council and United Nations, being a founding member of each of them.

Arachaea enjoys a high standard of living, enjoying a high performance in indexes concerning education, healthcare, civil liberties, democratic governance, prosperity and human development. It also has high social mobility rates, low income inequality and corruption, a high average income and one of the highest personal tax rates in the world.

Etymology

The name Arachaea is a corruption of the name Arachøya, the medieval name for the archipelago. It translates as "Arach Island", and is in reference to the Arach River, a river which flows through the main island.

Politics and Government

The politics of Arachaea take place in a framework that is laid out in the 1814 Constitution of Arachaea and the 1901 Bill of Rights. While the constitution was written in 1814, and laid out a parliamentary democracy, constitutional monarchy and federation, the Bill of Rights enshrined the rights of the Arachaeans and equality into the law, being signed in 1901. The Prince/Princess takes a ceremonial role, and is meant to represent the nation. They are elected by the people as a whole, and serve until death or retirement. They are required to appoint the Prime Minister, sign bills into law and dissolve parliament, but they can only do this in limited circumstances. The current Prince of Arachaea is Prince Harald II, elected in 2011.

Government

The Arachaean Parliament is called the Folketing (Arachaean: Folketinget). It is the legislative body of the nation, and passes laws that apply to it and its people. It is also responsible for passing the budget and appointing the government. Between 1814 and 1901 an upper house, the Estates of Arachaea, existed, representing Arachaea's four estates: the clergy, the nobility, the burghers and the peasants, but this was abolished alongside hereditary titles in the 1901 Bill of Rights. A bill can be initiated by a Member of Parliament or the Government, and if they are passed by the Folketing must be signed into law by the Prince/Princess after 30 days.

Arachaea has a representative democratic system, with universal suffrage. The Folketing is elected every three years using proportional representation in 12 constituencies, representing the 12 fylke. It has 200 seats in total. Despite terms fixed in the constitution, it specifies that the Folketing can be dissolved early if 2/3rds of the Folketing wish to dissolve it early, and a motion of no confidence in the government can bring it down and call a new election.

The Government of Arachaea consists of a Cabinet, composed of Ministers and headed by a Prime Minister. Executive power is installed in this branch, with each Minister in charge of a specific department of government. As the executive branch, it is thus responsible for proposing legislation and the budget, executing laws, and guiding Arachaea's domestic and foreign policy. The Prime Minister and their government has to command a majority of the Folketing. Generally, a Prime Minister will need to rely on a coalition of parties or come to a confidence and supply agreement because of Arachaea's proportional system.

Arachaean politics is in a multi-party system, although parties have formed left, right and centre blocs. Within the left block is the Green Labour Party (Grøne og Arbeiderpartiet) and Christian Social Party (Kristeleg Sosialeparti), within the right block is the Conservative Party (Høyre) and the Liberal Party (Moderate Venstre) and within the centre block is the Social Liberal Party (Radikale Venstre) and the Centre Party (Senterpartiet). Currently the Prime Minister is Anika Øie of the Green Labour Party, whose party has been in coalition with the Christian Social Party and the Centre Party since the 2015 election.

Administrative divisions

Arachaea is a federal state, divided up into 12 counties, or fylke. These twelve fylke are governed by assemblies elected through proportional representation. Each county has a governor who has to hold the confidence of the Assembly, and appoints a Cabinet which functions as the county's executive. Counties are further divided into municipalities, of which there are 223.

Name	ID	Population	Capital
Epleland	5	501,203	Storvik
Fjeldskaar	4	374,296	Fjeldskaar
Fjordenland	6	69,791	Lanesbogen
Grenvik	2	417,808	Grenvik
Lundarbrek	3	391,293	Lundarbrek
Mosfell og Vindbukting	7	237,814	Mosfell
Nordøyer	12	32,102	Stadarfell
Rødøya	11	392,381	Setberg
Stelberg	1	823,291	Stelberg
Valtneyri-Langholt	9	721,294	Valtneyri
Vestarachøya	8	290,190	Brianslæk
Vidirholl	10	761,320	Svendsby

Monarchy

Arachaea is one of the four remaining principalities in the world, along with Andorra, Liechtenstein and Monaco. Uniquely, it is an elective monarchy; the monarch is chosen within 28 days after the death or resignation of the previous monarch by ballot. This unique system arose from the wishes of the first Prince of Arachaea, Olaf I, who was, after Arachaea declared independence from Denmark-Norway, elected by the Estates of Arachaea, and on his death he refused to name an heir, stating that the Estates would elect a monarch after the death or resignation of a previous monarch, and when the Estates were abolished in the Bill of Rights this right was given to the common people.

Law and judicial system

Arachaea has a civil law system, where law is decided by Parliament and the judicial system is regulated through the Arachaean courts. The Supreme Court of Arachaea consists of 11 judges appointed by the Department of Justice, approved by the Folketing and confirmed by the Prince/Princess. County courts are appointed by the county's Ministry for Justice at the approval of the County Assembly. Courts are designed to regulate the judicial system, interpret the Constitution and implement legislation.

Arachaean law is enforced by the Arachaean Police Force, a united yet decentralized police force, in which it is united for the purpose of federal legislation and its attitude towards federal law is standardized, but each county can specialize its police force to enforce its own law however it wants, within the bounds of the Constitution. It also has specialized forces, such as the Arachaean Service Against Economic and Environmental Crimes and the Force Against Internet Crime.

The death penalty was abolished in Arachaea in 1918 for regular criminal acts, and in 1980 for treason. It is considered to have one of the highest levels of press freedom in the world.

Arachaea has a very low level of corruption, with rigid enforcement of anti-corruption laws and high levels of accountability and integrity within the government.

The prison system itself is known for its humane treatment of prisoners and focus on rehabilitation of prisoners. It thus has one of the lowest re-offending rates of the world.

Demographics

The resident population of Arachaea was reckoned to be 5,012,783 in the 2016 census. The population exceeded 5 million in early 2015, and 4.5 million in late 2007, according to StatsArachaea, a non-governmental market research company. The population density was 146.52 in 2016, which makes Arachaea the most densely populated Nordic country, although it is notably smaller than other Nordic countries. Around 60% of the population lives on Arachøya, the largest island in the archipelago. The capital city of the nation, Stelberg, is located on the east coast of this archipelago, with around 800,000 inhabitants in its city limits, around one sixth of the nation's entire population. Other large cities in the nation include Grenvik, Lundarbrek and Fjeldskaar, each with populations of around 400,000 inhabitants. Notably, Grenvik, Lundarbrek and Stelberg are all located on the east coast of Arachøya, with the west coast of the island forming a conurbation making up around a third of the nation's population.

Arachaea's population growth rate has notably slowed, with the fertility rate currently being 1.8 babies per woman, however immigration from the rest of the world has somewhat balanced out the population growth rate, keeping its overall net rate at slightly above the replacement rate.

Religion

Until 2013, the official religion of Arachaea was the Church of Arachaea, a Lutheran church founded in 1814 after the split from Denmark-Norway. The Church's influence can be seen on the flag of Arachaea, which features a Nordic cross, symbolizing Christianity. While the Church used to be very powerful, over time its significance has decreased. While 74% of Arachaeans are officially members of the Church of Arachaea, church attendance was around 3% in 2016. This is due to the fact that until 2013, a child born to at least one parent who was part of the church was registered as part of the Church of Arachaea, despite the lack of religious belief in many of these people.

Atheism and agnosticism has been on the rise in Arachaea in recent years, with unofficial polls recording majorities of Arachaeans agreeing with the statement "There is not enough evidence for a conclusion to be reached on the existence of a deity." Meanwhile, organisations such as the Humanist Association of Arachaea, which promotes secular humanism, have gained in prominence, with 10% of Arachaeans, including the Prime Minister, Anika Øie, being members of the organization.

There has always been a minority of Arachaean Jews, who mostly moved into Arachaea from other European nations over the last two centuries to escape persecution. Most congregations in Arachaea belong to Reform Judaism, and around 3 or 4% of the population are thought to be Jewish, with synagogues existing in major cities such as Stelberg, Grenvik, Lundarbrek and Fjeldskaar.

Islam in Arachaea has been growing in recent years, with immigration from the Balkans and the Middle East leading to a growing Islamic minority. The first mosque in Arachaea was built in Stelberg in 1947, and in the 1990's some Muslims moved from Central Asia to the nation in search of a better life. Following the refugee crisis in the Middle East, Arachaea has taken on 90,000 refugees, with the government focusing on integrating them into Arachaean society.

Ethnicity

The traditional inhabitants of Arachaea are the Arachaean people, an ethnic group of Nordic and Celtic origins, due to settlement of Nordic peoples in the archipelago, and emigration from the British Isles to the Arachaean archipelago in the 11th century. The people are known for their pale skin and prevalence of red and blonde hair, with red and blonde hair having much higher prevalence rates among Arachaeans than the world average. While no official record of ethnicity or religion is taken by the government, 85% of the population of Arachaea holds citizenship, and 76% of people identified themselves as "Arachaean" in the latest census.

Immigration has brought people of other ethnicities to Arachaea; while 14% of the population is immigrants from the rest of Europe, the rest of the nation's population are immigrants from outside Europe, with the largest countries of origin by percentage being Kazakhstan and Syria, with around 2% of the population coming from each of these nations.

Language

The national language of Arachaea is Arachaean, a North Germanic language with significant influences from Celtic languages such as Old Irish, inheriting some vocabulary and grammar from the language. This language is spoken by around 90% of the population on a daily basis, with over 97% of the population being able to speak it, and is the language used in the government, education, business, signage and most other aspects of public life. However, in some areas that cater to tourists, signage is also provided in English, which is taught in all public schools to children, with 85% of the population able to speak English.

Due to the presence of immigrant communities, many other languages are spoken by minorities, especially in the big cities. Examples of this include Arabic, Turkish and Kazakh due to the immigrant populations from the Middle East and Central Asia. Yiddish has been spoken by some in Arachaea's Jewish minority traditionally, although the use of it has been dying out over time. Danish was, before 1814, the language of the political elite; small minorities of the population speak it and Norwegian. While Old Irish was used by many in the countryside up until the 19th century, it has died out due to the widespread use of Arachaean.