Yajawil of Yokok'ab
Yajawil of Yokok'ab Yajawil Yokok'ab | |
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 Coat of arms
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| Motto: Proudly sing the song of the Sea | |
| Anthem: Western Hymn | |
 Location of Yokok'ab in the Mutul | |
| Capital and | Yu |
| Official languages | Mutli Yokot'an |
| Recognised national languages | Yokot'an |
| Ethnic groups (2016) | Yoko Ochoko Anepaan Ben Zaa Nuu Savi Tatinak people |
| Demonym(s) | Yokokabeses |
| Government | Absolute monarchy |
| Legislature | Yoko Holpop |
| Yoko Sajal Ch'ob | |
| Yoko Mam Ch'ob | |
| Province of the Mutul | |
| Population | |
• 2018 estimate | 15 million |
Yokok’ab is a Yajawil, or Province, of the Mutul located at the junction between the Western regions of the country and its central areas. It’s delimited to its north by the Makrian Ocean, to the north east by the Yajawil of Kaan, to the east by the Yajawil of XXX and YYY, to the south by the Yajawil of Tokkab, and to the west by the Yajawil of Kanol. It has a population of 8 millions inhabitants and 5 Kuchkabals. It’s capital is the city of Yu, which is now also the largest city of the Yajawil.
The Province is famous for its archeological sites, rubber production, and historical importance as the “Eastern Gate” of the Mutul, from where most of the fleets going to Ochran started their travels. It is still today an important economic hub, with institutions like the Western Maritime Bank having their seat in Yu. After the crisis of the 19th century, it has slowly regained importance as the Mutul resumed friendly diplomatic and economic ties with Ochraneses nations like Tsurushima and Pulau Keramat.
Etymology
In Yokot'an, the language of the main ethnies of the Province; “Yokok’ab” means “Our Land”.
History
Chakb’ah
The Chakb’ah are one of the earliest known major culture of the Divine Kingdom, alongside the settlements known as the Proto-Mutals, dating roughly from as early as 2000 BC. The core of the Chak’bah culture seems to have been the current region of Yokok’ab. They had an important influence over all western Mutuleses cultures that followed, and may have been the first culture to practice ballgames in Oxidentale, although that claim is disputed by other regions.
By the time of the Paol’lunyu Dynasty, the Chakb’ah had evolved into the Tzib’ah civilization, described by chroniclers as a collection of city-states on the coastline and lowlands of Yokok’ab, occupying an area known as Tzib’ajab. The Tzib’ah had developed their own calendar, writing system, and complex mathematics rivaling those of the First Mutul. The latter’s scholars notably considered Tzib’ajab to be a “civilized” country, in contrast to other people from the north, east, and south considered to be “barbarian” in comparison.
Chaan Dynasty
Through their services as mercenaries, some Tzib’ah princes became respected allies of the factions of pretenders who would form the Chaan Dynasty after the 50 years long war known as the Nakabe Revolt. Even after the war, trade between the Mutul and the cities of Tzib’ajab was of great interest to the K’uhul Ajaw, who maintained good relations with its former allies. A war between one of these and a rival city allowed the Divine Kingdom to start a decade long conquest of the region, which ended up being integrated to the Mutul successfully, with only a few minor revolts in the following centuries.
Kuy Dynasty
During the War of the Princes, one of the pretender established his capital in Tzib’ajab and declared himself K’uhul Ajaw. His Mutal would be the first to oppose the rise of the Chik'in Kingdom. He lost, and was forced to accept the de-facto hegemony of Danguixh, marrying his daughter to one of their lord. Decades later, the Western Mutal would revolt and resume its war against Danguixh. It ended with the sacrifice of the “Western Pretender”, and the lord of Danguixh, Jatz’om Kuy, declaring himself K’uhul Ajaw because of his blood ties with the Pretender’s dynasty. Jatz’om Kuy would then start a serie of campaigns against the competing Mutals left, uniting them back under his new Dynasty, known as the Kuy.
It’s during the Kuy Dynasty that the region, now known as Yokok’ab, became dominated by the Tatinak-Mutulese aristocracy and loyal to the Uaxakatz’am Court for the next two centuries, until the phenomenon of “Mutulization” of the Tatinakese aristocracy was complete, leading to the Chankuy Dynasty.
Cousins War
During the succession crisis known in the Mutul as the “Cousins War” (991 - 1090), Yokok’ab and other western Yajawils came under the control of an independent Mutal based in Danguixh. This “Ochk’in Mutal” would become one of the major factions during the war, wrestling control with the Xuman and Olwitz Mutals over the central regions. This constant warfare led to the weakening of these Mutals, who were ultimately all conquered by the K’iche Kingdom.
K’iche Dynasties
Relations between Yokok’ab and its new rulers started as conflictual and would remain so for centuries. It remained neutral during the early succession crisis but through savvy plotting, the K’iche Yajaw of the province was removed and replaced by a native ruler. The Yajawil remained a wealthy and important tradehub and also shined for its scientific and cultural progress, including the Printing press that was first developed in a monastery of the region.
Even though the Yokot’anob didn’t participate in the first expeditions to Ochran, they quickly realized its potential and some of its aristocracy dedicated their Nuk Nah (“Great House” or "Communities") to the financing of expeditions to the western continent, competing with the Tatinak and the Teenek in that regard. Trans-Makrian trade greatly expanded the wealth of the Yajawil, as even the goods brought back by its Tatinak competitors had to go through Yokok’ab, and it became the “second heart” of the Mutul, possibly more wealthy and prestigious than even the capital that was comparatively only built recently and did not enjoy such an influx of trades.
Geography
The Yokok’ab Yajawil is mostly made of flat floodplains with highlands along the borders. Because of its location at the equator, the province experiences little variation in daylight hours during the course of a year. Both sunrise and sunset occur each day at the two six o'clock hours. It is well protected against various storms or hurricanes by the Xuman Peninsula to its north-east, the continent to its south and south-west, and the equator right to its north which seriously impede the formation of hurricanes. Rain, however, remain a daily occurence.
In the south, the weather is consistent with that of a subtropical highland climate, with an average temperature of 21°C during the day and only really two seasons : dry and wet. Because it’s in the southern hemisphere, the dry season last from June to September.
The rain that falls here feeds much of the area's rivers, In addition to rivers, this also produces large areas of lakes, marshes and other wetlands and lagoons around estuaries. Significant flooding is relatively frequent, with the densely populated flat lowlands being always at the mercy of unusual heavy rains.
The mangrove forests of the region are home to over 100 species and are a main source of oxygenation. They also work to prevent erosion and to control pollution. However, deforestation of mature mangroves in the area to make way for urbanization continues to be a serious problem despite government efforts to better control it. Despite their wild appearance, less than 10% of all rainforests and wetlands are currently unexploited. Only a few natural preserves exist, generally associated with a Temple or a Monastery.
Economy
After the 19th century, Yokok’ab had lost most of its wealth. It maintained an important industrial sector, especially when it came to ship-building, through government intervention who repurposed Yu and other port-cities installations to produce dreadnoughts and other military vessels during the Arm Race with Belfras. It also was, and still is, a major hub for oil refining. But it wouldn’t be before the renewal of Tsuru-Mutuleses relations that the Yajawil would know a new economic boom, once again serving as the privileged “door” to Ochran.
Yokok’ab is now the second wealthiest Yajawil of the Mutul. It has a focus on the service industry and on high-tech manufacturing. The Western Maritime Bank, one of the “Big Four” of the Mutulese banking industry, has its seat in Yu.
Natural resources include petroleum deposits, fertile soils, and lakes and shoreline for fishing. Cultivated crops include cacao, coconut, bananas, sugar cane, pineapple, citrus fruits, corn and beans. Most of the agricultural production is done on the floodplains and in the wetlands through the use of raised dirt platforms on which plants are grown. Many swamps have thus been entirely transformed, with platforms of land separated by canals to allow native fish and aquatic plant species to survive and be exploited through fishing for example. Both fresh and salt water fishing are important addition to the province’s primary sector and commercial species include oysters, mojarra, shrimp, sea bass, shark, and lobster. Pisciculture, especially in the lagoons and wetlands, is practiced in conjunction with crop and cattle raising.