Roja

The Roja are one of three ethnics groups found natively in the Serene Union of Spyron, alongside the Clanmen and Tanospy, living primarily within the Rojanta Penninsula and surrounding islands. They are governed by the stateless district of the Roja Community.

Characteristics

Roja are typically extremely pale, and many are incapable of tanning. They are known to range in height to an abnormal degree, with people well under four feet tall and over seven feet tall not uncommon. Roja have dark eye colors, near to pitch black, and rojan eyes visably appear to be dilated more than average, though research has not found any difference in their vision.

Insanity

Rates of progressive and genetic mental illness are higher among Roja than in the rest of the world, to the extent that it is a widely known sterotype of them as a people (though this trait is shared, albeit to lesser degrees, with the other native peoples of Spyron). The origin of the "Alongic Madness" is unknown, with the leading theory being from a period of widespread and intense inbreeding some time in ancient history. The madness can present at any time from ages as young as 15, though it is rare below 40, and is marked by a gradual onset of delusions, paranoia, violence, and mania. There is no set speed of progression, and cases have been reported of semi-stable behavior for decades on end, as well as abrupt snaps. No physical degeneration accompanies the mental, and sufferers can live heathily if cared for for a full natural lifespan.

While the rate of insanity is higher than average among Roja, it is said to have been far higher still in historical times. Classical authors wrote of the madness as being inevitable, with either the whole of the Rojan populace eventually succumbing to it, or a portion as high as 1 in 3. Up until the industrial age, and in some places through it, it was common practice for those in the early stages of madness to be sent westward into the storm, so that none would have to witness their decay or death. Some sources claim that there used to be a method to detect the madness years before it would occur, but this is met with skepticism by experts.

History

Origin

According to the legend of the Roja, recorded in the U'lindli'te and various oral tellings, the Roja were the first people to inhabit the land of Alongi. The U'lindli'te and oral myths state that the Roja were created by the god Hyeudzeu at the dawn of time, alongside Alongi and all the beauty of the world. The first Roja, confused and scared, went to their creator for shelter, but Hyeudzwi remained apathetic to his creations, for as a god of creation he held no interest in that already created. The Roja huddled together for safety, and came to realize that they had only one another to rely upon in this world.

The Codex Rojantica, a chronicle of Rojan history by Tanospy authors, asserts a similar narrative, but places it not in Alongi but in Haxoica, the mythic barren land that Tanospy myth states the Clanmen to have come from. In between their creation and the founding of their society, the Roja are enslaved by the Clanmen, and taken to invade Alongi, founding their society in Rojanta following an escape from slavery.

The relation between the Clanmen and Roja has always been a matter of contention between the two peoples, in no small part due to an ambiguity of the Rojan origin in Clannic Legend. The Clannish term for the Roja was historically "The Lost Clan", or in some very old texts, "The True Clan", but the precise meaning of this moniker has been lost to time. Some Clanmen have speculated the Roja to be a Clan who for whatever reason diverged from the rest of society during the invasion of the Tanospy, or even that they are a remnant of the pre-invasion Clannic culture.

Mythic and Semimythic History

Hy Roja, the Rojan societal network, is said to have once spanned all of Alongi, an era sometimes refered to as Hy Rojanta. This ended with the near-simultanious invasions of the Tanospy and Clanmen, from the south and north respectively, that left all Roja outside the Rojanta Penninsula either dead or forced to migrate. The survival of the Roja at all is attributed to Aelu the Great. Aelu is said to have created the first army among the Rojans, fighting back against the advances of the invaders and establishing a stronghold in the jungles. Aelu is also creditted with the founding of Dlongaengeun, the historical capital of the Roja. Each of Aelu's seventeen sons and nineteen daughters is said to have been the first wise teacher in a line of trade. Dlongaengeun became the center of the Rojan world, both culturally and politically, as soon after came the emergence of the Hy Roja'dlu.

Dawn of Recorded History

The history of the Roja is not well recorded, as while Adlu keep extensive oral histories, the act of recording it was rejected until the modern day due to beliefs on the importance of the spoken word as communication. The major exception to this however is the U'lindli'te, a text that is thought to have originated in the 8th century TT, as part of an attempt by an unknown Adlu to write down important information for unknown reasons. The first veritably historical information withtin the U'lindli'te is from the year 579 TT, concerning the erection of a tower in what is now Hihal. Major political events are recorded begining in the 3rd century, describing a societal upheval in response to the agression of the Wegoli Clan. The Roja at this time seem to have been torn between maintaining their loose unity and adopting a stronger confederal system. The various authors who contributed to the copies of the U'lindli'te we have seem to have themselves been split, as the sections of the texts from this time show signs of heavy revision and re-revision. Ultimately, a compromise of sorts seems to have emerged, which maintained the stateless nature of Rojan society but allowed for greater defense against external force, which was accompanied by an overall tendancy towards xenophobia. While not stated, it is likely that this included the founding of the Yeze.

While Tanospy and, to a lesser extent, Clanman authors wrote far more of the Roja than the Roja did of themselves, little of their writings contains information about the ongoings of the Roja internally, as the Roja were (and still are) known for a high degree of secrecy towards outsiders.

Unification and Modern Day

When the Great War began, the Roja closed themselves off to the outside world completely, though the fighting did occasionally spill over into their territory. With Spyron's call for unity across the island however, the Roja offered aid to the new state, in exchange for protection and a say in the state.

Culture

Societal Structure and Values

The principle value of the Roja as a people is that of the community above all. All decisions among the Roja are made by the whole of the community, all Rojan endevors are for the good of the Rojan people first and foremost. Despite this tendancy towards collectivism, Roja also greatly value individualism; it often asserted that the Roja do not abide by any state. While not entirely true (see Politcs section below), this mindset is the core of Roja civilization.

It is common for Roja to distinguish themselves by their occupation or role within society. Indoor laborers shave off the sides of their hair, outdoor laborers decorate their bodies with cooling paints, soldiers tie their hair in topknots, those who deal with the dead or waste disposal color their hands bright colors to make filth more obvious, bankers and those who interact with outsiders pierce their ears and sometimes wear gaudy cloths and jewelry as a sign of status, etc, and most notably the Adlu shave all hair off their bodies save for the eyebrows. The Adlu tonsure is evidently far older than all others, being attested through all of known history while the rest appear only within the last few centuries, likely out of mimicry of the Adlu. It is expected (and among Adlu, required) that this distinguishment is maintained through into retirement, as the maintainance of ones appearance signifies the quality of their work. Unkemptness is a direct symbol of insanity, to the extent that in Rojan media is common to state a person to be suffering from madness by euphamistically stating them to be poorly dressed and hairy.

Marriage and Family

The Roja practice assymetrical polygamy, wherein women can have many husbands. For a man and woman to wed, the matriarch of the woman's Myon and the patriarch of the man's Myon must allow for it, and the two must be from different Myon. A common practice is that of a "trade family", wherin a woman has many husbands who all work in the same trade, earning wealth for the family, as she manages the household and raises the children to one day also work in the trade. male-based polygamy existed in history, but is no longer practiced.

Within Rojan culture, all Roja are seen as being part of one big family, subdivided into units known as Myon. A Myon consists of all the descendants of the oldest woman within a Myon, as well as their spouses. A Myon is itself divided into Piygs, generations, determined by the number of children, grandchildren, etc one has. Those too young to have children are in the lowest Piyg, those mature but without children are in the next, then those with a child, those with two, those with three, etc., then those with a grandchild, those with two grandchildren, etc., all the way up to the matriarch of the family. The Piyg one finds themselves in determines the level of respect they hold within the Myon, and within wider society, as well as their say in the actions and practices of the family. Spouses are considered to be one Piyg lower than the blood-member they are wed to. The patriarch of a Myon, typically the spouse or eldest son of the matriarch, hold a special distinction as respresenting the Myon externally, acting as the "leader" (in a literal sense) of the family unit. While every person with married parents is part of two Myon, the Myon of one's mother is seen as superior to that of their father, and so on for higher generations.

Roja historically went by mononyms, and following their joining into the Serene Union this practice continues, as all Roja have the legal family name of "Roja". Informal additional names are common, such as a locational suffix, descriptive title, the name of the patriarch of their Myon, etc., and it is also common for related individuals to have similar names. For example, Maitl-Eula "The Fat" Gaeneye Ametlihwa Roja, a prominant Hyadlu, is named Maitl-Eula, hails from Gaene, is known for his rotund physique, is descended from a man named Ametli, and has the "maitl" name in common with his nephew Namaitl-Go Yeza Roja.

Sexuality

Rojan culture is very open on free love, and Roja are sometimes stereotyped as "promiscuous" for this reason. Relationships prior to marriage are common and encouraged, and there is no stigma upon having premarital children, though an unmarried parent has no say within their child's other Myon. Following marriage, it is expected for a woman to remain entirely faithful, with extramarital affairs being an extreme taboo. Among men however, they are met with less scorn, though still not encouraged.

Homosexuality is an accepted practice among the Roja, though it was nominally illegal for years following admittence into the Serene Union. Gay marriage exists, but is a wholly legal arrangement, as there exists no place for it within the Piyg and Myon system.

Roja'dlu

The Roja'dlu is the primary connective tissue of Rojan society. Adlu (sometimes translated as "messengers" or "represenatives") are a caste of the Roja historically tasked with travelling great distances to bring messages and goods between communities, and to represent those communities abroad. On paper, this is the sole role of the Adlu, but in practice they double as the governing class of the Roja Communities (see "Politics" section below). An Adlu, once they have completed their training, is made to shave all the hair on their body (to strip them of identity, for they are mere messengers of others) save for their eyebrows (to keep the "humanity of the face"), and maintain this hairlessness for the whole of their life unless they are forced to resign. This, along with the wide-brimed hats they wear while travelling, leave them physically distinct from other Roja. Unlike other trades, Adlu do not retire, instead when they are deemed too old to travel they take a sedentary position as a respected elder, known as a Hyadlu (greater Adlu). Hyadlu are the same to Adlu as Adlu are to non-Adlu, ostensibly equals but in practice a higher societal rank. Hyadlu are not visually distinct from adlu in a manner other than age, although some wear a sort cloth headcovering over their scalp, in place of the wide-brimed hats of the Adlu.

Unique to their class, it is at times looked down upon for Adlu to keep the profession within their bloodline, for fear of dynasticism and self-interest. Some Adlu take vows of celibacy for this reason, which earns them higher respect. This is not a universal stance, and conversely some prominant multigenerational familes of Adlu exist (Most notably the "Maitl family").

Hy Roja'dlu

The Hy Roja'dlu is the closest thing to a state historically found among the Roja. The Hy Roja'dlu is a gathering of Hyadlu in the ancient capital of Dlongaengeun, to discuss and decide important matters. It meets thrice a year regularly, though special meetings can be called on rare occasion. Prior to the meeting of the Hy Roja'dlu, the Hyadlu will inquire to all Adlu around them, who will then inquire to all their respective communities, as to their standings on the topics which will be discussed, as well as the topics which will need to be discussed next Hy Roja'dlu. The Adlu then report back to the Hyadlu representing the decisions of their communities, and the Hyadlu report to the Hy Roja'dlu with the decisions of their Adlu. In this sense, the votes within the Hy Roja'dlu are the sum total of the votes of all Roja on a given matter.

Politics

Ostensibly, the Roja are a true democracy with represenative characteristics, wherein on any given matter all individuals vote within their community, the Adlu of the community represents the sum total of their community consensus to a Hyadlu, who represents the sum total of their adlu consensus to the Hy Roja'dlu, and the final consensus of the Hy Roja'dlu represents the stance of the Roja to the outside world. In practice however, the opinions held by the Adlu themselves can often hold strong sway within their community and abroad, especially in the modern day as their original messenger purpose has been made lesser by new technology, leaving the Adlu to become more of sedentary, politician-like individuals. the Roja are represented in the Serene Parliament by individuals elected by the previously described community-adlu-Hyadlu vote process, and while any Roja can nominate themselves, it is very often Adlu themselves who end up in office.

In affairs of state that cannot take the time to go through the voting process, such as responces to sudden catastrophes or calling soldiers to form an army, the local Adlu and Hyadlu often act as de facto political leaders. In the modern day, it is also the Adlu who are often in charge of collecting the taxes of a region, though this may instead be tasked to the bankers.

Economics

The Roja, while often sterotyped as greedy, do not maintain among themselves a very capitalistic civilization, due to the taboo of self interest in opposition to the community. Trade is often done through mutual exchange of goods through longstanding agreements of equivalent value. The only real handling of currency is done by "bankers" (though the word used is aptly "moneyhandlers", who historically handled trade and other matters between Roja and non-Roja. Rojan banking is known for its reliability, due to the otherwise disinterest the Roja have in money.

Yeze

The Yeze are a rumored secret caste within Rojan society that is claimed to do the dirty work of the Adlu, including matters of assassination and espionage. While never officially confirmed to exist, the Yeze are an open secret of sorts among high ranking Adlu. While seen as ultimately opperating for the greater good of the Roja, the Yeze do so through violation of custom and law, in a manner not dissimilar to an organized crime syndicate. Unlike the rest of Rojan society, the Yeze are hirarchical in some way, with non-Adlu Yeze reporting directly to Yezeadlu, who report to one known as "Hyeze". The current Hyeze is rumored to be Namaitl-Go Roja.

In older times, membership within the Yeze was known by the shaving of one's eyebrows, though this has become very rare, likely in responce to the symbol becoming widely known. While opperating, the Yeze wear cloth headcoverings with holes for the eyes and mouth; the term "Yeze" comes from the word for cowl, Ye'zae. The most certain mark of the Yeze is the Chengwedya, a large conical knife used in assassinations. A Chengwedya is applied even when the target is killed by other means, such as being shot. This is likely to be because the unique mark left by the Chengwedya is evidence to the hirer of the Yeze that it was them who conducted the death, not a third party who the Yeze are taking credit for.