Tolodaro
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Tolodaro (lit: 'fish cabinet) are a variety of devices of Okriti origin being primarily produced and used in Northern Waaq, being a shared innovation of the Taaqbal and Waaqi Oye. Traditionally the term referred to sea-faring vessels hauled by sea-life, created for competition in order to demonstrate one's craftsmanship and prowess at sea. Modern day tolodaro are primarily systems of aquacultural used for keeping and breeding fish, however the traditional use has seen a resurgance for its spectacle and tourism appeal after the Okriti unification.
Design
The central component of a tolodaro is a bouyant compartment built to contain fish for the purpose of drawing the vessel. Originally 'tolodaro' originally referred to the device itself, however would late come to refer to vessels specially built for being drawn by fish. Traditional accounts attest that tolodaro were devised after fishermen found themselves being pulled in their boats by especially large and strong fish, with the devices themselves most likely being innovated to most effectively realise such feats.
Tolodaro primarily consist of a number of large hollow bamboo canes or young tree trunks, affixed together with outriggers in a manner that kept the containers bouyant yet still submerged. These fish compartments are often attached to the outriggers by an axle that allows for the tubes to be directed by a handle or reigns in order to steer the vessel. The fish are restrained to the tubes by a number of means such as an large net that encompasses the front, devices on the tubes meant to contain the fish or, rarely, harnesses on the fish. The components themselves however are subject to large variation in mechanisms involved as innovations of the individuals involved in designing the tolodaro are highly revered, constant improvement and innovation of the devices being highly prized. The design is also heavily influenced by the target fish used to draw the vessel.
The most likely fish used for the first tolodaro would have been Arowana and Barramundi due to their size, strength and abundance in rivers and on the coast respectively.
Use
Tolodaro competitions are often held as a regular event among coastal and riverine villages to encourage friendly competition and hold festivities, however are on occasionally still initiated for the purposes of settling disputes between individuals, their houses or other affiliations. The common procedure of a tolodaro competition are a multi-month period of design and construction, culminating in an eventual race and fishing competition over the course of one day to a week. The original procedure of the competition was for competitors to race towards a pre-built fishing platform, where they then must race to catch the desired type and number of fish required for their tolodaro and apply them there, leaving their oars and racing to return to the shore, where the first to return is proclaimed to be the winner. These competitions would often take days, and were primarily meant for establishing one's ability as a fisherman through a test of endurance as well as skill. The more recent procedure for tolodaro races is to include the catching of the fish in the building time, with the event being the race day itself, incorporating aspects of fish-keeping ability into the competition
History
Tolodaro were first constructed in the 9th century TT from the convergence of cultural traditions between the Taaqbal and neighbouring Crocodile Oye among neighbouring villages on the northern coast of Waaq, combining Taaqba traditions of competitive craftsmanship as a sign of status with the heavily sea-faring oriented life of the north western Oye. Traditional accounts attest that tolodaro were devised after fishermen found themselves being pulled in their boats by especially large and strong fish, the ability to eventually catch said fish being a point of pride amongst Oye fishermen.
A common folktale accounts of two fishermen who had engaged in a life-long feud, both attesting that they had hoisted fish so strong they pulled their boats, getting to heavy and violent debate over whom was the stronger, more apt fisherman. At some point, one of the fisherman boasted that not only had he subdued such a large fish, but that he had made it subservient and could command it to draw him where he pleased. The events that would transpire thereon differ between accounts, however these stories would eventually be emulated in order to serve the purpose of settling disputes. The eventual inclusion of Taaqba individuals is sometimes attributed to one sp3ecific event of collaboration between a particularly scheming fisherman and an enterprising craftsman-lord, however mutual gain was nonetheless found. Taaqba villages were most likely drawn by the spectacle of such events, and most likely took the opportunity to demonstrate an individual's craftsmanship in practical application, as opposed to the primarily prestige-based competitions in place at the time. Oye fishermen who engaged with the Taaqbal would likewise thus benefit from the prestige of collaborating with esteemed craftsmen, with the application of devices making a fish-drawn vessel more realisable.
Written accounts of Tolodaro first appear in the 700s in the letters of Goro merchants and sailors.