Ethnic Groups

Major Ethnic Groups of Nowapan

This is not an attempt to describe all the ethnic groups of the island. Many are little more than names and are largely lost to history. The following sketches are for people who were either prominent in the history of the island or are among the more interesting groups. Arana Bolat� Dak-ka Datanna Dtanorakerieka Dzhadzhapo Dzhakori Dzidzi Dz�nattchatzhtla Emin Ruil Ghakhe Humm Ishta Luizamen Mr� Nerit Nganweagkwaki Pranunatoeri Rajak S�s� Suki Tosh Tzakatl

Arana
The Arana were the largest tribe of the Cape of Storms, inhabiting much of the southeastern coast and the northern shore of Albatross Island. They usually under the hegemony of the Mr� who claimed the entire Cape of Storms but generally left the various peoples to themselves other than to collect tribute. The Arana were noteworthy for their large seagoing canoes which they employed for whale hunting and for their featherwork garments. Their distinctive art pervaded their culture and even the most common artifact was often profusely decorated. It is this reason that most of them were accepted into the Artisan caste when they incorporated by the Nowans in 1605. Today, the Arana language is long extinct but the Arana traditions of art and craftsmanship remain strong in the area.

Bolat� southern valley

Dak-ka The Dak-ka were the most westerly of the southern coast kingdoms and occupied the land that now includes Nowaka. Because of their proximity to the Humm Penninsula, the Great Central Valley, and the foothills of the Round Mountains, they were subjected to perhaps more than their share of depredations by less civilized peoples. As a consequence, they were the poorest of all the southern coast kingdoms too. They were the first too fall to the Nowa and were formally annexed in the year 1541. The Nowan capitol of Nowaka was begun a few years later, in 1555, on the site of a small fishing village. Because the country was taken with so little fighting and bloodshed, many of its institutions remained intact. They were a major influence on the Nowans for centuries and one of the main conduits by which Nowa were insinuated into the more general Southern Coast Kingdom cultural matrix. Their language, Dak-kan, is still spoken today by a few thousand, mostly elderly and rural people.

Datanna: The Cannibals
North of No.wa.nin, but still near the foothills of the He.ro.wi, once lived a fierce and perhaps, the most hated people of all Nowapan, the Datanna. It is not clear what their own name means but most of their neighbors called them something similar to the Nova, Dha.s�.wa, "Cannibal Nation." Uniquely amongst all the known peoples of Nowapan, the Datanna practiced gustatory cannibalism, i.e., human flesh was consumed as a regular part of their diet, not merely for occasional ritual purposes (also very rare in Nowapan.)

By virtue of their relatively large numbers, perhaps over 100,000, and their passionate devotion to raiding, they harassed peoples over much of the Northeastern Steppes. One tribe in particlar came under their attacks, the Nowa. Finally in 812 AD, the Nowans fled westward across the Steppes.

The Datanna merely found other tribes to concentrate on, too the point that they are believed to have exterminated several whole peoples. A variety of short term alliances, notably that led by the S�s� in the early 1300's provided some small measure of relief from their attacks, but never completely eliminated their threat.

In 1485, the Nowans returned, no longer a small tribe of herdsmen and farmers, but the leaders of a large and powerful empire. They had not forgotten the Datanna nor the abuses they had suffered at their hands. In a vicious, no quarter-given campaign that lasted until 1487, the Nowans utterly exterminated the Datanna. Such was the extent of their hatred, they even uprooted Datanna burial grounds and scattered the bones.

Today, little is known about the Datanna other than what a few travelers recorded. A long list of words is all that is recorded of their language, enough to demonstrate a distant relationship to the Kori-Dakkan Superstock. But no literature and no grammar as such survives. They were nomads who left little in the way of material culture. Several burials have been found which escaped the depredations of the Nowans, enough to make scholars and art historians mourn what was lost, but little more than that.

Dtanorakerieka Southern Coast

Dzhadzhapo

Dzhakori

Dzidzi

Dzonattchatzhtla Southern Coast

Emin Ruil
The Emin Ruil were not an ethnic group in the normal sense of the word. The Emin Ruil were a group of confederated chiefdoms who formalized and extended old alliances to better face the depredations of their larger and more numerous neighbors. The southern edge and particularly the southeastern corner of the Central Steppes were dotted with these small groups who relatively helpless when standing alone. But from 1290-1600, they formed a power bloc that was strong enough to require negotiation rather than threats. Various groups were included and at any given time, 20-30 chiefdoms were members. Core and influential members include the Eugl, the Ko, the Pampi, the Zaztal, the Druith, the Hlos, the Eren, and Ngani.
Culturally, the groups were all fairly similar to the standard Steppe pattern, a mixture of herders and village-bound farmers and craftsmen. They very early accepted the standardized form of Dteza and from 1350, were one of the guarantors of Rajaki sovereignty and neutrality. Efforts to get Rajak to join the Emin Ruil were fruitless. With Nowans on their northern borders and the Mr� on their southern, they inevitably found themselves force to choose and in 1600, they were peacefully incorporated into the Nowan Empire. Today, the area remains largely agricultural although the industrial sector is growing rapidly. Nova is the only language now spoken in the area.

Ghakhe
The Ghakhe are mostly remembered as early competitors of the incipient Nowan Empire. Lying to the north and west of the former Suki Empire, the Ghakhe Kingdom was one of the first that the Nowans had to deal with. During the period from about 1125-1235, the Ghakhe extracted ever increasing tribute from the tribes in the Nowan-led confederation in exchange for peaceful coexistance. A brief war between the two sides was fought in 1236-1237 led to an end to the tribute payments as a result of the Nowan led victory. The Ghakhe sought revenge in 1245 leading to a war that lasted until 1247. They were utterly defeated and the resulting victory cemented Nowan power within their confederation, ultimately leading to the Nowan Empire and the Nowapan of today.
The Ghakhe built their cities and temples of wood, few remains of which have survived. They had been largely absorbed by Nowan Empire by about end of the 14th century. A large number of Ghakhe manuscripts were discovered in 1835, buried in clay jars near their ancient capitol. Their script, related to that of the Luizamen, leaves room for ambiguity but the documents are still the primary source of information about Ghakhe culture.

Humm
The Humm were a group of 5-13 'tribes' who lived on high plains of the central Humm Penninsula. Nomadic hunters who depended upon the large herds of grazers, they were largely ignored by the Southern Coast Kingdoms until 1260. In that year, the tribes were united by a leader known only as Frarte. Frarte's mounted horsemen raided the Bolat� but concentrated their thrust along the coast. They defeated the Dak-Ka, the Dzonattchatzhtla and the Nganweagkwaki. In 1261, they were defeated by the Dtanorakerieka in a series of battles. They pulled back briefly but in 1263 attacked again. The Dtanorakerieka suffered defeats which forced them to pull back into the hills. The Humm forces continued to raid along the coast for another year. In early 1265 they arrived at the borders of the Mr� Empire and were soundly defeated. Frarte was killed in battle and the alliance disintegrated. The survivors of the individual tribes made their way back to the Humm Penninsula through a gauntlet of hostile peoples.

In 1311, the tribes reunited in the face of a severe drought. They once again plunged into the Southern Coast Kingdoms. By 1313 they were on the Mr� borders again. Weakoned by their 1305- 1308 war with the Nowans, the Mr� can offer only feeble resistance at first. In 1314, they cede a large tract of territory in the western part of the empire to the Humm. The Humm turn to raiding the Emin Ruil but are unable to defeat them. In 1317, they attacked the Nowans. After several initial successes, they were soundly defeated. The Nowans chased them back to the Humm Penninsula, inflicting severe casualties while doing so. This also afforded the Nowans the opportunity to sieze control of much of the southern coast. The coast kingdoms retained their independence but were greatly reduced in size and power.

The third and final outbreak of the Humms came in 1383 when they united with the Mr� to drive the Nowans from the southern coast. This war lasted until 1388. The Humm attempted to hold on to some of the lands they had liberated but were forced to retreat when the Mr� side with the southerners against them.

The Nowans never forgave the Humms but neither did they attempt to retake the southern coast. In 1500 they mounted a massive attack on the Humm Penninsula from both the Northeast and the Northwest. United the Humms might have been able to resist but they were in their quasi-regular periods of dispute. The ten tribes fought singly and were each rapidly defeated. The Nowans began an intense period of settling the penninsula and of moving Humms out to other areas. Within 20 years, the Humms had been absorbed and were no longer a distinct ethnic unit in the Nowan Empire. Their name survives today only in the usual English name for their homeland.

Ishta Steppe

Luizamen West

Mr� Southern Coast

Nerit Nordland

Nganweagkwaki
The Nganweagkwaki were one of the Southern Coast Kingdoms, lying between the Dzonattchatzhatla to the west, the Dtanorakerieka to the east, and the Dzhadzhapo to the north. founded ca. 1250 BC 1260, 1312, Humm invasions.

Pranunatoeri Southwest

Rajak Southeast

S�s� Northeast

Suki
The Suki were the early masters of the very Northern part of the Great Central Valley. They built a small empire whose boundaries extended all the way to the north coast. Empire building began about the year 850. Not a numerous people, the Suki attempted to conquer one smaller tribe at a time, tackling larger foes only when they could incorporate the now defeated groups warriors into their army. Sometime around the year 900, the Suki overcame their fears of tabus associated with Hidden Crater and began building their capitol within its walls. The ruins of this city are the largest extent set of Suki buildings.

In the year 956, the Nowans arrived at their western border. The Suki allowed them to settle there in exchange for service as mercenaries, a practice they increasingly used with other groups. The Suki reached the zenith of their power about the year 1100 but trouble was already apparent. Many minor revolts had occurred as various groups tired of their role as second class citizens, fit only to fight and die for the empire. A revolt broke out in 1103 which shattered the Suki Empire. In the ensuing power vacuum, the Nowans emerged as the most powerful force and as the leaders of a new confederation of tribes.

The Suki were gradually absorbed by their neighbors and appeared to have died out as an identifiable people by the end of the 13th century. Much of their culture has been lost, more through neglect than through wanton destruction.

Tosh Southern Coast

Tzakatl East Coast

Revised August 29, 2001

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