Post by Queen Amedessa of Conté on Jun 5, 2007 23:39:42 GMT -5
The people indigenous to the Western Reaches are known to Easterners as simply Westerners, or as Uuoads.
In contrast with their eastern sovereigns, Uuoads believe in a single deity and refuse to accept the Eastern Pantheon. Their deity is genderless and is known as Xaatme; the religion itself is supported by Xaatme and the embracing of change. Interestingly, the Uuoad acceptance of change is based on the notion that change can be both good and bad, and that within it is always stability. Because of this, Easterners perceive that Uuoads are heathenistic worshippers of Uuosae––hence the name "Uuoad".
Uuoads are divided between acceptance and rejection of Eastern ways: some sects believe the arrival of the Easterners to be bad change (or punishment from Xaatme for not changing), while others welcome them as good change (a gift from Xaatme to encourage change).
Among Uuoads, the Gift is extremely rare. The near absence of the Gift from their societies also made them virtually oblivious of its existence outside of legend, thus amounting for the easy conquest by Easterners.
Its rarity has also made Uuoad society dependent on gaining its knowledge and technological advancements without its aid. Some Easterners see this to be a remarkable feat, as it places the Uuoads only several hundred years behind in technology. They are known as exceptional learners, especially in fields of natural study such as geology, astronomy and biology. They have a written language and have chronicled their history; they have forged metals and have created seagoing vessels capable of crossing the Emerald Ocean.
Yet despite their achievements, Uuoads never discovered gunpowder nor developed the practice of medicine to a functional level. Their separation from Easterners also made them highly susceptable to Eastern infections and diseases, which has especially devastated the Uuoad population in the Archipelago.
Although capable of contact with the Eastern Lands, the Uuoads have maintained a society-long superstition that the surrounding oceans are always changing and that anything beyond the mainland would not always be in the same place. One Uuoad legend tells of a sailor who sails across the Emerald Ocean and finds paradise, but because the location of paradise kept changing, he could not find his way back to the mainland.
In order to explain the settlement of the Archipelago (which would elsewise contradict this belief), the Uuoads say that they were brought into being on the furthermost island. When so much "good change" occurred on the first island, Xaatme showed them the way to the mainland by stepping across the sea. Each step Xaatme took formed an island; thus, the Archipelago is regarded as sacred and likewise does not contradict the Uuoad perception of ever-changing waters.
Some scholars, particularly in the Southern Lands, point out the similarity Uuoads with the Yamani. This idea, however, is reluctantly accepted by these nations, particularly the Yamani Empire, who prefers the concept of Uuoads as inferior.
In the farthest reaches of the Western Lands are rumoured to be another race of people. The Uuoads call them 'Xaacatla' in their own tongue, and Westerners 'Uuocatla'. They are barbaric people who resist change; in some versions, the Uuocatla are a race of demons. They are described always as olive-skinned with white hair and as wild-looking creatures.
Please note that this is noncanon material. I came up with this myself. If you are interested in using it, just drop me a line.
In contrast with their eastern sovereigns, Uuoads believe in a single deity and refuse to accept the Eastern Pantheon. Their deity is genderless and is known as Xaatme; the religion itself is supported by Xaatme and the embracing of change. Interestingly, the Uuoad acceptance of change is based on the notion that change can be both good and bad, and that within it is always stability. Because of this, Easterners perceive that Uuoads are heathenistic worshippers of Uuosae––hence the name "Uuoad".
Uuoads are divided between acceptance and rejection of Eastern ways: some sects believe the arrival of the Easterners to be bad change (or punishment from Xaatme for not changing), while others welcome them as good change (a gift from Xaatme to encourage change).
Among Uuoads, the Gift is extremely rare. The near absence of the Gift from their societies also made them virtually oblivious of its existence outside of legend, thus amounting for the easy conquest by Easterners.
Its rarity has also made Uuoad society dependent on gaining its knowledge and technological advancements without its aid. Some Easterners see this to be a remarkable feat, as it places the Uuoads only several hundred years behind in technology. They are known as exceptional learners, especially in fields of natural study such as geology, astronomy and biology. They have a written language and have chronicled their history; they have forged metals and have created seagoing vessels capable of crossing the Emerald Ocean.
Yet despite their achievements, Uuoads never discovered gunpowder nor developed the practice of medicine to a functional level. Their separation from Easterners also made them highly susceptable to Eastern infections and diseases, which has especially devastated the Uuoad population in the Archipelago.
Although capable of contact with the Eastern Lands, the Uuoads have maintained a society-long superstition that the surrounding oceans are always changing and that anything beyond the mainland would not always be in the same place. One Uuoad legend tells of a sailor who sails across the Emerald Ocean and finds paradise, but because the location of paradise kept changing, he could not find his way back to the mainland.
In order to explain the settlement of the Archipelago (which would elsewise contradict this belief), the Uuoads say that they were brought into being on the furthermost island. When so much "good change" occurred on the first island, Xaatme showed them the way to the mainland by stepping across the sea. Each step Xaatme took formed an island; thus, the Archipelago is regarded as sacred and likewise does not contradict the Uuoad perception of ever-changing waters.
Some scholars, particularly in the Southern Lands, point out the similarity Uuoads with the Yamani. This idea, however, is reluctantly accepted by these nations, particularly the Yamani Empire, who prefers the concept of Uuoads as inferior.
In the farthest reaches of the Western Lands are rumoured to be another race of people. The Uuoads call them 'Xaacatla' in their own tongue, and Westerners 'Uuocatla'. They are barbaric people who resist change; in some versions, the Uuocatla are a race of demons. They are described always as olive-skinned with white hair and as wild-looking creatures.
Please note that this is noncanon material. I came up with this myself. If you are interested in using it, just drop me a line.