#tahen culture

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Depending on how much you want to answer: 2, 3 and/or 10 for the worldbuilding questions? (Also, though off topic: I love your art style)

2) We all know about weddings and marriage, but are there any ceremonies that symbolically / legally / magically officialize a different type of relationship in your world’s culture? (Adoption, apprenticeship, friendship, etc.)

The Tahen peoples have a weaning ceremony. In Tahen cultures, hatchlings are raised by their parents until they're weaned & have shed their neonate duvet, a little before one year of age. When they reach this age, the duty of childraising is transferred from the parents to the grandparents (traditionally the maternal grandparents, though this varies). At this point, the grandparents hold a feast to celebrate the arrival of the children in their lives. There are gifts to the child, and theatrics where the parents pretend to be reluctant to give away their children while the grandparents reveal gifts and make increasingly grand promises for the children's future.

Among Ranaite Tahens and other Tahens where maternal grandparents no longer have automatic precedence, these feasts may also be rather tense as all sets of grandparents use them as a way to show off their willingness and ability to care for the children in a bid for custody. Of course, in most functional families, this has been orchestrated beforehand and the grandparents have already agreed on custody details for early childhood - as they get older, children typically move freely around the houses of all their grandparents.

3) What’s a rule or social norm that is widely followed in theory, but in practice everyone knows it’s not a big deal and breaks it all the time?

Technically this is more of a "what's a rule that everyone breaks all the time" answer. Among Tahen cultures as a whole, writing and reading are revered, and the dominant religion holds the letters of the alphabet as gods. Writing is therefore both mundane because everyone does it all the time, and sacred because letters are gods.

About 50 years prior to story time, there was a fad among Ranaite Tahen teens to deconstruct the Old Tahen characters for their names, tallying the types of strokes, selecting the most common ones, and assembling them into a unique glyph. They would then use these glyphs in place of a formal signature. To the Tahens, this is borderline sacrilegious as the Old Tahen alphabet is the basis upon which the current (godly) alphabet was built, and also a perversion of the act of writing. Unfortunately this trend caught on and was there to stay, and to this day it is common for almost everyone to use a personalised glyph in place of / along with a formal signature, despites these having no legal tender and being officially prohibited on formal documents.

There are even semi-formal glyph-taking ceremonies, originally organised by teens among themselves during graduation parties, but now often sponsored by their families as well. There are efforts to formalize and legalize glyph usage, but these are quite controversial.

10) What’s a fun fact about your world that you as the worldbuilder are dying to share, but nobody ever thinks to ask? 

Well tbf people don't really ask me that many questions, and I'm pretty good at talking about the things I want to talk about in general. That said, I wish more people knew about this silly genetics thing I made a few years back: pigmentation genetics was a really big interest of mine before I got obsessed with textiles!

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To their southern neighbours, the great civilizations of the South Kantishian and Kantishian Plateau, they are the northern barbarians - to their northern neighbours, the settled peoples of the Basin, they are mountain barbarians. This unflattering judgment is informed by the Am-Wiek's low population densities, strange patriarchal structures, lack of written language and reliance on hunting. In turn, this judgment shapes the relationships between the great kingdoms and empires and these "barbarians", and in this way, much of the fascinating oral history, rich folklore, impressive dances and other cultural riches of the Am-Wiek remain unknown to foreigners.

Origins

The Am and the Wiek have independent but converging histories. The Am are the most ancient settlers of the region. Of undenau origins, they settled the Northern Kantishian from the Basin plains, something which may still be deduced from the similarities of their languages and those of the Tahen and the Coha. The ancestors of these peoples (let's call them the *-ã) were matrilineal and had a highly gendered bigender social structure, in which male and female antioles had distinct and complimentary roles which were nominally equal. In the *-ã which would become the Am, the harsh environment of the Kantishian range increased the importance of hunting, a traditionally male pursuit. Prestige accrued through familial links to great hunters became increasingly important and eventually resulted in a shift to patrilineality - a stepping stone in the shift to patriarchy, for which the determining factor was increasing influence from the Wiek peoples. The Wiek are a later arrival to the Northern Kantishian, a people of kpikigd descent whose ancestors inhabited the Southern Kantishian and were displaced by the growing power of what would become Ghøwout. Most kpikigd people tend towards patriarchal social structures, and the Wiek's ancestors were no exception. The low population densities of the Northern Kantishian allowed the Wiek's ancestors to settle in the midst of the *-ã, setting the scene for the centuries of close contact which would see these two people become the Am and the Wiek. In the modern day, the Am and the Wiek share much in term of lifestyle, social structures, cosmology, and lineage - while the Am remain notably more ethnically undenau, and the Wiek more kpikidg, to the southern and northern peoples the Am-Wiek and the Oubixwø-øi of the Kantishian plateau form a distinct montagnard ethnicity. These similitude were born of centuries of trade, warfare, competition, collaboration, intermarriage, hatred, and friendship. These complex interactions underlay the life and politics of the Northern Kantishian.

Lifestyle

Am-Wiek are sedentary agriculturalists. They rely heavily on hunting and fishing to supplement their diet, a lifestyle which enforces low populations densities and impedes the formation of cities and large-scale polities. For this reason, the Northern Kantishian is a constellation of small kingdoms and independent villages with unstable politics and complex local identities - neither Am nor Wiek perceive themselves belonging to such a large cultural identity: the division between Am and Wiek has some basis in cultural practice and ethnicity but is mostly rooted in language. In fact, even more discrete divisions based off political structure and cultural practices are rarely used by these peoples themselves, with very local cultural identities (often to the level of a single village) being the most prominent ones. Larger-scale identities such as Akisam, Naihlam, or Highland Tiagwiek mostly appear in higher level political contexts such as between kings or powerful chieftains, or contexts where frictions generates a need for larger scale collaboration, and more often to speak of foes than to speak of allies. Petty warfare between small fiefdoms is a staple of summer life and rarely achieves much lasting geopolitical effects.

Historically, the Am-Wiek have not raised much livestock apart from the diminutive kabi, but this is beginning to change with the introduction of the tsut, a small therizinosaurine livestock imported by the Setse colonists to the West. The adoption of tsut-based pastoralism by Am-Wiek peoples has been slow - the reduced reliance on hunting is perceived as a threat to Am-Wiek values and lifestyles - but the increased population densities enabled by pastoralism suggests that the delicate balance of petty warfare in the Northern Kantishian will undergo significant changes in the decades to come.

Cosmology

Am-Wiek cosmology is a world of spirits, from the small spirits of mundane animals to the powerful First Spirits of legend. Most powerful of all are the World, the Sun, and the Sky Eye, the mother-spirit in the Moon which ensouled the First Spirits. Am-Wiek share their myths and oral histories through tales but also through dances and songs. Dances of the solstices and equinoxes are especially impressive, often involving the best craftmanship and dancers from several villages. The image above illustrates a traditional solstice dance, in which the Owlcat, representing the Hunt, faces off against the Ceratopsian, representing the Warrior. This dances marks the seasonal change in lifestyle: at the Winter Solstice, the Ceratopsian looses, signifying a return to peace and to the winter hunts, and at the Summer Solstice, the Owlcat loses, signifying the return to farming and warfare.

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Aliti is one of the main characters in my (WIP) story Empire's Wake, which takes place in the City-State of Ranai after the death of the last Namitan Emperor.

Text from the image and more trivia under the cut.

Aliti

Age: 36 Gender: Male Ethnicity: Mixed, majority undenau

Aliti is a councillor of the Port of Ranai, a very important political office in the city. His daily life is busy, as he tries to meet as many of his constituents himself as he can. To Ranai citizens, Aliti is an embodiement of what it means to be Ranaite: mixed-race, tahen-speaking, and intensely politically involved.

Aliti used to be a runner, carrying messages around Ranai, until a bad fall put an end to his career. His injured hip aches to this day. Aliti uses a crutch for his bad leg and a brace to protect his wrist. Aliti tends to put others at ease by inviting them to sit with him or leaning casually on a wall or counter. This is both an intentional social move, and a way to ease his pain.

Aliti's crutch has blue fabric padding and a tip coated in red latex. His wrist brace is brown leather, though he also owns a blue fabric one. Aliti wears most colors, but favors blue. Despites his rank, he stills wears the simple leather sandals of a runner.

More trivia

Aliti has occupied his posting for four years. He was elected to it after the retirement of his predecessor at the age of 32, considered remarkably young for such an important position. Aliti's social network, formed in his years as a runner, played a huge role in his election.

Aliti's name means "Pretty" in Ranaite Tahen.

Aliti still loves to run, but he probably shouldn't.

Aliti is what we would consider bisexual.

Aliti's is of mixed ethnicity, but is culturally "purely" Ranaite. His parentage is mostly undenau, the broad ethnic group including most antioles residing in central regions of Uanlikri. This is about as precise as saying he is "mostly european". His parentage includes Tahen, Yuin and Namite blood (three undenau peoples from the mainland), but also some Wetki (a people indigenous to Ranai's territory) and some Amantis (a people of seafarers from the other continent).

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What’s one food/drink in your world that sounds amazing

Do they have any musical instruments, if so is it based off of any really world stuff?

Tahen cultures have all sorts of taboo around fire. This is taken to an extreme in Ranai, where open fires are completely forbidden and one must own a special permit to tend a cooking fire. As a result, Ranai cuisine is renowned for it's wealth of raw, pickled, and otherwise marinated foods. Bcause Ranai's territory is an archipelago where fish and seafood is the main source of protein, makwa, acid-cooked fish akin to our world's ceviche, is a staple. Real-life ceviche being delicious, it is only logical that fictional ceviche would also be*.

Bird-fish makwa is an ancient traditional meal of the archipelago. It has three main ingredients: gruel of uciwici, an oat-like, distinctively purple grain rich in anthocyanins, dried and salted kelp, and shrimp and crustacean meat marinated in sumac vinegar. Eggs, herbs, and tart fruits are sometimes added as toppings. Bird-fish makwa most salient tastes are tartness from the sumac vinegar with salt and umami from the seafood and kelp, on a base note of mild and nutty sweetness reminiscient of brown rice from the mashed uciwici. The name of this recipe is a mistranslation of the meal's name from Wetki to Ranaite Tahen.

Jimeleu makwa is a classic ceviche which puportedly originates from the town of Jimeleu, where the soils and climate are conducive to the growth of citrus trees. Jimeleu ceviche consists of diced white fish acid-cooked in lime juice with horseradish, white beans, and cold-cooked uciwici grains. The marinade is usually clear, with a green tinge from the lime and horseradish. Common variants add cold fish broth or cream of green peas to water the ceviche into a soup. Jimeleu makwa is sour and spicy, and variants with cream of green peas have a distinctive sweetness.

Cici-Uli makwa is reminiscient of tataki or carpaccio. A large, white-meat fish is cut into filets which are marinated in a mixture of sumac vinegar, oil, and seasonings (including, but not limited to, salt, horseradish, and tart fruits akin to pincherries). The marinated filet is then cut into very thin slices and served with crunchy seeds and sliced sweet onion. Only the external edge of the fish has cooked: the main flavor of Cici-Uli makwa is that of the raw fish itself. This type of makwa requires very fresh fish.

*Note that I have not tried to make these The Most Palatable Possible - especially the first one!

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The answer to the second question is a bit less interesting. In short: yes, they do have music instruments! However, I am profoundly not musically inclined and this (as well as sports) is a thing where I show my biases as an individual: I have done roughly 0 musical worldbuilding, and it is unlikely that I will ever do more than the bare minimum (when I remember that the world should, to feel alive, have some music). About Ranaites, I can say that they have a variety of instruments, especially winds and percussions. Bamboo is an important material for their woodwinds and percussion instruments. A large shell is used as a traditional wind instrument. I imagine they have some sort of relatively simple string instrument, and a slightly more complex one with better acoustic imported by members of the Oumdashen diaspora. Ranaites have inherited a taste for passive music such as windchimes from the archipelago's original inhabitants, the Wetki. Shell windchimes are a popular fixture of gardens throughout the archipelago.

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Cevein Þete (pronounced Cheh-vayn Theh-teh) is a character in my (WIP) story, Empire's Wake. She is a Namite citizen of Ranai. As a child, she immigrated from the Namitan Empire to the Protectorate of Ranai, a vassal state to the Empire. Cevein is opalescent, meaning she's a follower of the Empire's religion. She's devout, yet heretical.

More about Opalescentism, Ranai, Cevein, and text from the image under the cut.

Cevein

Age: 52

Gender: Female

Ethnicity: Namite

Cevein is Head Archivist of Ranai's Port district. She was born in the Namitan Empire and immigrated to the Protectorate of Ranai as a child. She grew up between both cultures, embracing her family's religion even as she climbed towards one of the most important clerical positions in Ranai's culture.

Ranai's religion, in which Archivists are core members, focusses foremost on orthopraxy and cares little for orthodoxy, allowing both atheism and belief in other gods. Nonetheless, Cevein's position as an Archivist and devout Namite requires some highly heretical interpretations of her own religion's preachings.

Cevein position as Head Archivist in the Port District makes her the third highest ranking Archivist in Ranai.

Cevein wears her syncretic beliefs, combining the black clothes, dyed feathers, and tatooed gums of an Archivist and the veil of a devout Namite. She is never seen barefaced or wearing another color. Cevein's clothing generally features the symbol of the Archives, a vertical black line on a white field, representing /i/, the Ink God.

On Opalescentism, Ranai, and Ji

Opalescentism teaches that God wove the world out of light. Faith in the Weaver and the pursuit of beauty are paramount in Opalescence. Contrarily to most of Uanlikri's religions, Opalescentism is monotheistic, proselytizing, and focused on orthodoxy (proper thought) over orthopraxy (proper practice). Opalescentism was born in the north, but has spread and schismed into various branches, several of which have their own God-Emperors and popes or popesses. The practice of veiling one's face originates in the scriptural injunction to "always show the Weaver one's most beautiful face", interpreted as meaning "a face ornamented, augmented, or covered with one's most beautiful work". This interpretation is still dominant in many of the northern regions where Opalescentism is practised.

Namitan Opalescence, the branch in which Cevein was born, has shifted over time as social inequalities in the Empire deepened and the nobility and clergy gained more and more riches and power. Namitan Opalescence emphasizes good birth and noble blood as inherent sources of beauty. It stipulates that only those with the divine blood of the Emperor may wear their faces bare, so that the light of their imperial ascendance may shine upon the world. Others must be veiled and dressed - for nobles, these coverings are minimal, but for commoners, they are understood to shield the Weaver's view from the impurity of their common blood.

Cevein immigrated to Ranai at the age of 8. The Protectorate of Ranai, an archipelago under the control of the City-State of Ranai and a vassal state of the Namitan Empire, has mostly not converted to Opalescentism. The dominant religion in Ranai is Ji. Ji shares some characteristics with Opalescentism: it is a state religion, and it is proselytizing. In scripture, Ji is a polytheistic religion in which the pantheon is composed of the letters of the Tahen Alphabet. In practice, Ji is a religion focused on orthopraxy and cares little about orthodoxy; in Ranai, the Letter-Gods are alternatively interpreted as abstract gods, personified gods and domains of the spiritual world. The core tenet of Ji is literacy; reading and writing are considered sacred acts akin to prayer, and the transmission and recording of knowledge are paramount. One is a jihist because one is literate and participates in the sharing of knowledge, not because one believes that letters are gods.

The most sacred professions under Ji are that of Archivist, Librarian, and Teacher. The institution of the Archives maintains legal records of all sorts: it writes the pulse of the city. Cevein's decision to train as an Archivist put her in the peculiar position of being both a devout jihist and a devout Opalescent, which she reconciles by interpreting the tenets of Ji as coherent with the tenets of Opalescentism. After all, what could be more beautiful than an orderly city, clear records, and accessible knowledge?

More Trivia

Cevein's personnal brand of heresy was greatly informed by diasporas in Ranai. The syncretic beliefs of jihist converts to Opalescentism from the southern regions of the Namitan Empire helped her reconcile her desire to become an Archivist with her faith in the Weaver.

Cevein wears her veil as a marker of her faith, but also in the spirit of the more celebratory practices of wearing beauty that she's seen among members of the Ashitin and Northern Ðejr diasporas in Ranai.

Cevein lives in a small, but well appointed apartment near the Port's Archives.

Cevein has a husband, two children, and five grandchildren. Her husband, her father, and half her grandchildren reside together in a small house in the Port District. In the Ranaite tradition where children are raised by their grandparents, her grandchildren are being raised by her husband with the help of her father. Cevein herself is much less involved, but rather doting when she visits.

Cevein's post as Head Archivist in the Port District makes her de facto the third most important Archivist in Ranai, after the Head Archivists at the Great Library and at the Monastery. Technically, the Head Archivists of all districts are equal, but the size and importance of the Port District gives extra weight to Cevein's position.

Among Archivists, Cevein is considered stalwart and relentlessly competent.

In her free time, Cevein is very involved in the local Opalescent church.

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Hunen is one of the main characters in my (WIP) story Empire's Wake, which takes place in the City-State of Ranai after the death of the last Namitan Emperor. Hunen works under Cevein Þete as Master of Staff, a role he's rapidly earned for his stellar interpersonal skills.

More on Ranaite transsexualism, Hunen trivia, and text from the image under the cut.

Hunen

Age: 33 Gender: Male Ethnicity: Ranaite

Hunen is a senior Archivist in Ranai's Port district. Hunen is one of many Ranaites to embrace a gender different from the one dictated by their birth, a path rooted in solid cultural tradition among Ranaites and other tahen peoples, but viewed as superfluous and backwards in the context of Ranai's growing gender equality and flexible gender roles.

Hunen grew up in the High Vale District of Ranai and, after his graduation, progressed through his career rapidly through his willingness to move to districts with open postings. He worked several years in his home district before requesting a transfer to "anywhere" and ending up at Ranai's Port Archives. Hunen is very secretive as to what, exactly, motivated his transfer out of his home district.

Like all senior Archivists, Hunen's feathers are dyed and his gums are tattooed black. Outside work, Hunen often dresses in civilian Ranaite clothes, but remains obviously marked as an Archivist by his feathers. Hunen favors bold colors and patterns.

Ranaite transsexualism

Note: Ranaite culture is rather binary in terms of genders. There are cultural frameworks for genderlessness or third gender identity, but these are not touched upon here.

Ranaites, like other Tahen peoples to which they are related, do not sex their children at birth. Antioles have internal genitalia: before secondary sex characteristics begin to appear at puberty (and children begin experiencing genital eversion as a result of arousal), specific processes are required to asses the sex of a child. These processes are not employed by the Tahen, and their children and their children possess the gender of "child". Upon puberty, around the age of 10, children are initiated into their sex in a ritualized and involved process, which is followed by gendered socialization until and through adulthood.

Gender is strongly associated with sex, but is understood primarily through the lens of the roles attached to it: historically, Tahen societies have been strongly gendered, with strict gender roles and expectations. As an example, Archivists are traditionally always men -Librarians, their counterpart, always women. The combination of strong gender categories and late gendering of children has produced a solid cultural framework for children who refuse the roles associated with their sex. There is a long cultural tradition among Tahen of children choosing to be initiated in the other gender.

This choice is popularly understood to stem from a desire to engage in the other gender's roles: if a female child dreams of being an inkmaker like its grandfather, then it is sensical that this child will choose to be a man so that it can take on this profession. If a male child is determined to become involved in politics, then this child has no choice but to be a woman so that it may one day become Councillor. Transgender antioles in this framework are understood as deeply devoted to their lifepath.

Transsexualism in contemporary Ranai

Ranai has had a strong movement for gender freedom and equality, starting over a century ago. This movement has been largely successful: Ranaite gender roles are infinitely more flexible than those of continental Tahen peoples. Gender bias and stereotypes are still very much alive, but professions are no longer restricted to one gender or the other: it is possible to be a man in politics (like Aliti) or a woman Archivist (like Cevein).

In this framework of gender equality and freedom, the cultural institutions of transsexualism are often perceived by Ranaites as a holdover from a time gone by. Because gender is still so strongly associated with its traditional roles in the Ranaite mind, the desire to change gender outside of access to other gender roles is difficult to understand for Ranaites. Transsexualism seems superfluous in a world where anyone can be anything they want to be. Hunen's transgender identity is perceived by many as overly conservative, a holdover of a time when professions where restricted by gender: why be a man when you could've been a woman Archivist anyways?

Hunen does not face hostility for being transgender, but finds himself stereotyped as a very traditional person and is faced with confusion when trying to explain his gender as detached from his role as an Archivist.

More Trivia

All senior Archivists have tattooed gums, a painful ritual process in which junior Archivists are ordained as full fledged members of the institution. Popular gossip holds that *all* of an Archivist's "pink flesh" is tattooed, including their genitals. Cevein refuses to engage in such gossip, but Hunen loves to stoke the mystery.

Hunen and Aliti met as young adults, when Aliti was a runner and Hunen a student at the Great Library. They lost contact when Aliti's injury put an end to his running career.

Hunen, as a child, wanted to be a Librarian. He usually avoids mentionning this, as it makes people more confused as to his choice to be a man.

Hunen's willingness to move districts for better postings is seen as unusual: Ranaites are often very attached to their home district and prefer to keep close to their family.

Though Hunen is very secretive about the causes of his latest move, the distance between High Vale District and the Port District as well as his silence about his family implies that some sort of familial conflict motivated the move.

Hunen is an incorrigible gossiper.

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jdifksbfurkdbi hi hello :3 just found ur blog and i love ur commission art and the funny fellows which, if i managed to correctly absorb the lore, r the uanlikri ppl. those r cool and nice and amazing and i love em. i noticed that when u post abt them u (i assume) write the name of the individual culture with their native script of their native language? since thats my shit can i ask u to linguistically infodump abt that? thanks for ur attention and have a good [insert time of day] :)))

So the Peoples of Uanlikri is a project of mine where I aim to do at least one drawing of every cultural group* on Uanlikri, the continent depicted in the bottom corner of the little people infographics. There are other continents in this world but for my sanity I'm (mostly) not touching them.

The script besides the title is not a native script in the sense that for most of these cultures, they've borrowed it from someone else! It is the Ghøwout Script, which you may or may not have scrolled down far enough to find this little infographic I did on it.

Unfortunately for the more linguistically inclined, I haven't really dug deep into conlanging (at least not with this script) and I cannot tell you much about the Ghøwout languages, other languages which use the Ghøwout script, and how they work. I think if / when I decide to work on it more, I'll take my decisions about who uses diacritics and how much as a jumping point to decide on features of the language.

Someday I'd love to make a map of language families on Uanlikri. For now I'm treating it as though it mostly matches the cultural groups I'm drawing (which is innacurate, but must suffice).

*I've got a masters of Anthropology so I'm constantly annoyed that I'm not being granular enough, but I'm mostly managing to talk sense into myself about it, for the sake of my sanity and hopefully finishing the project someday.

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1

For this list of worldbuilding prompts.

Are there any foods with symbolic meanings that are eaten on special occasions (e.g. katsudon for victory, or new years oranges for luck)? How did the tradition get started?

This was a challenging one! Here are two foods with symbolic meaning and / or eaten on special occasions.

Ambertree fruits and the Þuar

Ambertree fruits are the apricot-sized, very fleshy galbulus of the ambertree. They have waxy white skin and pink flesh, with a single large seed. Their flesh buttery, with a peculiar taste that is both cloyingly sweet and very resinous.

Ambertrees are cultivated for their resin, which can be carefully prepared and baked into artificial amber. For the Þuar peoples, who first mastered ambercraft, both the tree and its fruit are sacred. The fruits were traditionally only eaten by ambercrafters in the purification ceremonies undertaken as preparation for the delicate processes of ambercrafting, or harvested for religious offerings.

After the Þuar Wars, the Namitan Empire stole the secrets of ambercrafting and began growing its own ambertree orchards and training its own ambercraft masters, coveting the wealth to be obtained through the trade of the precious material and aiming to weaken the still-free Northern Þuar Queendoms. Ambertree fruit is considered a delicacy in the Namitan Empire.

Roasted meat and nuts and the Ranaite Tahen

For Ranaite Tahens, the inhabitants of the city state of Ranai on the Ojame archipelago, any meat meal is a special meal as the archipelago's high population density leaves very little land available for the raising of livestock (fish, seafood, and insects make up the majority of their protein intake, along with the meat of some small livestock like kabi).

Roasted meat, however, is a truly special thing and reserved for the solstice festivals. Ranaite Tahen have a strong cultural fear of fire, and fire is heavily regulated within the city of Ranai. Solstice festivals are days of exhuberance and nervousness as (heavily watched) open fires are lighted around the city and meats and nuts roasted on open flames to celebrate.

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While extensive and extravagant veiling is the mark of important occasion, more limited veiling is worn in everyday life by many antioles in Ranai as a sort of equivalent to our "business casual" outfits.

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An antiole dressed in traditional tahen winter fashion. Her feathers and skin indicate that she is either a xyn immigrant from one of the polities around the Atashir desert, or of xyn descent.

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Formal fashion in Ranai city as well as in tahen culture in general is characterized by its extravagant layering of shawls and veils. For festive events, sheer veils and chains of bells and medallions are favored.

This specific antiole's clothing signify an important official. Their facial features and blue feathers mark them as a Pale Islander - it is not unusual to see immigrants in positions of power in Ranai.