Burgoth

The Burgoth people are originally native to the lands surrounding the Seolach, the inland sea of the Northern Kingdoms. Their culture was shaped by longstanding conflict and exchange with Giants.
SUGGESTED PARENTAGES:

• Dwarven (Hill, Mountain, River, Wind)
• Elemental (Earth, Air, Water)
• Goliath
• Halfling (Stout)
• Human

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

Ada, Aelfhryth, Amalia, Ashildr, Avila, Behrta, Borghildr, Brunihild, Brynja, Clothildis, Cyneburga, Dagmar, Dagrun, Eadburg, Emma, Eydis, Frida, Genovefa, Gisilia, Goda, Godiva, Gunda, Gyda, Hadewis, Hadewig, Hailwic, Herleva, Hilda, Hildegard, Hjordis, Ida, Idalia, Inga, Ingunn, Ingvildr, Irma, Judda, Katla, Leofflaed, Linda, Linza, Luitgard, Lutgardis, Magnhildr, Mathilda, Oda, Odilia, Olaug, Pharaildis, Raganhildis, Ragna, Ricmod, Romilda, Rosmunda, Rothaid, Roza, Runa, Saldis, Saxa, Sigihild, Signy, Sigrun, Solveig, Steinunn, Svanhildr, Theudalinda, Thrud, Tofa, Unnr, Valdis, Vigdis, Waldeburg, Wassa, Wilburg, Willidrud, Wina, Wulfrun, Yngvildr

Masculine names

Adalberht, Ansehelm, Baldarich, Brynjarr, Ceadda, Cyneric, Deorwine, Dunstan, Eadgar, Emmerich, Faramund, Fridwald, Gaufrid, Gilbert, Halli, Hildebrand, Ingomar, Ivo, Jordanes, Josteinn, Kari, Kunibert, Lamprehct, Ludolf, Maerwine, Milo, Norbert, Norman, Odalric, Oswald, Paega, Pippin, Raban, Reinhard, Sigifrid, Snorri, Theobald, Thietmar, Uhtric, Uni, Veremund, Vulfgang, Walchelin, Wynnstan

Unisex names

Audr, Goda, Ricmod

Family names

Ackert, Ashman, Balfager, Brumbaugh, Carden, Cran, Dewalt, Dutcher, Eamer, Eymor, Fising, Frink, Geiselhart, Goodchild, Helthon, Hyndeston, Immer, Ivey, Kamban, Kebel, Lawford, Lumb, Magner, Morgade, Oderman, Pyron, Radziwill, Runds, Sather, Stogner, Trafford, Tumbrell, Windenburg, Wykes, Yarbrough

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

Burgoth (dialect)

Shared customary codes and values

• Loyalty & Honesty with friends & family
• Slow to swear, never to breath troth
• The strong shall shelter the weak
• Respect and deference to the elder
• Avenge every wrong and bring the fight to your foe
• Hospitality, but not trust, for the stranger
• Do not strike an iron in a drunken flame
• Honor and glory are due to the dead
• Obedience to law, code, and fate.

Common Dress code

• Torques and pins show one's family and clan of origin.
• Braids and cloth patterns show one's heritage and great victories

Art & Architecture

The Burgoth people pass down great sagas and stories from one generation to the next, often about chieftains, warriors and great heroes. Bards are celebrated and given great status among the Burgoth, charged with keeping the stories and legends alive. Chieftains often retain bards to record and embellish their own accomplishments, adding them to the great canon.
After the death of Erecura and the rise of the Demonic Imperiums, the Burgoth faced death and invasion at the hands of the Raveners and Iron Empires. They banded together, setting aside their old independent ways, and became the Stone People, raising great walls and fortresses, and henceforth became more well known for their stone carving and fortifications.

Foods & Cuisine

Much of the Burgoth diet consists of milk, cheese, and meat, though they also grow barley and wheat, used to make flatbreads and beer. Hunting only adds a modest amount of game meat to their diet, particularly pheasants & fowl, deer and the occasional boar.
They are great brewers of ale, and in areas where bees can thrive, meads.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

It is traditional for the Burgoth to elect their kings, and over most of their history they prefer to do without them. Every adult in every settlement has an equal voice with all the others. When a king or queen is elected by popular vote, their orders and decrees can be countermanded, so they must carefully fulfill the will of the people or risk being deposed.
This custom changed after the advent of the Demonic Imperiums, as the Burgoth people consolidated in places of strength to endure the armies of Uzhul and Tillibec. The rise of the so-called "Stone Kings," who built and reigned from mighty strongholds, concentrated power in the hands of warriors and builders.
Feud is sacred to the Burgoth, who keep a long memory of slights and offenses, often memorialized in rhyming verse. Indeed, particularly successful or quarrelsome chieftains and monarchs employ special bards who serve only to recall and recount the grievances as yet unavenged. Vengeance does not need to come in the form of bloodshed, and while it is dishonorable to fail to fulfill or pursue a feud, it is also dishonorable to be overly cruel or bloodthirsty in such pursuits. Some feuds become well loved and even celebrated by all participants, a friendly rivalry ensconced in the language of rage and revenge.
The Great Feud is against Uzhul, Tillibec and their armies--and, to some, Galadron

Funerary and Memorial customs

Burgoths bury their dead, raising earthen mounds over their bodies. Before the ascension of Ramius, the dead were left with food, symbols of family, personal adornments, and precious items from their life--the belief being that as their souls returned to the Wellspring, they would preserve what was best about them and bring that forth again in the new lives they would inhabit.
After the apotheosis of Ramius, the Burgoth laid their dead to rest armed with weapons and armor, even their non-combatants and children, to prepare them to do battle against the Infernals in the armies of the dead. Funerals changed from celebrations of the deceased and the memories they left behind to rites of strength and martial prowess, reciting the Great Feud of all Burgoth people against the Infernals.

Related Locations

• Northern Kingdoms