The Elmfolk
"These lands are littered with the graceful remains of grander times, be they the trees or those who live amongst them. It is the duty of we who suceed these folk to live in awe and reverence, not dismissive arrogance." - Rupert Larazaar, in one of his first protests against northward expansion
The journey of the term "Elmfolk" is intrinsically linked to the expansion of the Gwendorian Lordship. It began as a demonym for the elves that lived in Fellthorn, taking after the ancient elm trees characteristic of that forest. It was during this period that "Elmfolk" could also refer to the river gnomes and halfings of Twelvellian Basin, xenophobia against whom coincided with the birth of the "Elmfolk" label; a conflation of numerous racially charged fears followed. However, as expansion continued, elves became wider known, while the river peoples were forced to assimilate and their distinct identity practically disappeared. This peaked with the proper settlement and incorporation of the Northern Folds where new communities of gnomes, halfings and elves were all discovered and forced through the same processes of their southern kin: assimilation, subjugation, extermination and expulsion. As such, the term migrated on the tounges of its users as they settled further north. This large influx of non-humans into the Lordship caused the social attitudes and vernacular of Northern communities to shift, describing "Elmfolk" as the elves and gnomes found between the Northern Folds and the northmost River, leaving the Fellthorn elves with newer local names like "Blue's", "Lurkers" or "Wights". The halfings of the Folds region were almost fully intergrated into these new communities as pillars of hospitality and local trades, and were therefore mostly excluded from the "Elmfolk" category, instead being called "Foldmen" or "Hillmen".
This configuration of the term persisted until the advent of higher education. Education rests on the standardisation of language, as only then can meanings be conveyed to broad audiences. As a result, a term was required to describe the elves encountered across the sprawling Lordship. The term Elmfolk was the natural candidate: a long history, and an established precedent for use. Yet, as the term spread with this new all-encompassing meaning, elves and gnomes in positions of urban power saw to it that the urban-dwelling gnomes and elves were separated from the category, instead being classed similarly to other human city-dwellers. Consequently, the dissemination of "Elmfolk" in the new education age brought about a stark separation from what are widely considered 'civilised' ethnicities, and 'barbaric' ones. The "Elmfolk" became those who had not been saved by society or civilisation. Many of the urban elite argue that this was not the birth of such a separation, but rather a formalisation of what had been the case since the first elves were welcomed into human cities: some were cut out for it, others were not.
The further intellectualisation of the term has led to many sub-demonyms being coined to describe regional groups or specific communities with distinct characters or lineages. This has left "Elmfolk" to mean a wide range of things dependant on context and audience.
Genetic Descendants
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