Bonuwat
While permanent Bonuwat homes mostly appear along the Mwangi coastline, from Desperation Bay to The Shackles to even the Sodden Lands and portions of southern Rahadoum, it’s far more likely to find Bonuwat communities on water. Bonuwats are average-sized people whose lifestyles have shaped them into strong swimmers. They keep their hair short, in cornrows, or bald for the sake of being hydrodynamic. Most Bonuwat people make their living at sea. Bonuwat society is clan-based, and most clans differentiate themselves by what they primarily seek on their voyages. Most of these clans fish, specializing in intricate methods of capturing a particular species. They care for said species as well by ensuring that they keep their practices in balance to avoid overfishing and ruining their livelihoods. Other clans take advantage of water-breathing magic to deep dive and hunt for treasure at the bottom of the sea. Even more hardened Bonuwats sail near the Eye of Abendego to pillage freshly abandoned ships, knowing that hapless outsiders pulled into the nation-sized hurricane rarely make it through—though if a clan finds stranded sailors, they’re hardly heartless and will take survivors back with them out of the storm even if they hadn’t planned a rescue mission.
Since Bonuwat people spend so much time as small fractured clans at sea, they believe in a variety of gods for a variety of reasons. The most common gods they worship are Sarenrae, the Guiding Sun, and Gozreh, the Wind and the Waves. Every Bonuwat makes offerings to Gozreh to ensure safe voyages, even though they’re well aware that they can do little to appease the temperamental god of the sea. As they use the sun as their primary means of navigation during the day, most sailors venerate Sarenrae, though Bonuwat clans who prefer to work at night tend to worship Desna since they navigate using the stars and the position of the moon. Clans that function at night tend to be much less common than their diurnal counterparts, and they’ve developed some of their own cultural differences. Such Bonuwats wear slightly more clothing than their kin due to lower temperatures at night, plus many of their rituals and customs occur during these hours. Most customs that might involve the sun are usually replaced with the moon or the stars.
The Bonuwat majority—those who work primarily during the day—don’t wear much in the way of clothing, allowing them to stay cool and unencumbered in the Mwangi climate. They’re a modern culture with a modern economy and trade all along the coasts of the Mwangi Expanse. Most other Mwangi peoples see them as an essential part of society since few are as adept when it comes to acquiring resources from the seabe it food, inks, pearls, or rare underwater plants used in medicines. Few members of other cultures can claim a close friendship with a Bonuwat person; most Bonuwats spend so much time at sea that outsiders have difficulty in truly getting to know any of them. They almost exclusively marry within their ethnicity, have most of their children at sea, and use their land as glorified trade storage. Bonuwats who are the least skilled at seafaring usually have the responsibility of taking care of their people’s land resources, but these individuals take pride in their unique contribution to their society.
Since Bonuwat people spend so much time as small fractured clans at sea, they believe in a variety of gods for a variety of reasons. The most common gods they worship are Sarenrae, the Guiding Sun, and Gozreh, the Wind and the Waves. Every Bonuwat makes offerings to Gozreh to ensure safe voyages, even though they’re well aware that they can do little to appease the temperamental god of the sea. As they use the sun as their primary means of navigation during the day, most sailors venerate Sarenrae, though Bonuwat clans who prefer to work at night tend to worship Desna since they navigate using the stars and the position of the moon. Clans that function at night tend to be much less common than their diurnal counterparts, and they’ve developed some of their own cultural differences. Such Bonuwats wear slightly more clothing than their kin due to lower temperatures at night, plus many of their rituals and customs occur during these hours. Most customs that might involve the sun are usually replaced with the moon or the stars.
The Bonuwat majority—those who work primarily during the day—don’t wear much in the way of clothing, allowing them to stay cool and unencumbered in the Mwangi climate. They’re a modern culture with a modern economy and trade all along the coasts of the Mwangi Expanse. Most other Mwangi peoples see them as an essential part of society since few are as adept when it comes to acquiring resources from the seabe it food, inks, pearls, or rare underwater plants used in medicines. Few members of other cultures can claim a close friendship with a Bonuwat person; most Bonuwats spend so much time at sea that outsiders have difficulty in truly getting to know any of them. They almost exclusively marry within their ethnicity, have most of their children at sea, and use their land as glorified trade storage. Bonuwats who are the least skilled at seafaring usually have the responsibility of taking care of their people’s land resources, but these individuals take pride in their unique contribution to their society.
Naming
Bonuwat masculine names include Bakary, Korotoum, Oulai, Ramatou, and Vassiriki; feminine names include Akissi, Djeneba, Naminata, Salimata, and Yaoua; and genderneutral names include Camara, Diomande, Kan, and Sangare.
Parent ethnicities
Encompassed species
Related Locations
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