Monomak, people of the sea. They call them pirates, but all they do is protect the borders of their ever-shifting nation. They are a legend, a mystery, an excuse for wayward merchants. But the stories hold truth, because the Monomak are not a legend. They are a people, just as real as any other.
Naming Traditions
Hawthen, Sarak, Ilsen, Kaelan, Mikah, Morgon
Karx, Thad, Mattox, Bryn, Rhadan, Dawsen
There is usually not an indicator of what family you come from, just what ship. Often even then, it is just "I am Thad of the Midnight Star". Families are not very nuclear, the whole ship raises you.
Culture
Most speak Moak, the official language of the Monomak Nation, but because of the strange nature of the nation, nearly every language in the Haela is spoken. Monomak usually speak at least three or four languages, with all sorts of Moak pidgins. Each city-ship tends to have a different main dialect, but if you speak one dialect it is not too hard to understand the rest.
The sea is considered the most sacred place of all. Land-dwellers are generally looked down upon and ridiculed. However,
Islanders are generally seen with respect because they are constantly on the water. Kraken are revered. Anyone who enters the area where the Monomak fleet currently is is considered an invader. Invaders' ships are raided, their goods taken. This is where the Monomak get their image as pirates, but they do not consider themselves pirates.
There are primitive forms of cannons, not much more. There is a sophisticated sewage system in the lower levels of the
City-Ships, but it is no longer understood.
To address someone, you must strictly use their position on their ship unless (or until) they give you permission to call them by their name. Otherwise it is considered very rude and unbecoming.
Longer tunics dyed with muted colors on top of leggings are pretty common for children. Adults tend to wear trousers and shortened tunics with a slit. Various ornaments that have been taken from invading ships are often winded into hair, hung on belts or used as earrings. Necklaces, adornments, scarves, long hair, piercings, and tattoos are common. Among men, beards are well-liked. Fur jackets are also fashionable when they travel in winter seas.
This is a nation that rarely touches land, if ever. The cities are known as City-Ships because they are huge floating cities that are dragged around by the tides, winds, and kraken. The bases of City-Ships are made of magically reinforced fireproof materials, using a technique that has been long lost. So, everything is built upon earlier buildings. The main materials they have are ships, so structures are often built out of decommissioned ships. This creates an interesting texture of walls. The upper layers burn often, so there are newly constructed edifices on top of scorched wood.
Tattoos are the most common form of art, and good tattoo artists are highly valued on their ship. Weaving is another common form of art, but it usually more practical and less prized than tattooing. Hair stylists are another common type of artist. Their talented handiwork can be seen in the huge amount of bounty woven into the hair of successful sailors (pirates).
When babies are born, they are splashed with seawater. If the baby doesn't cry, it is considered a blessing. After getting splashed with seawater, the best climber takes the baby to the highest point on the ship and it holds it up to the sky to show the child how big the ocean is.
Children go on their first defense raid as a coming of age ritual. They take an object, whatever is available that they fancy, and keep it for the rest of their lives. This is often a small object that can be worn on a necklace or earring. This object is said to be a omen for what the rest of their life will be like. Upon return, the child gets the traditional kraken curling around an anchor tattooed upon their cheek. This is extremely painful, but if the child gets through it, they become an official adult.
Like the
Islanders, Monomak send their dead out in small ships and burn them. Unlike the
Islanders, the Monomak often toss bounties like gold coins into the water when they push the boat away. These bounties supposedly go with the soul to the world below.
Going on land is considered an act of sacrilege. The sea and the ships that traverse it have all that anyone could ever ask for.
It is said that before the world existed, there was only a great dark sea. The Great Kraken was alone in the darkness, so it wrenched off a part of a tentacle, which formed the first humans. In its surprise when its creations began to move, it squirted out dark black ink, which formed the landmasses. Some of the humans got stuck in the ink, but the Great Kraken helped carry a few away to the safety of the sea.
Ideals
There are definite masculine and feminine beauty ideals. Long beautiful hair is prized among women, although it is not uncommon among men. Scars are not quite beautiful, but they are considered striking and powerful. Beards are thought to be very masculine. Freckles or tans are considered attractive, and large muscles are admired for both genders. While tattoos are considered beautiful on both men and women, there are different types of tattoos for each (besides the kraken, which every adult has).
People are usually very proud of their genders, and consider it as part of their personality. It is sometimes hard to tell what gender people are though, because like the
Islanders, it is more fluid. Most Monomak, unlike
Islanders choose to be male, female or go between the two, rather than non-binary. This is because beauty ideals still include classic ideas of masculinity and femininity.
Two types of relationships means two types of courtship (see below in Relationship Ideals for more information on the two idealized types of relationships). People will frequently very bluntly and without any prior context ask a shipmate if they want to be their mojak. This is considered perfectly normal, if not ideal. It is not rude to turn someone down, it is simply a logistical consideration. For kjenak courting it is a much more complicated, and frequently very romantic adventure. It is taboo to court someone on your ship as a kjenak, unless you are a city-dweller.
There are two very very different types of relationships. There are "ship-partners" (mojak) and "city-partners" (kjenak), and any Monomak could easily distinguish all their relationships between the two. Mojak relationships are very casual, and frequently completely excludes any emotional attachment. Everyone lives on the same ship in very close quarters, so there is no room for awkwardness in mojak relationships. They change frequently and it would be a scandal if there was any ill-feeling when breaking up with one's mojak. If a child is born out of a mojak relationship, the child is considered to not have any parents and is raised communally by the ship.
Kjenak relationships, however are very serious and foster more of an emotional connection. There is no limit to the acceptable amount of kjenaks someone can have, but it is considered callous to have so many that each relationship is not meaningful and deep. Children spoused in a kjenak relationship are chosen to be raised on the ship or in the household (for city-dwellers) of one of the parents. These children are also raised by the community, but generally will know who their parent is and perhaps train under their parent.
Relationships are not any less meaningful because of the form they take on in Monomak culture; it just means it is hard if you are a jealous person. Everyone knows everyone else on their ship, so everyone has to at least get along. Strict binding romantic relationships are uncommon, but as with everything, there is always diversity.
On City-Ships, there are usually less loose mojak relationships and more kjenak relationships, because the size of the ship makes it so that it is easier to have privacy and personal disputes. However, the Monomak culture came before City-Ships and is not diminished by their presence. It just changes to fit the environment.
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