Siroken

One of the two dominant peoples of the Carneman Islands in Nawaquivo, the Siroken occupy the western-most islands in the Carneman, mainly found on Koubeyaca, as well as on the smaller islands and islets to Koubeyaca's north and south.

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

Ambiri, Cuicana, Gauanwey, Huamey, Jwenna, Yameshani

Masculine names

Dammabi, Fawi, Kobayo, Luigubey, Upapash, Waguaco

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

The Siroken speak Irik, which is rarely spoken outside the western Carneman Islands. The Siroken maintain that Irik is the oldest indigenous language in Nawaquivo, predating Aroka, Manai and Cassamorian. As the Siroken are less widespread than the Tanigua, there are fewer dialects compared to Aroka. The exception is on the island of Hawanorra, where the most isolated group of Siroken speak a dialect known simply as Hawanorra Irik. While the differences between classical Irik and Bawanorra Irik are small, Hawanorra Irik is typically viewed as courser and less refined, with more colorful curse words than classical Irik.

Culture and cultural heritage

Seafaring and fishing are mainstays of Siroken culture, who are aguably the most accomplished sailors in Nawaquivo outside of the Porto del Paradisians. Canoes are essential to the Siroken way of of life, and every family owns and maintains their own vessel, often passed down from generation to generation. Siroken canoes are sleek and swift, often with religious symbols or images of local legends carved into them and their prows commonly carry figureheads of iguanas or serpents to frighten off sea devils.

Shared customary codes and values

The Siroken are more of a warrior people than most of their neighbours in the Carneman, placing greater emphasis on prowess and bravery in battle. Renown and prestige are earned by fighting the numerous dangers that threaten their communities, and the leaders of the Siroken chiefdoms are almost always warriors who have earned the title through feats of martial superiority.
The belief in bawafei, (literally, the "purity of the soul") is very important to the Siroken. Honourable acts, including courage in war, commitment to one's family and tribe, and honouring the gods, will ensure their bawafei is sufficient to ensure their passage into a heavenly afterlife. Acts of cruely, betrayal, pride and greed pollutes one's bawafei, and will damn the soul to an afterlife of horror in the dark waters of Tahom to be feasted on by Toraruac and his monstrous children.

Average technological level

Most Siroken tools, homes and weapons are constructed of stone, wood and other plant-based materials. Obsidian is a prized resource, used in the crafting of incredibly sharp blades, but also for jewellery. Their unique magical traditions have enabled the Siroken to strengthen and fortify obsidian, turning it into a highly versatile material. Metalworking is rare among the Siroken, though their knowledge and skill is increasing thanks to exposure to Cassamoran traders and imported good.

Common Dress code

Clothing is sparse among the Siroken due to the tropical climate and their sea-faring culture, typically wearing simple loincloths, skirts or short tunics woven from palm or cotton. Decorative pieces include necklaces, chest straps and piercings of the ears, lips and nose, and commonly style their hair with woven bands or headwraps. Social status is typically marked by more elaborate jewellery and grander headdresses, with the chief of the tribe carrying a large fan of feathers as a symbol of office and authority. Unlike other Carneman islanders, only Siroken warriors are permitted to wear tattoos or body markings.

Foods & Cuisine

The Siroken rely less on agriculture compared to other islanders such as the Tanigua. Instead, much of the Siroken diet comes from the sea, including a wide variety of fish, rays, sharks and shellfish, supplemented with tropical tree fruits and hunted lizards, ducks and turtles. Yucca and maize are less commonly eaten by the Siroken, but are still cultivated where possible. Dishes are typically seasoned with hot peppers and ground peppercorns, as well as citrus, though they rarely use salt. The highly alcoholic oucheci is very popular among the Siroken, and it is very common for Siroken people to become extremely drunk during festivals or celebrations.
The Siroken diet is slowly expanding thanks to contact with the Cassarmoran colony Porto del Paradiso. Spices and herbs from across the globe are gradually being incorporated into Siroken cuisine. Smoked ham in particular has quickly become a Siroken favourite.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

Ranguajoa is the central deity of the Siroken people, and his holy days are rigorously observed. Siroken warriors derive strength and courage thanks to his blessings and many young Siroken youthes take up the call to venture into the world and vanquish evil in his name.
Almost all of the active volcanoes in the Carneman Sea are found on the western islands where the Siroken live, and the celebrations and holy rituals to Ranguajoa always take place on the slopes or at the peak of one of these volcanoes. The ritual of Tom Panaqtil is one of the most important ceremonies to the Siroken, where after a great victory over a particularly wicked or hated foe, the skulls of the vanquished foes and fallen Siroken warriors alike are cast into a volcano, to strengthen Ranguajoa in his cosmic struggle against evil.

Birth & Baptismal Rites

A Siroken birth is always attended by an Elatabean or Ranguajoan priest who conducts a ceremony known as Nahobut. Sprinkling specially prepared ash about the mother, the priest entreats the gods to protect mother and child during the delivery. Once the child is born, the priest rubs a smearing of the same sacred ash across the infants forehead and chest, then holds forth a small branch over the infant to divine whether the child is destined to join the warrior caste. All Siroken warriors were ordainded to be so from birth, and there is no other life path open to a Siroken child once the priests have spoken until they reach the retirement age of forty two.

Coming of Age Rites

Jenaweyamo is the Siroken name for when a child reaches adulthood at sixteen, and the celebration of the same name. During their jenaweyamo, a Siroken youth receives their own fishing spear and an oar, which have either been passed down within their family for generations, or which have been specially made for them. The youth is expected to keep the spear and oar the rest of their life, and it is a matter of personal shame should they be lost or damaged beyond repair.

Funerary and Memorial customs

The Siroken practice a number of funerary rites, but the most common is cremation. The nature of the funeraral ceremony varies from tribe to tribe; the Muhuate for example take the skulls of the dead after the cremation and bury them close to a volcano, while the Puapo leave the cremated ashes and bones in urn-like pots laid near a beach. The cremations are usaully accompanied by hymns and prayers ushering the spirit of the deceased to Ranguajoa's side, so they may aid him in the afterlife as they did in their mortal life.

Common Taboos

Taboos are not prevelant in Siroken culture, except for one very specific exception. Swimming at night during a full moon is considered an evil act, symbolically honouring the time when the moon god Guiebo betrayed his younger brother Ranguajoa to the evil Torauac out of jealousy. Despite the legends speaking of the moon gods contrition and regret at his betrayal, the Siroken do not view the moon god favourably. To swim in dark waters beneath a full moon represents a time when evil triumphed over good thanks to petty selfishness. The more conservative Siroken tribes have been known to adminster alarmingly harsh punishments to transgressors of this cultural taboo.

Common Myths and Legends

The Siroken believe that their people were born from the fallen ash that settled over the islands of the western Carneman after the god Ranguajoa was able to finally free himself from Torauac's imprisonment, which triggered a series a violent volcanic eruptions across the region. Born from the same ash as heralded their patron deities 'second birth', the Siroken see themselves as Ranguajoa's chosen people on Hatuntassi.

Historical figures

While each Siroken tribe has their own legendary heroes or figures of import, a few names stand out and are well known across the disparate Siroken peoples. One such is Talebac the First, regarded as the first chief who united all the tribes of the western islands and cemented their identity as a people. Another is Aripe Ayucayou, the First Speaker of the Ashes, a central figure in the Ranguajoan faith and founder of his great temple, the Roaring Gateway on Teptoyo island.