Solvranae
The Ancient People of Sovrano
Long ago, when the continent of Sovrano sat above the sea, it was populated by a group of people known as the Solvranae. A devoutly religious society, around the rise of the Sovranese Empire they worshiped their emperor as an avatar of the sun. While they had access to technology that seems much more advanced than what is known by today's societies thanks to their affinity for Alchemy, much of that technology had been lost after the Century of Fire and Water and is only now being rediscovered across the globe.
Historia
Cultural Timeline of the SolvranaeDemographics
The Solvranae People followed a fairly typical sapient distribution pattern compared to the rest of the world, with some notable exceptions. Humans (Knowns as Humani) made up the bulk of the population, approximately 55%. Next, Daemons (collectively referred to as Genii) Made up about 18% of the population, with Oreads (Genemaei) and Dryads (Florae) making up about 75% of that portion, with the rest a mix of Hydriads (Undinae), Auras (Sylphae), and Lampads (Avernae). The first notable exception to the norm is the Harpies (also known as Harpies in Lingua Solvranum), who made up about 15% of the Solvranae population instead of their 6% global average. Satyrs (known as fauns) make up 6% of the population. Lamia (known as melusinae) made up 4% of the population. Finally, Centaurs (also known as centaurs in Solvranum) made up 2% of the population, almost exclusively on the continent of Solvranum Minor. While it's not unusual that Myrmidons don't appear to have been part of the Solvranae, it is unusual that Tauroi did not seem to appear in Solvranum until after the continent collapsed.Invictum
While many organizations had been created to benefit the collective of the Solvranae people, the most important at their height was the Invictum Solvranum, commonly referred to simply as the Empire. Led by who the Solvranae believed to be an avatar of Sol, the Sun, the empire fused Solvranae religious, political, military, and technology into one institute that managed to control all of the continent of Sovrano as well as the northern regions of Makadelos.Scientia
While the institutions of Natural Philosophy and Alchemy developed in Makadelos with completely different contexts and time frames, to the Solvranae these two concepts were intrinsically bound within the art of Scientia. What seems like magic to even the modern person would have simply been the Solvranae equivalent to engineering, chemistry, and biology. During their height it is said that the Solvranae could produce war machines that could tear apart battleships and shoot airships out of the sky, or cure any number of ailments or produce fully humanoid machines that were fully autonomous and sentient. Much of the technology of the Solvranae is lost, buried deep below the sea, though advances in Makadelian engineering are allowing for the world to once again access the wonders that these ancient people produced.Culture
Major language groups and dialects
During the time of the empire, the Solvranus people were unified in their language, speaking what is now known as Lingua Solvranum. Despite the uniformity, there were four major dialects spoken which are now known as Solvranum Occidentis, Solvranum Orientalis, Solvranum Australis, and Solvranum Centralis. It is most likely that due to the separations caused by the Century of Fire and Water, these dialects developed into the modern language groups of Souvaleur, Cavueblo, Frongardă, and Coranelo respectively.
Art & Architecture
The Solvranae were masters of mixing aesthetics with engineering, able to construct beautiful buildings that managed to defy possibility. Older buildings were generally constructed from wood, stone, and bricks, but as time went on, concrete became the primary building material. Because of concrete's ability to be poured and its variable weight and strength, a building's aesthetics didn't have to simply be practical, and common elements such as columns, domes, and arches could essentially be mass-produced.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
While the Solvranae valued certain aspects of physical appearances, such as fitness or cleanliness, how one dressed was seen as the most important aspect of making oneself beautiful. Wearing warm colors such as red or yellow was seen as the highest standard of beauty, and as such dyes and cosmetics in these colors were highly sought after. As a statement of class, gemstones and jewelry, while rare and expensive, were the highest marks of beauty one could wear.
Gender Ideals
The Solvranae had a complicated relationship with gender in their society, at least when compared to the society of modern Makadelos. Like Makadelos, women had little to no say in public affairs, with men being the only ones who could hold public office, vote, own land, serve in the military, or act as priests. Women's duties were generally to conduct business, run shops, manage estates, and engage in other financial duties. Regarding family and the household, duties were shared among the genders, with housework and child-rearing being the duties of the father and mother together.
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