Essukad
The Essukad
Overview
The Essukad, meaning of the sands, are an Utumi ethnic group inhabiting southern Nirann. They are militaristic in mind, subjugating and conquering their neighboring peoples.Culture
Slavery and Servitude
Like the Ataarad from where they originate, slavery is an essential part of Essukad culture, even more so than the Ataarad. Essukad people have many plantations along the rivers which are worked by slaves - typically captured Niranni, Marin, Obazi, and other Utumi. These slaves typically serve harder positions, while court positions and governorships are reserved for free Essukad peoples.Seafaring and Shipbuilding
Seafaring has lost much of its importance to the modern Essukad, who often rely on the Ataarad navies in their camapigns against the Niranni. Although fishermen still dominate the coast along with traders, the people now rely more on fruits of the land such as their massive plantations. Despite this decline, fresh water and oases have become much more important as they are used seen as more holy places. Despite all of this, some of the coastal regions are seeing a resurgance in sea reverence due to Ataarad communities settling in places like Urannu-Arrak and reigniting an interest in the old faithArchitecture
. Essukad architecture is rather similar to their Ataarad forefathers, but they created and introduced new things as well. Their buildings are made mostly out of mud brick, clay, brick, and stone like most other Utumi, but clay has grown to be more prominent in the countryside here while brick and mudbrick remain most prevalent in the cities. The roofs of Essukad structures are often like their Ataarad predecessors, flat or domed, with many of these buildings being vaulted. Often, many buildings have porches with awnings that provide shade and shelter.Some innovations found were windcatchers that were adopted by the Essukad after their interractions with the previous Emsahiric peoples of northern Essukur. Besides this, lattices have become much more common as well due to influence from the Ningul and Niranni.
Cuisine
Essukad cuisine is based heavily on bread, lamb, pork, legumes, fish, and poultry. The people have a select variety of breads eaten with a wide variety of sauces and dips used in many meals and cuisines. One of the most common cuisines is a wrap made from flatbread, vegetables, skewered meat, and dipped in a sauce made from beans and honey.Clothing and Hair
Essukad clothing typically varies by the sexes. Men wear longer belted tunics that have short sleeves but their tunics among higher classes go down to their ankles while among peasants they end above the knees. Some men like fishermen wear only kaunake skirts. Women wear clothing that is typically longer in the sleeves, but they also wear colorful mantles that show their wealth.As for hair, the Essukad men grow long beards and wear their curly hair freely. Many men; however, do cut their hair short yearly as a new years tradition. The Essukad do not associate longer more concealing clothing with modesty, and as such their men and women can be found in short clothing. Nobles though, still prefer to wear long kaunakes that cover the legs and even rise up to one of the shoulders.
Adopted from the Niranni, veils and turbans have become popular among the peoples. From the Ningulad, veils have become popular as well as painting of the face and nails with reddish makeup.
History
The Beginnings - Old Utum Legend
In the region of the sea of Salun, a people of old lived in peace, discovering the ways of farming and herding. In time, a great civilization would arise from these first men. The people lived in a city named Utum-Harrak - Sun Capital. These people, the Utumad or Utumi, were among the first of the humanoid races to emerge as builders of cities. These peoples were divided into the two clans, Ninshu and Utum; the Utum favored the sun while the Ninshu favored the moon. The Ninshu clan feuded with the Utum clan over if night or day should watch over the mortal realm more, and so hostilities broke out. This led to the two patron gods of their realms holding a debate in the heavens while the clan heads fought among the mortal realms. These sibling gods would take the form of the Moon and Sun and fight over control of the heavens. The Ninshu clan lost the mortal debate, leading to the dominance of the Utum over society and the subsequent suicide of the leader of the Ninshu clan. This caused the god of the Ninshu to lose hope and weep. Her debate was shattered and so her celestial form became the moons of the planet while it was determined that her victorious sun counterpart would come to rule longer than the moon as king.The weeping Ninshu would return to the planet and hide out in the hills while Utum married into the chief’s daughter and the first dynasty of the Utumi would begin. Soon children would be born and the family would grow prosperous for 6 years until Ninshu returned and killed the family in their sleep as the first blood-moon. Utum’s body would be given to the sun along with his soul, while Ninshu would promise to join the sky once more after leading her people to safety. Ninshu would finally go into self-exile proudly, redeeming themselves. Ninshu would lead their people beyond Meredonn, through the snakemen of Talannu, and to the shores of Nieden. Here she would bear 2 children as the progenitors of the Ninul or Ningul peoples. After this she would ascend to the heavens and repair her shattered sky into two moons, symbolic of the children she gave to rule the lands.
Back in the lands of Utum, panic was felt as the deaths of the god and new moon shook the society. This was until one of the children of Ninshu returned and she would offer herself as sacrifice to atone for the crimes. This goddess named Adiri would be murdered in Ninguli sources, and in Utumi would sacrifice herself on an isle between Meredon and Talannu. Her blood would stain her moon red, and from her blood leaking into the sea, she would birth the god of the skies, the celestial guide. Upon seeing this act, Adiri’s mother Ninshu would be enraged. She would batter the shores with waves until being calmed by seeing the new god born, where she would (in some beliefs) pass to the realm of spirits from a broken heart, leaving her sky realm to her surviving child Wamu.
Early History
After the crisis of the gods, the people would become weary and many different tribes would migrate away from the old capital, leading to the creation of the Ningulad (from the exiled clan of Ninshu), the Erganni (warrior clans from the western part of the realm), and Waharud (fishermen and seafolk living on the water). The races that stayed were known as the Saahrad, meaning men of the city. The Saahrad city began to feud with the Erganni clans, the Khersim of the north, and with nearby beast folk. One ruler of note, Astor Nersaranibal, founded the first kingdom of Zuhuret around the city. The Kingdom of Zuhuret, while one of many to come, was the first to conquer many of their neighbors. Nersaranibal's successor, Shazuran, created the first great code of laws and even defeated the fearsome Lamiyya race as well as the Erganni.The Exile
In the many kingdoms and times after the reign of the kingdom of Zuhuret, there was no greater disaster than the invasion of the Ssamtrassi, who are known to the Saahrad as the Lershahad. The Lershahad, a race of lizardlike people invaded from the south sometime around the year 500, brutally sacking cities and taking no prisoners. Their utter desctruction caused many of the people to flee as refugees. One group, led by the noble Astor Murai, gathered as many people and ships as he could, and sailed along the coast following routes of the ancient Ninshu exiles of old. These exiles passed the lands of their Erganni cousins, but soon even restocked at cities inhabited by men with long ears and red hair. Eventually, they reached a series of islands, where they would conquer the existing settlement of Sunshira, making it their new capital of Shahyr-Arrak.The New Kingdom
From Shahyr-Arrak, the Saahrad would mix with the native Waharud peoples and create the Ataarad as a result. The Ataarad would become adapted to life at sea, becoming some of the best seafarers known to the world. Through this, they conquered the many areas around their kingdom and established themselves around the year 550.They ruled for the next four hundred years without much issue until the shattering struck. In that time, the state prospered and some colonists and invasions began to strike Nirann from the isles under the warlord Sunistar, who established a settlement on the southern coast called Zu-Ukum - the land of golden scales. Sunistar's realm fought the natives, eventually carving his way along the southern coast. He and his people traveled north until an invading army of people known to them as the Hazurad (The Soranni) fought them off, eventually conquering Zu-Ukum in the 700s, marking the end of the independent Ataarad kingdom.The Shattering and Invasion of Nirann
The Shattering of the spirit realm caused natural disasters to strike all over the world, and the isles of Immu-Ataar were hit by a great wave and hurricane as well as numerous sea beasts and spirits ravaging the isles. Some of the islands were relatively untouched by spirits, while others were sieged heavily. Villages tried to defend their own land, fighting off when they could; many of those that could not began to flee for the western land of Nirann, arriving on the shores of the continent.After surviving the shattering, the Ataarad forged an independent kingdom that conquered their neighbors. The first capital of this state was Haradisaahr, the jeweled city of water. The clans rallied behind the king Oriatsar and began their conquests against the Difharri kingdom as well as to the north against the civilizations of the River valley. It was at this point the Ataarad became known as the Essukad as they began to diverge after living on the mainland for some time.
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