Brugen

"One of the species at the centre of that sense of hope and glory is very clearly the Brugen.
It is so delightfully quaint to watch one of their many traditions as though they hold any kind of importance. It reminds me of when my son first presented me with something he'd made - I forget exactly what it was. But the insignificance of the object and the undue pride in his little face is what I'm reminded of whenever I think of the Brugen. It's just adorable to watch them try."

— Extract from A System Of Hope And Glory: Travels Through The Aspiration System
by Peacekeeper V'Kly

Sophisticated

The Brugen pride themselves on their ability to think and create. They consider themselves more enlightened than the Nebrug and any other species on their planet (and many off-planet too).
Artists, creatives, writers and performers as well as philosophers and thinkers are highly prized in their society.

Thinkers

The Brugen are not actually called the Brugen. Their name is more accurately pronounced as a thin, whistling and rapidly rising "brueeeet". In their own language, this roughly translates to 'those who always think', with the word they use for 'think' having additional meanings around create and acquire.
However, as part of their agreement with the Peacekeepers, their name was changed to something more palatable to them. The Peacekeepers chose Brugen because it was far easier for them to pronounce and lined up roughly with what they heard when the Brugen spoke their name.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Brugen have evolved from birds, but have long since lost their wings. They have two legs with thin legs and webbed feet, a feathered torso, two feathered arms, and a head. Their tail and slightly dumpy posterior remain, allowing them to easily take to the water. They also have long bills which they use for feeding and are extremely sensitive.
The shape of their eyes allows them to see things near and far simultaneously and in sharp focus. And since their eyes are located on either side of their head, they are able to see almost 340 degrees around. They can also move each eye independently and are able to sleep with one eye open which comes from an evolutionary need to keep an eye out for predators.

Behaviour

Brugen are extremely sociable as a species, they connect with others quickly and form strong bonds which last their entire lives. This starts before they hatch, with Brugen being able to communicate with their nestmates while they are in their eggs.
They show a lot of empathy and sympathy, even for those they may not necessarily have a lot in common with or have a preference for.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

In the time since joining The Alliance, the Brugen's naming convention has changed substantially. As a result, there are two groups of names, some choosing from the "pre-Enlightened" style, while others take a more modern approach to naming, known as the "Enlightened" style.

Pre-Enlightened Naming

The focus of pre-Enlightened naming is the Brugen's social position and connections.

Naming Format

HONORIFIC ABBREV. [space] NEST NAME [hyphen] INDIVIDUAL NAME

Honorific/Title

Traditionally, the Brugen abbreviate their honorific, which is assigned by those who know them and associated with the respect they garner from others.
e.g. Lord (Ld.), Lady (Ly.), Duke (D.), Duchess (Ds.), Master (Mr.), Mistress (Mrs.)

Individual Name

A person chooses a rolling name as their individual name, which they can add syllables to as they grow and get older, to indicate the ups and downs of life experiences.
Child names: Pip, Kan, Lir, Gli, Blop
Adult names: Pippoplopkantir

Nest Name

The nest name is 3 syllables and is a combination of the mother's Nest Name while replacing one syllable with a syllable chosen by all the nestmates.
For example, if the mother's Nest Name is Haltropklad, the new Nest Name could be Ploptropklad.

Example

Ly. Blipklopklad-Grantrimprib

Enlightened Naming

In modern naming, the Brugen follow much more closely the Peacekeeper style of naming.

Naming Format

HONORIFIC ABBREV. [space] INDIVIDUAL NAME [space] FAMILY NAME

Honorific/Title

The Brugen hold on to their tradition of shortening the honorific, but choose something which describes their ambition or profession rather than their social status.
e.g. Creative (Cr.), Artist (Ar.), Space Traveller (STr.), Diplomat (Dt.), Public Speaker (PSr.)

Individual Name

Rather than constantly expanding their name, Brugen who follow this tradition choose to pick a single syllable in the first way that the Peacekeepers do. Generally, they do stick to it, but it has been known to change if a Brugen decides they outgrow it.
e.g. Bip, Kor, Tip, Plag, Fren

Family Name

The Family Name follows the father's line rather than the mother's.
They may choose to drop in a Nest Name syllable, but this is very much optional.
e.g. Grophil, Blipgan, Marpapkin

Example

Cr. Kor Grophilmap

Beauty Ideals

Brugen are extremely clean as a species and prize cleanliness and presentation above the actual appearance of the individual. For example, a Brugen who is clean and up to date on the latest fashions, presenting themselves well, will be considered more attractive than a Brugen who has any socially agreed "ideal" physical attribute, such as symmetrical features or under- or over-sized aspect of their body.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

There are a lot of traditions which are carefully upheld by the Brugen. As with many traditions, there are variations within them both on-planet and off-planet.

Courtship Cavort

These meetings are held regularly and are an opportunity for the male Brugen to show off their dancing in the hopes of attracting a partner. These Cavorts are extremely formal and take place at least once a month during 'the season' and less often (if at all) during 'the off season'.
During a Cavort, which usually lasts from midday until well into the night. Food and drink are served, but the highlight is the dancing, which involves a male Brugen taking centre stage and presenting his best moves. If a female is interested she might join him on the dance floor, with the more popular dancers attracting multiple dance partners. For the song to finish and for no one to join the male Brugen is considered a mar on their character.

Variations

For those living off-world, a platform has been developed called CAVORVID which allows users to post videos of them dancing. Female Brugens can peruse the dance moves and post their own video as a response. This opens up the opportunity for communication between the two, allowing them to take things further.

Stone Sup

Every ten to twelve days, Brugen gather together to take part in a Stone Sup. This involves meeting in an outdoor space where small stones and pebbles can be found (or are provided) and swallowing several while discussing the weather or the latest fashionable artist.
These Stone Sups are less formal than some of the other traditions but serve two important purposes.

1. As a social lubricant to allow people to meet or discuss things in a more casual way
2. As a biological lubricant to provide the Brugens' stomachs the hard elements they need to break up their food

Variations

Stone Sups are a very good way for those living offworld to connect to other Brugen, and are more common than many of the other traditions.

Group Swim

The point of a Group Swim is to allow the Brugen time to reconnect with their friends and members of their family. These Group Swims are normally performed by nestmates when they are younger but soon are likely to branch out to include other people.
For younger groups, Group Swims consist mostly of races and diving games, while as Brugen mature Group Swims become less energetic and more about spending time reconnecting with loved ones.

Variations

For those offworld, Group Swims may be less water-based, depending on the availability of water in that particular location. Where no water is easily available, it may become a walk, or some other form of exercise instead.

Workday Waddle

All working Brugen join the Workday Waddle as they make their way into work. Groups of Brugen who work in the same area or do the same type of work, meet and walk to work together. This happens every morning and gives the Brugen an opportunity to warm up to the day.
It has been proven that Brugen who partake in regular Workday Waddles live 27.32% longer than those who don't.

Variations

This is only practised where there are communities of Brugen who are able to waddle to their work.

Hatchday

A Brugen celebrates their Hatchday with their nestmates every year. For younger Brugen this involves games and an exchange of gifts, but as they get older this is more likely to be sharing a meal or partaking in some intoxicating beverages.
Hatchdays are usually exclusively for nestmates, but may include other family members, including siblings from older or younger nests and parents.

Variations

Nestmates who are offworld are likely to make a special effort to connect via technological means.

A stone sup

A workday waddle

History

pre-1726 PT

Age of Illumination

1726 -1902 PT

Education Conflicts

1902 - 2149 PT

The Enlightenment

2149 PT

Brugen officially initiated into The Alliance

2302 PT

Aspiration System founded

The Age of Illumination stretches beyond the realms of recorded history and is a period of Brugen history of great growth, technologically, socially and artistically.
This period of growth caused an expansion of their territory into that of the Nebrug, the other major sapient species on the planet, which led to years of war known as the Education Conflicts. From the Brugen perspective, these wars were about educating the Nebrug so that they could learn to appreciate culture. The Nebrug were happy with their own culture which was the crux of the conflict.
In 1902 PT, the Peacekeepers officially made contact with the Brugen and kicked off The Enlightenment, in which the Brugen were able to learn from the Peacekeepers and appreciated art and culture from other star systems.
During their negotiation period, the Peacekeepers patched up relations between the Brugen and the Nebrug, and officially named the planet Unity, making it part of the Peacekeeper Alliance in 2149 PT. Roughly 150 years later, their star system was named Aspiration and became part of The Alliance.

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Related Articles

Organisations	Peacekeeper Alliance, Aspiration Command
Locations	Peacekeeper Territories, The Aspiration System, Unity

Lifespan

45 years

Average Height

4ft 5in

Average Weight

50 lbs

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Usually white feathers and an orange bill, but subspecies vary wildly

Geographic Distribution

• Peacekeeper Territories
• The Aspiration System