Yorehim (YO-reh-eem)

Yorekhim culture is based around proving yourself and making your ancestors proud. They are very connected to the past, and their families values tradition and history over all else. Yorahot are generally very ornate, sticklers for tradition and details, and can be a bit paranoid and stubborn. Yorahot tend to remain underground if possible, building large interconnected tunnels between their sprawling cities. Usually, Yorahot do not share their culture with outsiders, but I was able to ask a few high-ranking Yorahot some questions after doing a handful of favors, and even got an audience with the king!

Naming Traditions

Family names

A Yorahot name is granted by a Ma'korr elder, in accordance with tradition. Every proper Yorekhim name has been used and reused down through the generations. A Yorahot name belongs to the clan, not to the individual. A Yorakh who misuses or brings shame to a clan name is stripped of the name and forbidden by law to use any Yorekhim name in its place.

Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

Ma'korr doesn't have a direct translation, it's something like a family, but a more apt translation is 'vein' or '[mineral] deposit', and describes a very literal sense of shared material. It's more than just a family structure, it is literally the structure of the individual Yorakh itself. Yorakhim are believed to be living clay, so their actual makeup can be very different from Ma'korr to Ma'korr, incorporating quartz, precious stones, fossils, and much more- depending on the available materials. Yorakhot are solid and enduring like the mountains they love, weathering the passage of centuries with stoic endurance and little change. They respect the traditions of their Ma'korr, tracing their ancestry back to the founding of their most ancient strongholds in the youth of the world, and don’t abandon those traditions lightly. Part of those traditions is devotion to the gods of the Yorakhim, who uphold the Yorakhot ideals of industrious labor, skill in battle, and devotion to the forge.

Shared customary codes and values

Yorakhot can live to be more than 400 years old, so the oldest living Yorakh often remember a very different world. This longevity grants them a perspective on the world that shorter-lived races such as humans and halflings lack. Individual Yorakh are determined and loyal, true to their word and decisive in action, sometimes to the point of stubbornness. Many Yorakh have a strong sense of justice, and they are slow to forget wrongs they have suffered. A wrong done to a Yorakh is a wrong done to the Yorakh's Ma'korr, so what begins as one Yorakh's hunt for vengeance can become a full-blown Ma'korr feud.

Common Dress code

Traditionally, Yorakh are very protective of their hair. All adult Yorakh have beards, only children, prisoners, or outcasts would appear beardless. An elaborate system of beading, braiding, parting, and covering has developed within Yorakhim culture, symbolizing things like age, Ma'korr, generation, marriage status, profession, gender, and even ability level. While not recognizable to outsiders, other Yorakh are easily able to recognize all of these things and more, which may contribute to the misconception that all Yorakh know each other. In truth, many Yorakh enjoy making outsiders speechless when they greet a stranger by Ma'korr, profession, and age. While this is good fun, the regional differences in how each of these is shown in hair have been known to lead to misunderstandings and even full on rivalries. It is imperative that traveling Yorakh and non-Yorakh folk learn about the local traditions regarding hair, lest they be unwittingly rude or cruel.
Among Yorakhim youth, wearing a headscarf or veil is somewhat popular, creating an image of the rebellion against the established order. Sometimes, Yorakh who have not yet grown a beard will use a veil or headscarf to conceal their age and appear more rebellious to bystanders. However, this youthful rebellion is somewhat overblown by Yorakhim elders, who can often exaggerate the harm it does into a civilization ending act.

Art & Architecture

One of the most known features of the Yorakhot is that they are incredible builders, having created many grandiose and elaborate buildings, cities, and castles. In my studies, I have learned that this innate desire to build large scale dwellings and monuments stems from an odd place: claustrophobia. Legend says that Yorakhot were hunted on the surface, and sought shelter from the god of the earth, who allowed them into the caves and mountains. However, as a price for their newfound safety, Yorakhot were given the fear of small spaces. Instead of going back above ground, however, the Yorakhot instead carved out larger and larger cities, the large space giving them reprieve from their unyielding claustrophobia.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

Yorakhim historical recordkeeping is the most extensive in the realm, drawing in junior librarians and scholars from all over. It takes a staggering 15 years to become a Yorakhim Librarian. Interestingly enough, being a Yorakh is not a prerequisite, Yorakhim refers to the institution, training style, and credentials. One of the up-and-coming Librarian sects are the Tabaxi Librarians, who focus on oral history, storytelling, and physical objects and places rather than written accounts, ledgers, and records. To outsiders, a Yorakhim library is a densely packed mess of old books, papers, cabinets, and other such records, but to a Yorakhot Librarian, it is the epitome of organized and catalogued history. Often, when a Yorakh dies, their writings, ledgers, journals, and other written memories are given to a library, where they are filed and stored for safekeeping by the diligent and excited librarians. Yorakhot libraries are extensively safeguarded, often with magic and traditional locks and guards. While the information is available to anyone who would like to see it, the families of the original owner of any given record are notified of who has accessed all of their deceased family’s papers. This often leads to records of illegal activity being inaccessible, should the family have enough power to intimidate others into not accessing the records. However, if the family is not powerful, the record of illegal activity can sometimes lead to the ruination of the family. Thus, the Yorakhot need to uphold family reputations, and the need for records as Yorakh age and become forgetful clash.

Birth & Baptismal Rites

Yorakh are not born, rather, then are crafted by one or more parents out of living clay. The parents consult with a Baharran, or 'clay-maker' who is tasked with watching over and protecting the living clay that all Yorakh are made of. They physically shape the Yorakhon (baby Yorakhot), and then place them in a holy kiln, which solidifies the clay and brings them to life. These rituals are highly protected, and few outsiders are allowed to know the location or details of the Yorakhon creation process. When a Yorakhon emerges from the kiln, they are not named for many moons, until the entire Ma'korr can be gathered for a weeklong naming ceremony. A name, or more often, several names, are chosen from the Ma'korr history, expectations for the child, fallen friends, and other places of importance. The child is given the name(s) by the head of the family, and there is a lengthy celebration thereafter. The date of the naming is called their naming day, and is equivalent to the birthday of most other races.

Coming of Age Rites

Yorakhot who take up the adventuring life might be motivated by a desire for treasure—for its own sake, for a specific purpose, or even out of an altruistic desire to help others. Other Yorakh are driven by the command or inspiration of a deity, a direct calling or simply a desire to bring glory to one of the Yorakh gods. Clan and ancestry are also important motivators. A Yorakh might seek to restore a clan’s lost honor, avenge an ancient wrong the clan suffered, or earn a new place within the clan after having been exiled. Or a Yorakh might search for the axe wielded by a mighty ancestor, lost on the field of battle centuries ago.

Funerary and Memorial customs

When in mourning, protest, or defiance, Yorakhot will cover their hair-- including their beards-- sometimes for months or even years. A popular Yorakhim story tells of a Yorakh man who, when his love was killed in battle, covered his head with a veil that stretched to the ground. He lived 300 years beyond the death of his love, and kept his floor length veil on for the rest of his life, and ordered that it not be removed until he had been dead for as long as his love had been alive. Given that Yorahot have a very long lifespan, the veil remained for hundreds of years before his clan could remove it, and some believe that the veil remains to this day.

Common Taboos

The chief unit of Yorakhim society is the clan, and Yorakhot highly value social standing. Even Yorakh who live far from their own kingdoms cherish their clan identities and affiliations, recognize related Yorakhot, and invoke their ancestors’ names in oaths and curses. To be clanless is the worst fate that can befall a Yorakh.

Common Myths and Legends

The Yorakhim creation story is quite fascinating, it tells of a god named Maharal who created the Yorakhim out of living clay, for the purpose of protecting his children, the NAME. The Yorakhim were dedicated protectors

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

Yorekhim beauty is almost entirely based on opulence. You will be hard pressed to find a Yorakh whose style is anything less than elegant at the very least.

Gender Ideals

To Yorahot, gender is no more important than hair color. The secondary sex characteristics of Yorahot are near identical across sexes, and the only relevant gender related signifier is the kind of beading and weaving that signifies gender in a Yorakh's beard.

Courtship Ideals

Courtship is an intricate affair in Yorakhim society. Technically speaking, courting Yorahot are not allowed to meet without a chaperone, which means that many a Yorakhon will sneak around as friends and Ma'korr turn a blind eye.

Relationship Ideals

When married, Yorahot will often braid or tie large ornamental headpieces into their hair, decorated with jewels and precious metals. After the wedding ceremony-- which can often last up to 3 months-- they will remove the headpiece from their hair, but incorporate similarly themed chains, beads, ties, and baubles into their everyday hairstyles. The removal of these ornaments is tantamount to divorce, unless they are removed forcefully or replaced by the spouse they symbolize.

Related Organizations

• Dhoraldur