The Dalish

The Dalish are nomadic elves that seek to recover, inherit and preserve the knowledge and sacred treasures of the two fallen elven kingdoms, the Dales and Elvhenan. They lead nomadic lives, wandering throughout Thedas. Their clans date back to the independent kingdom of the Dales and the Dalish themselves are their descendants. Many Keepers are descended from the nobility who governed the Dales. The Dalish are considered to have the "purest" blood from the time of Arlathan. They still revere the Elven Pantheon, and in a ritual to commemorate reaching adulthood each member of a tribe will have the symbol of their chosen god tattooed on their face.

History

During the centuries of slavery after their ancient civilization of Elvhenan fell to the Tevinter Imperium, the elves lost most of their language, history and lore. However, when Andraste and her husband Maferath led their Alamarri army against Tevinter in 1020 TE, the elven slaves led by Shartan rose up and helped fight against their masters. Shartan was killed when Andraste was betrayed to the Tevinters, but in 1025 TE, Maferath and Andraste's sons gave the elves the Dales as a reward for their part in the war. At that time, the Dales were on the fringe of Tevinter territory and were barely populated, with only the scattered Ciriane people to the west, and the barbarians of Fereldan Valley on the other side of the Frostback Mountains. The freed elves set off for their new home from Tevinter on foot in what would come to be called "The Long Walk". Many perished along the way, but those who survived founded the city of Halamshiral – meaning "the end of the journey" in Elvish. They were joined by elves from across Thedas and began the task of restoring their lost language, religion and lore. Throughout the years, the citizens of the Dales became increasingly isolationist, perhaps simply because they had learned to distrust humans during their long slavery, or maybe because they were seeking to regain the immortality that legend says contact with the humans had robbed them of. A likely contributor to their isolation was the rise of Kordillus Drakon I, who was conquering his neighboring city-states and forcibly converting his subjects to his particular Cult of the Maker, establishing the Orlesian Empire and the Chantry of Andraste; his massacre of people who followed other faiths, like the thousands of followers of the Daughters of Song who were slain by Drakon's forces, could have also given the elves pause about their new neighbor and rising empire. Certainly Chantry missionaries would have been unwelcome in a land trying to maintain their autonomy from human rule and re-establish the old elven religion, but human historians also claim that the elves refused to trade with their neighbors and that Emerald Knights were posted at the borders to forestall visitors. In their attempt to maintain their independence and regain the lost glory of Elvhenan, the elves cut themselves off from the Orlesian Empire. Throughout the Second Blight, which lasted for most of the Divine Age, Chantry accounts claim the elves of the Dales remained neutral and unhelpful, although there is no indication that Orlais petitioned the Dales for assistance. However, there is an elven account of a Dalish presence in the Anderfels at this time who were fighting the darkspawn. When the city of Montsimmard was nearly destroyed by darkspawn in 1:25 Divine, it is alleged that the elven army simply watched from nearby. Partly because of this, and other rumors that were being spread about the elves, the end of the Blight saw increasing hostility between the Dales and Orlais. According to human accounts, border skirmishes escalated into full-scale war after the elven forces attacked the Orlesian town of Red Crossing in 2:9 Glory. However, there is also reason to suspect the Chantry, which objected to the worship of the elven pantheon, of inciting fear and hatred of the elves by allegedly spreading false rumors of human sacrifice. The Dalish claim the war started after the Chantry sent templars into their sovereign territory after the elves kicked their missionaries out of the Dales.