Alienages are squalid city wards in which
City Elves dwell. They can be found within many of the larger cities scattered across
Thedas.
Background
Alienages were established by
Divine Renata I following the
Exalted March upon the
Dales. Many of the
Dalish who refused to submit to
Orlais fled, but some elves chose to submit for a variety of reasons. The Divine chose to make alienages so that those elves who submit would have a space within
human settlements. Those elves were not fully integrated into society however. Generally, those elves were not allowed to freely roam about the cities.
In more recent memory, few places have laws which strictly prohibit city elves and humans integrating. However, an elf who moves into a human area from the alienage is likely to be subjected to insults, torment, and in many cases, violence. The alienages exist as a place for elves to mix among their own, where they do not stand out as much.
Alienage Culture
Alienages are the only places in human cities where elves can exist in peace among their kind and practice their culture in safety, diminished though it may be. The most striking testaments to this heritage are the presence of a Hahren, or "elder", that acts as the unofficial leader of the community and the vhenadahl, or "tree of the People".
The vhenadahl is something unique to each alienage. Its a huge tree which is often brightly adorned and lovingly tended to by the community despite the poverty and slums the city elves live in. The tree serves as a symbol of the ancient elves and of
Elvhenan, the incredibly ancient elven empire that is almost entirely forgotten about aside from the few stories that linger amongst elven people. In
Denerim, the vhenadahl is arguably the tallest tree in the entire city. In
Val Royeaux, the elves leave offerings of brightly-colored cloth or ribbons at the foot of the tree. In
Kirkwall, the vhenadahl is painted upon with bold and striking designs. Such patterns change regularly. In worse circumstances, some alienages have had to cut their vhenadahl down out of necessity for firewood in a brutal winter. There has been historical accounts of the tree being cut down and destroyed against the elves' wishes, as punishment by local rulers.
Though the realities of alienage life are harsh, with crime and discrimination a constant reality, the city elves are downtrodden but proud. As much as it pens the elves in, an alienage often serves as a sanctuary in keeping prejudiced invaders out and the elven community together. Indeed, elves that manage the funds or connections to live outside the alienage are looked down as "flat-ears" for abandoning their people, especially since they inevitably are forced to return to the alienage's protective walls after being nearly lynched and burned out by their human neighbors. Within the alienages, elves learn how to avoid drawing attention to themselves and to keep their heads down for their own safety, and where elven merchants can barter fair prices for their goods. On the other hand, "good" city elves also look out for their community and may engage in small acts of defiance and civil disobedience, such as sheltering runners and sometimes working with the local thieves' guild. "Standing tall" against oppression is difficult and often fatal, but provides a sense of personal and communal pride that can prove deadly to those humans that push them too far.
All alienages are places of extreme poverty, with most of their inhabitants barely managing to get by on a day-to-day basis. Some elves may manage to scrape together small savings or marriage dowries by opening a store or finding work outside of the alienage as laborers, prostitutes, couriers, or servants. For the majority however, the possibility of going hungry is simply a fact of life; rats and cats may be eaten as a last resort. Disease is also widespread in these elven slums, and virulent plagues often spring up in alienages due to the poor living conditions. In such situations, an alienage's gates may be sealed shut by the ruling authority to contain the plague.
Religion
Following the Exalted March upon the Dales, Divine Renata I outlawed belief in the
Elven pantheon and decreed that a place must be made for elves in human settlements on the condition that they renounce their pagan beliefs. Consequently, belief in the
Maker is one of the few things that city elves and humans share. However, there are no Chantries in the alienage and elves are generally barred from entering the Chantry priesthood. Religious instruction usually comes from a visiting Revered Mother, often with a detachment of wary
Templars sent to protect her, bearing the
Chant of Light, alms, and advice. As a result, Andrastianism is a more distant concept for city elves than it might be for humans.
In spite of this, as well as a sense among some Dalish elves that city elves are "poor cousins" who have forgotten their heritage and beliefs, there is evidence that some city elves remember the elven pantheon and worship them in their own way. Furthermore, city elves practice what few unique cultural rituals they remember, as slaves in the
Tevinter Imperium once did, to differentiate themselves from human culture. Nevertheless, city elves do have some sense on how far they have fallen and how mistreated they are, which has pushed many elves towards the
Qun for guidance.
Cities with the largest alienages in Thedas
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