Burrowfolk

Some races, despite their distance both in terms of location and genetics are gathered into larger groups for easier identification. The most common one of these is the 'burrowfolk', named after their shared habit of living underground and digging tunnels for mining or habitation.

Dwarves

The best known and most common of the burrowfolk, dwarves live among humanity since their kingdoms fell victim to human expansion. They are generally a lot shorter, but stockier than humans, allowing them to have roughly the same strength in a more compact body. They often have long, bushy beards (even their women), but many choose to keep theirs short to fit into human society better. Dwarves are as commonly known about as elves are, but some uneducated people think that dwarves are just short humans. Not every human nation has a large dwarven population however, so this misconception rarely comes up. Dwarves are experts at mountain warfare as well as mining operations. This combined with their determination to be a master of their craft makes them excellent mercenaries and craftsmen. Dwarves live for a long time, they have a lifespan between that of the elves and those of humans. This gave rise to strong family bonds as multiple generations can live together for hundreds of years. Since their subjugation, the dwarven population slowly began losing their traditions, but their long lifespan makes this progress slow and difficult. Their most stereotypical habit, that being their fondness for living inside mountains was lost to the years however and most of them prefer to live in human cities nowadays. Stereotypes (by humans):

Dwarves look to be fairly old by humans even when they are younger (below 50).
Humans generally trust dwarves with short beards more than their long-bearded kin.
A dwarf craftsman is always more reliable than a human.
Dwarfs and elves hate each other.

Dark Dwarves (Duergar)

The mysterious cousins of the Dwarves that live on The Continent, duergar are to dwarves what drow are to high elves. Their skin color is dark grey and purplish, just like the drow's and their hair is often white even in their youth. Their eyes are cloudy and seem to be struggling in strong sunlight. Some dwarven scholars consider them traditionalist as they can only be seen with long beards, unlike their northern cousins. Whilst most common people living on The Continent are unaware of their existence, those living in The Darklands are fully aware of these dwarves that come out at night to pillage and steal. Little is known about the lives and customs of the duergar as they are seldom captured alive, but they most likely live similarly to the dwarves of The Continent. Strong family bonds and a clan system have been confirmed by captives.

Gnomes

While not related to dwarves, gnomes show a lot of similarity to them. Some scholars believe that gnomes are a result of the same process that resulted in the dwarves diverging from regular humans, but gnomes diverging from elves instead. They also like to live their long lives underground and they are also expert crafters. Gnomes are smaller and slimmer than dwarves and they are weaker than humans. Gnomes are often mistaken for weak dwarves or weird halflings, and not many know about them besides those that live near them. Their numbers are ever-dwindling, so their reputation is minimal. Gnomes were the first to be completely subjugated by humanity and as such, gnome society is a mystery to even themselves and its workings have been lost to the centuries. Today, gnomes often live in small families of 3, until the child is old enough to work on their own. At that point, they leave their parents and set out to find work and other gnomes elsewhere. Stereotypes (by humans):