Allasha

Allasha, archaic Allakash, is a region in the Centralized Mountain States of Snefaldia. The capital is Korsahad, and as of now there is no main regional government. Municipal and county government is the highest level of government in Allasha.

Climate & Geography

Allasha is very hot and windy, with little vegetation except in the far east districts, where the land begins to descend into the fertile Dayan Basin, and in the northeast where the deciduous zone of the Sring Issa begins.

There are no major rivers or lakes in Allasha, although there are several high mountain lakes in the mountains. Pardaki Gorge marks the site of an ancient river that once ran through Allasha, and there is evidence that the region was once as lush and green as Dayan. Unlike the Saard, which bisects the country perfectly, this ancient river (which has been dubbed the "Taaru") appears to have branched hundreds of times into small, Amazonian rivers, which survive today as sandy gorges and depressions.

History

The first major civilizations arose in Allasha roughly 5000 kya when nomadic pastoralists settled in west Allasha at the foot of the Zogor mountains, close to an ancient river which supplied the entire region. The earliest recorded city was at Walad in the west. Walad was originally a mudbrick city, but was later expanded in Zogor stone, beginning the Terangal building cycle.

Roughly one hundred other cities of varying size have been identified as being from the Terangal period, built out of the same strong Zogor stone and involving elaborate water systems. Little is known about ancient Allashan society- also called "Taaru" after the ancient river- but the architecture indicates a high sophistication- many buildings have carved artwork and their functions have been divined.

Sometime in 500BCE, an earthquake shook the Zogor range and caused the Taaru to dry up. The Pardaki Gorge, which to this day only has a trickle of water running through it, was drained, and the streams and rivers that crossed Allasha dried up. The Taaru civilizations were devastated, and by 400BCE the anciet cities had been abandoned.

Nomad Invasion

Around 300BCE horse-riding nomads entered Allasha from the west. Scientists propose these were proto-pastoralists which later split and developed into the ethnically-defined pastoral groups of today, such as the Cahn and Tehr. The tribes settled onto the land, moving about searching for water and supplies, eventually establishing population centers at oases and other lush areas.

Researchers are unsure is the tribes absorbed the remnants of the Taaru civilization, but the stone cities remained empty, and were treated as mysterious or magical by the new inhabitants. The first written records of Allasha appear in 23CE, when the Kasl (leader) of the Jotaya tribe founded the city of Korsahad and implemented the hieroglyphic script for the Allashan language.

Guea & Sring Issa

Allashan records increase in frequency from the founding of Korsahad, and mentions of "Sand-Riders" appear in the official records of the Sring Issan Kingdom, and scrolls from the Bajeong Guea even suggest that a "Chief of the Hot Mountains" came to the Guea court in 325ce.

Allasha was largely spared the effects of the Dayaniram period after Edram Ta'us captured Serasarda, due to a combination of stunning military victories and the harshness of their landscpae. The Tausite Dynasty attempted to expand several times into Allasha, but the tribes mustered and used their fast cavalry tactics, as well as an alliance with the now-distinct Cahn hordes, to repel the heavily armored Dayan soldiers.

In 1101ce, the tribal system was largely subsumed by a new paradigm of government, where powerful religious figures came to dominate the larger cities and extend influence over whole swaths of land. Tribal distinctions, which had once been slightly fluid, were dispensed with in favor of identification with one's leader or region. This system set the stage for the modern ethnic divisions among Allashans.

Art and culture flourished in the next hundred years, independent of the Dayaniram, but went into decline in 1223.

Aatem Nal

In 1300ce, the first Aatem Nal missionaries arrived in Allasha and quickly gained a foothold as secular dispensers of knowledge. The old religious oligarchs, which had maintainted power largely though myth and obfuscation, were ousted by a new class of civil leaders who applied Aatem Nal ideas. Unlike Dayan and Sring Issa, however, the Central Council never held direct control over the Allashan cities.

Despite the influence of Aatem Nal, wars between the cities began to occur as secular leaders established dynastic lines and sought greater control over the sparse resources in the region. Allashan forms of Endiri, which had developed prior to the Dayaniram, were solidified and a syncretistic movement ocurred which linked the city-gods of Allasha to each other and to Snefaldia at large, providing sheikhs and other leaders justification to "unite" Allasha.

Centralization

One faction finally won out against the others in 1575, and the Akayids of Korsahad seize control over the major cities of Allasha and established a centralized Kingdom. Trade routes were normalized, and government offices were standardized in all cities. A census was taken and attempts to define the borders were made. Akaya Rezi, the King, was an Arsathae and promoted Aatem Nal heavily.

Rezi ruled until 1656, when his son Peshbata took the throne. Peshbata proved to be less competent than his father, and implemented radical reforms which drew the attention of Aatem Nal and the ire of his people. Aatem Nal, despite reactions against the annexation of Bae and the establishment of a religious state in Sring Issa and Dayan, sponsored local elites in rebellions against Peshbata, and succeeded in deposing him in 1680 and replacing the Kingdom with a league of Arsathaes from each city.

Segovan Period

The Allashan League, which was nominally independent from the Aatem Nal leadership, fell in with the other regionalist groups in 1695 and joined with the Bajeong, Sringi, Dayan, and Arsa-Neeri to form the Segovan in 1701 as a way of maintaining nominal independence while keeping the religious support of Aatem Nal. The Segovan, however, was ultimately a creature of Aatem Nal, which had finally succeeded in uniting almost all Snefaldia under the Aatem Nal banner.

Tuhran Bel & Republic

Political ideas developed during the Segovan period, and when in 1835 the Segovan disbanded and the Tuhran Bel became the government of the nation, the Allashan people accepted the leadership with only a few complaints. When in 1895 pressure from Sring Issa and Dayan forced the Bel to end their rule of the country and establish a Republic, the Allashan elites were the first to complain and protest, but settled into the Republic with only a little griping.

Korsahad was considered briefly as the capital of Snefaldia, but lost out to Sargedain. The theory of "devolution" which coalesced in the 1930s affected Allasha greatly, and the regional government proceeded to divest many of the powers and rights traditionally afforded them to the cities, towns, villages, and tribes. This trend continued on through the end of the Republic and into the modern day; as of 2007 there is no actual regional government to speak of in Allasha.