Snefaldia

Snefaldia

Flag of Snefaldia
Motto: "Over the drifts and banks"
Region	Antarctic Oasis
Capital	Sargedain
Official Language(s)	English, Bagura
Government
Population	~5 million
Currency	me-wak
NS Sunset XML

Snefaldia is a smallish country almost entirely surrounded by mountains, bisected by the Saard river that runs through the mountains, emptying into a sea. The name Snefaldia comes from a passage in the Amershaman Medrahov, a holy text. The Centralized Mountain States of Snefaldia is the state that occupies the coutry.

The largest city in Snefaldia is Sargedain, which is also the capital.

Geography

Snefaldia is surrounded on all sides by high mountain ranges, with the Seril Mountains in the east, the Zogar Range to the west, the Hightops in the south, and the Velnar Mountains to the north. The central country is dotted with lakes and valleys, and the Saard river bisects the country, running from the northeast Velnars down through the southeast Serils before empyting into the Bay of Fuschal and the Memdar delta.

The centre of the country is called the Dayan Plain, and is very fertile, expansive, and covered in rolling hills. The Dayan forms a basin where the Saard river cuts through it, and floods from time to time. To the north is Sring Issa, defined by old-growth deciduous forests, low valleys, and small, numerous lakes. South of the Saard and Dayan is Neer Dal, home to marshes, subtropical forests, and hundreds of small rivers.

To the east, in the foothills of the Serils, is Bae, a region defined by deep gorges and hot, windy steppes. The western region of Allasha (also called Allakash) is largely rolling hills and valleys, considered excellent farmland.

The mouth of the Saard river forms a fertile, shallow delta called the Memdar. Flanked by mountains and sheer rock faces, the area surround the mouth is nearly uninhabitable. However, due to the regular flooding of the Saard the soil is very rich, and in history city-states took advantage of this.

Climate

Snefaldia has a mixture of subtropical, temperate, and tundra climates. The mountains are high and rocky, though lower in altitude are very hillish and flat before descending into the central plain.

Disposition

The capital of Snefaldia, Sargedain, sits on the mighty Saard river that cuts the country in two, and is the largest city in the country. Serasarda, the religious and education center of the nation, is locatedjust north of the capital in the region of Sring Issa.

The second largest city is Taxilha, also the largest seaport. Sitting at the mouth of the Saard and the entrance to the sea, Taxilha handles all the sea trade that comes into the country. Conversely, Pholimjung in Bae is the largest source of finished goods for export, and has the highest percentage of skilled workers after Sargedain.

Korsahad, the capital of the Allashan region, can claim to be the largest provincial administration center outisde of Sargedain in Dayan, though it competes only with Mahavisjaya in the Neer Dal for production of raw materials- in Allasha the top being stone and minerals, and in Neer Dal being lumber and diamonds.

Society

Main article(s): Society and Ethnicity in Snefaldia

Snefaldia society is a mixed one, with several distinct ethnic groups competing over land and resources. Largely divided along regional lines, the Dayan, Sringal, Bae, Neeri, and Allashi ethnic groups comprise Snefaldia societies, and make up the nation's national character.

Snefaldia has long been isolated from other nations, despite having a perfect seaport situated in the Memdar delta, but has never been a great seafaring or trading nation. Most foreign influence arrived through the mountain passes, and each region recieved a great deal of cultural influence from the peoples that made the trek over their respective mountain ranges.

Modern life revolves around community involvement, religious faith, industriousness, and the pursuity of aesthetics.

Government

Main article(s): Laws and Government of Snefaldia

The Centralised Mountain States are a mixture of theocratic instutions and secular government. Power is largely concentrated in the religious synod, the Tuhran Bel. The modern state, beginning in 1895, was a republic, which collapsed in 1963. The religious forces of Aatem Nal took control of the countrys' government after more than 60 years of republican government, but have not resumed the historical control that the Tuhran Bel formerly excercised.

There is a considerable amount of devolution in Snefaldia, with municipalities and regional governments being allowed a wide latitude in terms of policy. The Tuhran Bel is the final authority for all matters judicial, legislative, and executive, and is made up of 300 high-grade religious figures from the nation's three native faiths.

Politics

Main article(s): Politics of Snefaldia

The Tuhran Bel is not an elected body, but is appointed by a rotating Holy Council of 50 religious officials, who serve from within the Bel. The system is circular- the Council is chosen from the Bel by the senior members (those who have served more than ten years) and the Council in turn remove and appoint members to terms, in theory five years but in practice members serve at the pleasure of the Council. The system allows the Councillors and regular members (Bel Shahry) to check and balance each other.

Within the Bel, matters discussed are largely ecclesiastical and religious in nature, with secular and administrative duties only being taken up in important cases. The Bel oversees the secular government apparatuses, which largely run themselves.

The Bel also functions as a body of arbitration for the religion of Aatem Nal, though it is not the temporal or ecclesiastical head of the faith. To be a member of the Bel, one must currently be either a ranking member of Aatem Nal, a Dragha, or a practitioner of Endiri. In recent years, progressive members have pushed for other religious figures to be allowed membership, such as priest from the Snefaldian Catholic Church and Islamic organizations.

Foreign Policy

Foreign policy in Snefaldia is largely conducted along economic lines, with the government actively seeking favorable trade and investment partners. The government has thus far been opposed to interventionism and neo-liberal economic policies, while maintaining a strong home defense force and aggressive corporate restrictions, which has provided a slight damper on foreign involvement. Despite this, the Snefaldian economy has remained steady.

There are no official alliances with any other nations, making Snefaldia a nominally isolationist nation, but trade agreements and economic pacts provide adequate diplomatic contact. The Tuhran Bel has also discussed sending a non-voting delegation to the United Nations. The Bel oversees, per lex, all things involving foreign powers.

Religion

Main article(s): Religion in Snefaldia

Most major foreign religions are present in Snefaldia, but the majority of people adhere to one of the "Three Native Faiths", the native religion in Snefaldia. The "Three Native Faiths" are Endiri, Draghdatha, and Aatem Nal. Foreign faiths make up 5% of the national total, with Snefaldian Catholicism being the largest at 2%, Sunni Islam at 1%, and other faiths making up the remaining 2%.

Commerce

Main article(s): Commerce and Business in Snefaldia

Snefaldia is slowly developing foreign trade, and the main entry and exit for goods in the country is the large seaport of Taxilha at the mouth of the Saard river.

The principle exports of the country are agricultural products- both for consumption, industrial use, and private development. Mining in the mountainous areas yields copper, manganese, iron, coal, and gemstones.

Neer Dal and Sring Issa have large foresting industries, who comply by government mandate with United Nations mandates as a form of due diligent Free Trade. Neer Dal woodcutters are gaining fame internationally, and the furniture industry is growing in size and reputation.

The country is deficient in manufacturing strength, though the government has tried to alleviate this with state-sponsored grants and business loans. Bae, Neer Dal, and Sring Issa have high numbers of skilled craftsmen who produce high-end finished goods for foreign and upper-class consumption, but with the slow modernization in these regions, many are finding jobs in factories and textile mills.

Snefaldias' one major industrial production is in the area of zeppelin airships, which are used to traverse the high mountains and manage the wide agricultural plains. The Lindai Airship Company competes with the Telepe Zeppelin Corporation in this regard.

Though the bay of Fuschal is very conducive to fishing, the fishing industry has not grown to fill the need. Instead, the Taxilhan mainstay is shipping- both in and out of the country. Finished products come down the Saard or by air, and are loaded onto ships in Taxilha.

The Sargedain Airport is not large enough to accomodate international travel, but there are plans to expand the port to accomodate foreign entry, and possibilities of an international airport in Taxilha have been discussed.

History

Main article(s): History of Snefaldia

Snefaldia was first populated by late Paleolithic humans, but the first records of human settlement come from the later Neolithic in the form of bone and rock tools. The first recognizable civilization was the southern Neer Dal culture, a forest-dwelling people that carved pictures in wood. Written history begins in 500 BCE during the Terangal period, when inhabitants of Allasha, at that time lush and fertile, built the stone palaces at Terangal and Sumdarian. Radical climate changes and a shift in the Saard's course dried out the Allashan plain, and the centers of civilization at Terangal, Sumdarian, and Alshan were abandoned. Unfortunately, their language has remained indecipherable.

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