Thingamajiggers

Flag of Thingamajiggers
Motto: The light of hope can never be extinguished.
Region	Thorin
Capital	Hydranj
Official Language(s)	Modern Du-Hickazn
Leader	Karnbeln Eshri Shallez
Population	Approximately 4.6 billion (in actual game)
Currency	Modarch
NS Sunset XML

The Terra Solva of Thingamajiggers is a massive, socially progressive nation. It boasts an enormous population as a result of being the oldest standing country in the region of Thorin. Dedicated to being a liberally-minded, free land, the UN currently ranks it as a "left-leaning college state". Needless to say, it has excellent civil rights and very good political freedoms. The economy has never been the most attractive part of Thingamajiggers, and has recently taken a turn for the worse, due to the great damage to the country after the invasion of Thingamajiggers in The Second War of Thorin. Once the region's only super-power, today Thingamajiggers is flanked by ambitious, powerful countries, which has caused internal strife over foreign policy. The country is ruled by a representative government, but many important decisions are made by referendum. The name of the legislature is the Dominion Assembly and the executive, who rules in popularly elected 5 year terms, is referred to as the Karnbeln.

History

Founding

Thingamajiggers has its roots in one of the original countries founded in Thorin, the Rogue Nation of Thingamajigs. Thingamajigs started out as a democratic country in the year 5 after the founding of the region, the first technically legal government of the Thingan Territory. It slowly developed into a powerful country, prominent among the other countries of the region.

However, around the year 190 AF, the leader of Thorin, Prime Minister Aratol Kix'zter began to snatch up powers and take away freedoms. Slowly, the government became more and more of a totalitarian state, until, finally, all masks of democracy were removed in 203 AF. In this year, Aratol Kix'zter, now given the title of Jingh, an ancient Thingan word for "ruler", had all people marked with barcodes so that the government could keep track of their movements. Tensions were high, but the people did not revolt yet. The military might of Kix'zter's private police force was too great for the people to organize any sort of rebellion. The occasional spontaneous riot broke out, but, for lack of organization, they all just ended up being terrible butcherings. The largest of these riots have become national days of remembrance in modern Thingamajiggers, collectively known as "The Days of the Martyrs".

The revolution would not come within Kix'zter's lifetime. It was not until the general weakening of the entire region of Thorin in 260 AF, when many governments collapsed, that the influence of the Jingh waned enough for the people to successfully organize a revolt. The freedom fighters, known as the the People's Liberation Army, was led by the ideals of Neovitar Karnbeln, a philosopher who said that the right to rule was not inherent by a few, that only the people had the right to rule, a right that was entrusted in the hands of a few. He was like the John Locke of the Thingamajigsan population. He was a guide to the military leader, his brother, Salpatter Karnbeln. The Thingamajiggeri Revolution lasted for 15 years, before the Peace Treaty of the Misca Mountains was signed. Thingamajigs was free, with the remnants of the former government of Thingamajigs moving to a peninsula region east of the Misca Mountain Range, a small, backwards area populated by loyalists. Here, the government established the Empire of Thingamabobbers, with the intent of one day returning to the land they once held. They never suceeded, as the new country was rather unstable.

It was thus that, in 278 AF, the Dominion of Thingamajiggers came into existence. The capital was moved to Hydranj, a city surrounded by rivers that had become the center of the revolution. A democratic government was established, partially based on the old government of Thingamajigs before its corruption, but greatly transformed by Neovitar Karnbeln's ideas.

Formative Years

When the time came to elect the first President in 279, the people elected with a vast majority of votes Neovitar Karnbeln, who hadn't even run for election. The people merely wrote his name on their ballots. He thus became the first Thingamajiggan president in 280. Karnbeln ruled the country wisely, overcoming the hurdles that come with young governments without ever bending his idealistic integrity. He went on to serve 3 terms total before finally rejecting the office, citing failing health. He died two years later, in 297. At his memorial, the next president, Mikkell Itoza, announced that he was renaming the office in Karnbeln's honor. Ever since then, the executive leader of the country has always been known as the Karnbeln.

War with Xerconia

In 372 AF, a time of many governments beginning in Thorin, Thingamajiggers came to heads with the newly- created region that was the Empire of Xerconia. Xerconia, a region ruled by a totalitarian government, possessed the very ideals that the people had fought against a century before. With Xerconia showing expansionist tendencies, the people of Thingamajiggers were scared. A Cold War was started with Xerconia, with the occasional act of violence actually being exchanged. In 398, Thingamajiggers took advantage of a small region between the two nations. This region was formerly known as That Other Hyrule. Thingamajiggers took advantage of the fall of the government and annexed the region, transforming it into a militarized police state known as the Thinga Fortified Zone. Thingamajiggers did it merely for protection, but the people of the fortified zone were squashed by military rule for the next 53 years. This period of cold war and the resulting actions is now considered one of the darkest ages of Thingamajiggers history.

The Thinga-Xerconia Cold War was, officially brought to an end in 451, with the signing of Thingamajiggers-Xerconia Peace Accords. Thingamajiggers ended its occupation of the Fortified Zone. Thingamajiggers and Xerconia became uneasy allies, working together but always keeping an eye on the other.

The Fall of Thingamabobbers and the Secession of Makh Allet

In 672 AF, Thingamabobbers's totalitarian government finally collapsed after power struggles and economic disaster. It was re-absorbed into Thingamajiggers as the province of Makh Allet. However, centuries of hatred between Thingamajiggers and Thingamabobbers could not be erased simply by a change in ownership of land. In 747, Azkabar Kanath united several factions opposed to the rule of the Karnbeln under himself, declaring himself to be the first Jingh of the independent country of Makh Allet, the title Jingh being an allusion to the former Thingamajigs government. Unwilling to splill blood for control of a province the country didn't even want, even though Thingamajiggers was certain to win, Karnbeln Arias Nejika allowed Makh Allet to secede. Jingh Kanath, however, decreed that all Alletian history books would tell of a bloody war for independence, with many atrocites committed by the Thingamajiggi, which ultimately ended with himself slitting the throat of the Karnbeln. The Kingdom of Makh Allet became a totalitarian government more brutal than Thingamabobbers ever was.

The Creation of Gis Mone

In 760, the Protectorate of Gis Mone was created in response to growing public support for socialism in the wake of the political success of Kruschuchk, the socialist government that had sprung from the ashes of Xerconia. It was designed as an experiment to see if socialism would work in Thingamajiggers. This made Nejika a very unique Karnbeln. He started his career by creating a country out of a region and ended it by doing the same thing. In the second year of his first term, 747, he had allowed Makh Allet to secede. Now, in 760, the final year of his third and final term, he was creating Gis Mone.

The First Thorin War

The Day of Terror

In 773, Makh Allet's government collapsed due to its autocratic ruling style, lack of regard for the population, and the death of Jingh Kanath. The government was unable to survive his death. Most citizens, finally fed up with the Jingh, were not sad to see the dictatorship end, despite their nationalistic tendencies. Some, however, were less than happy the events. Most of these people were either blindly patriotic or had benefitted from the reign of Kanath due to their positions in his government.

These people blamed Thingamajiggers for the collapse of their government. They claimed that, being their age-old enemy, the nation had infiltrated their government, weakening it and assassinating the Jingh with poisons. The people formed a terrorist group, Alleti Gol (Du-Hickazn for Mountain Sun). On April 2, 774, Alleti Gol attacked the city of Hydranj, Thingamajigger's capital. With amazing timing, they simulataneously set off bombs within the Assembly Chamber, the Executive Chambers, the Hall of Justice, and the city's central plaza, killing half of the Dominion Assembly, the Karnbeln and his deputy, and all but one Central Court Justice, as well as 19 civilians and 36 government employees. The government was in chaos. Noone knew who was in charge or if more attacks would occur.

It was then that Kruschuchk struck.

The Kruschuchkian Invasion and Second Xerconian Civil War

Two days after the Day of Terror, Kruschuchk's Red Army attacked the confused and weakened government of Thingamajiggers. They easily occupied the country, which was unable to pull together its army. Kruschuchk occupied the country for 7 months before the (now in hiding) government finally was able to strike back against the invaders. Fortunately, this happened as Kruschuchk was attacked from the other side simultaneously by Thingamajiggers's unexpected allies.

Xerkunia, the small nation to the east of Kruschuchk that considered itself the remnants of Xerconia, recalled Xerconia's alliance with Thingamajiggers. This, combined with its hatred for what it considered to be a treasonous, false government, led to it attacking Kruschuchk on its home front. Due to having to spread its troops out and fight two countries at once, Kruschuchk could not hang on to Thingamajiggers, despite its superior military. It eventually was defeated by Xerkunia and the remnants of Tolmekistan (which was invaded during the war by Kruschuchk), which had reformed into the nation of Xerconia.

Meanwhile, the nation of Arbitenitant, a nation of religious zealots from Zirconia that had settled in Hækaz, declared that "terrorism is an affront to the gods" and bombarded the peninsula formerly known as Makh Allet with missiles on November 21, 774. The genocide, as far as anyone knows, was total.

Thingamajiggers survived the invasion, but came out wary of its neighbors, both in Xerconia and Arbitenant.

Post War Thingamajiggers

As the newly elected officials of Thingamajiggers began to assess the situation, however, the situation seemed quite different. It was realized just how convenient things had worked out for Xerkunia, and it was decided that Xerkunia had probably planned the whole thing, planting agents within the Kruschuchkian government with the ultimate goal of overthrowing Kruschuchk and restoring the Kylplax of Xerconia. While Thingamajiggers could not be sure of this, it decided that it was likely enough that they should secretly give aid to the remnants of Kruschuchk, especially since they believed they were much better off being neighbors with a democratic superpower than an authoritarian one. While continuing its public face of hating all that had to do with Zirconia as a whole, Thingamajiggers and Gis Mone secretly sent a message to the leader of the the remnants of Krushchuchk, offering support. However, this message never reached its recipient, who disappeared without a trace, presumably captured by the black army. Shortly after this, all remnants of Kruschuchk ceased to exist.

Things slowly returned to normal in the land of the star of hope. They even started to look up when Xerconia turned to democratic capitalism in 795. However, matters soon changed.

The Pyramic Plague and the end of Gis Mone

In 798, the first case of a new plague, the Pyramic Plague (or "Glass Death" as it came to be known in the media) was reported in East Loftneeyet, Gis Mone. This plague, to most humans, was hardly noticeable. Its virus simply produced a tad bit of congestion, usually attributed to allergies. However, it became a deadly epidemic when it entered Gis Mone. When a person with a specific genetic marker, known only in people of Thingan decent, became infected, they experienced horrible reactions. It started with a heavy fever. Then, the skin began to get rough and patchy. Bones started to weaken. Finally, in the latter stages of the infection, the skin became flaky and crystalline, and the bones became as brittle as hand-crafted glass. Most people died painfully within 2 weeks of infection. By the winter of 807, nearly the entire population of Gis Mone was dead. The only survivors were those that lacked the genetic marker, whether it be because of little to no Thingan ancestry or random mutation. These survivors migrated to neighboring countries such as Shadowy Goodness or Bravo Romeo, as they were not allowed to return to Thingamajiggers, which was worried that they may carry some trace of the glass death with them. The land that was once Gis Mone was declared unfit to ever hold a Thingan population again, and for utmost safety, no other country was to claim the land for another 25 years.

Ethnic Makeup

Culture

Nomenclature

The name Thinga is the name of the people who inherit the region that makes up Thingamajiggers. The name is derived from the ancient Thingan tribe.

The name Thingamajigs was derived from the ancient Thingan language, although the people at the time of founding were already speaking an early form of Du-Hickazn. Translated to English, it means "The land of the Thingan people", with "Ma" meaning land and "jigs" meaning people (Thingan had some very weird syntaxes when it came to titles).

Thingamajiggers is a modification on the same theme. It is ancient Thingan for "The land of the free Thingan people", with "ers" (free) modifying "jigs".

Thingamabobbers was also a variation on the name Thingamajigs. It is ancient Thingan for "The land of the true Thinga government", with "bob" meaning "government" and "bers" meaning "true".

Makh Allet is Du-Hickazn. It translates to English as "Mountains of Struggle". The portion of the Misca Mountains that separated the peninsula from Thingamajiggers had been redubbed this by the time of the fall of Thingamabobbers. The region took its name from the mountain range that divided the region from the rest of Thingamajiggers.

Gis Mone is also Du-Hickazn, meaning "The Plains of Gis". Gis was the name of a sect of the early Thingans, which had grown very influential in the region, so much so that the area took their name.

Flags

An often seen feature of the various flags of Thingamajiggeri history is the Orym, a religious emblem that has been used as the symbol of the Thinga people as far back as the historical records of their tribe reach. It resembles what our culture would refer to as a "shuriken", often shown made of fire.

Early Thingan Flags

The following flags were all used as symbols of the Thingan people before the settlement of Thingamajigs. They vary widely, but all share common elements: mainly, the presence of some representation of the Orym and the colors red and black. What meaning these colors had that they were chosen, if any existed, has been lost to us.

The final flag depicted here was used widely not long before the founding of Thingamajigs. This flag would become the basis for the design of the Thingamajigsan banner.

The Flag of Thingamajigs

This flag, with its intricate firey Orym and slowly fading red stripes is among the most detailed flags of Thingamajiggeri history. The colors had no meaning, merely being the classic colors always on the Thingan flags.

The Flags of the Revolution

There was no set flag for the rebels of the Thingamajiggeri Revolutionary War. However, they are all common in one aspect: they are modelled after the Thingamajigs flag, with blue added to represent freedom.

The final flag became known as Karnbeln's flag. This was the banner carried by Salpatter Karnbeln, and was the Thingamajigs flag with a simple streak of blue running across horizontally. This became the most famous of all the rebel flags, and the simple streak of blue over a Thingan inspired design became the basis of the first flag of Thingamajiggers.

The First Flag of Thingamajiggers

This was the original flag of Thingamajiggers. It featured the red and black stripes of the Thingan flags, with a streak of blue running horizontally, inspired by Karnbeln's Flag. The intricate firey Orym was exactly like the one depicted on the Thingamajigs flag, probably because many early flag makers actually simply cut out the Orym from existing flags to make the new one. The white star depicted on the flag was to represent shining hope in the darkness. The blue streak, as in the revolutionary flags, depicted freedom. Retroactively, the color red has been assigned the meaning of courage, although it had no meaning still at the time of the designing of the flag.

The Flag of the Fortified Zone

This was the flag of the zone simply because it was the official flag of the military at the time, not because of any special significance to the fortified zone. The Orym crossed with a sword was then and is now the symbol of the Thingamajiggeri army. The solitary red stripe running across the black field stood for courage in the face of darkness.

The Second Flag of Thingamajiggers

This flag, still in use today, was created in 460 in the face of discontent over the previous flag. The main reason for the opposition was due to the Orym. The religion of the ancient Thingans was considered myth by most Thinga even at the time of the founding of Thingamajigs, and by now the tales were no more than fairy tales, and rarely told ones at that. As the symbol had no special meaning, the weapon was merely a symbol of war. Why should a country dedicated to the peace and prosperity of its people have a symbol of war on its flag? After many contests to choose the new flag, the above was selected by a national referendum.

The red symbolized courage, and the blue on black represented liberty in the face of a dark world, as before. The star of hope was changed into a sun, designed in such a way so as to be reminiscent of the Orym and placed in a similar location to the Orym. This also caused the blue to have a double meaning. The jagged blue breaking into the black, with the sun in the blue, resembled sunrise causing the day to break the night. Another bit of symbolism in the flag is the fact that, until you get farther down into the blue, the alternating stripes of red, black and blue resembled the familiar flag design of a trifold knocked ajar. This was to represent Thingamajiggers taking familiar concepts and improving upon them.

The Flags of the Related Countries

Thingamabobbers

This flag, done in the red and black of the former Thingamajigs government, was designed to represent a mountain turned onto its side. This was because, at the time of the creation of the flag, Thingamabobbers's main goal was to one day break past the physical boundary of the Misca Mountains/Makh Allet and restore the Rogue Nation of Thingamajigs. It was kept until the very end of the government, even though the government eventually lost sight of its goal to recapture Thingamajiggers, as it was too busy focusing on its own problems.

Makh Allet

This flag was a combination of the symbols of the 5 biggest factions that Kanath united. One was symbolized by the sun rising once again over the mountains of Makh Allet, and is represented on the flag by the pyramid rising up into the circle. Another was symbolized by an eye, and the eye was put on the flag with the sun being the pupil. A third faction was represented by lighting, and so the rays of light coming from the sun were turned into lightning bolts, with a bolt streaking across the flag itself. The two other factions had similar flags: one had a square in each of the four corners, while the other had quarter circles. Two of the corners thus have quarter circles while the other two have squares. The colors, blue and gold, were taken from the Kanath family crest.

Gis Mone

The center of the flag bears the Thingamajiggeri star of hope, crossed by the Communist sammer and sickle emblem. The background behind it is basically the Thingamajiggeri flag, but with a color swap. The black is replaced by the blue of freedom and the streak of blue is replaced by a second streak of red, for communism.

Religion

According to ancient Thingan religion, every tribe of people was led by a god who guided and protected them. According to their lore, the Thingans were the people of Thok. Thok had a rivalry with a group of three other gods, Jun, Kalet, and Unleh, who were jealous of Thok for being the favored son of Julikar, the king of the gods. When Julikar "died" after saving the world from the falling sun by becoming one with it, the three murdered Thok.

Thok had a son, named Iskaten. Iskaten was a demi-god, whose mother was one of the Thingans. Iskaten took his father's body and dropped it in the volcano Arekar, home of the god of the same name, who had been Thok's friend. Arekar, a blacksmith, hardened and shaped the bones of Thok into a large weapon known as the Orym. The Orym was a giant shuriken-like blade, the size of shield. Only Iskaten had the power to wield it properly. Arekar gave the Orym a special power: it could summon the fires of the volcano it had been forged in, enveloping the weapon in flame. Only Iskaten could touch this fire without being burnt.

Iskaten climbed the mountain that led to the palace of the gods. He used the Orym to slay Jun, Kalet, and Unleh, taking vengeance for his father's murder. He then drank their blood and became a full god, taking the place of Thok as guardian of the Thingans. The Orym became his symbol and, thus, the symbol of the Thingan people.

The religion of the ancient Thingans was considered myth by most Thinga even at the time of the founding of Thingamajigs. Modern Thingan religion is predominantly non-denominational. While there are several small religions and imported religions from surrounding countries, at least 50 percent of the country either does not have an indoctrinated set of beliefs, either having a non-descript, personal spirituality or not believing in a god at all. These people often practice the ancient Thingan religion as a spiritual and cultural tie, despite the myth status of the religion.

The shuriken used on a few of the flags, the firey one, was borrowed from this page way back when I originally made the first Thingamajigs flag.