Hreyu

The Hreyu are an ethnic sub-group of the Najer culture. They are distributed primarily throughout eastern and central Najer, but are mostly concentrated in the vicinity of Nahrayn. It was formed a variety of people who were persecuted during the Najer Droughts of 4100 BB, primarily smiths, charcoal burners, bakers, and glassblowers- those who worshiped the Lost God of heat and flame. As a result of their persecution, many left their communities and banded together as one in the city of Nahrayn.

Modern Hreyu are more spread out, forming a diaspora across Najer after the fall of ancient Nahrayn in 614 BB. Population estimates confirm there are at least 25,000 Hreyu in Najer, though unofficial estimates posit as many as ten times more, as most Hreyu have assimilated into greater Najer culture and are unaware of their lineage.

Ethnonym
The Hreyu were first referred to as such by a Bacri scholar who visited the city of Nahrayn on his travels. Noting the prominence of the two nearby rivers in the daily lives of the citizens, he termed them the "river people" or Hreyu. Hreh is an archaic Najer word that meant river (in modern times it has come to mean a flow or stream in a more general sense), while Yu is a word that designates a people or ethnicity.

The name caught on over time, and the Hreyu began using it to refer to themselves as early as 3800 BB. The name has remained constant over time despite the exact meaning shifting.

Language
The Hreyu speak Najer, the same as the majority of the population, though with a slight accent. This accent arose from ancient times, where the Hreyu spoke a distinct dialect of the pre-modern Najer tongue. This dialect was diminished over time as the Hreyu mixed and interacted with nearby groups, particularly the Mahait and Bacri, eventually forming a unified eastern dialect, Shim-Kesir. This dialect continued to be spoken even after Nahrayn's fall and abandonment.

This was in contrast to the west, where another dialect, influenced by the western Tribes and the Lizardfolk's interactions, was more prominent (the Kem-Sasal). When Najera'jad was founded in 1 AB, this dialect overtook Shim-Kesir thanks to the prominence and power of Najera'jad and the western tribes and their close ties with the Sterling Crownlands.

After the Crownlands fell, there was a mass west-to-east migration. This, along with the moving of the federal capital to Wobambi-on-Sea, contributed to the reversal of prominence for the dialects- more and more people began speaking Shim-Kesir as time went on. This shift was solidified when the ancient Najer Script was re-translated in 69 AB. The more-developed and linguistically unified east caught onto the changes more quickly, leaving Kem-Sasal to slowly die out.