Yaszuma

Yaszuma is a multicultural constitutional oligarchy in the northwest of Eldham created to unify the Yaszumatti people and their counterparts. The nation runs under a core Yaszumatti territory governed by the central government, while local governments run the relatively autonomous provinces. Our national identity is of unity and collectivism towards the prosperity of Yaszuma as a people and a nation. From our capital city, which floats high among the clouds, to the beautiful seas of Osziro and mountain tunnels of Tetszo, no two areas of Yaszuma are precisely alike - just as no two citizens are the same.

Culture
Yaszuma’s culture is what the nation is mainly known for especially art, architecture and writing as they are the core of Yaszumatti society. Artisans of all kinds are greatly respected and hoped for within Yaszuma's borders. Art defines the environment we live in, with our environment defining ourselves.

Racial groups
There are three main people groups in Yaszuma as of now: The Sky Elves, the Tetszo Dwarves and the Yaszumatti Humans. These three races lived in unison and helped shape Yaszuma to what it is today.

Umarín
The Umarín are an elven group that split from the Celestial Elves hundreds of years ago. They created and adapted to live in the sky islands of Eldham and acquired a sometimes more sapphire-toned skin along with a shorter stature compared to the Celestial Elves. They are the smallest of the three main racial groups of Yaszuma, barely holding 10% or so of the nation's overall demographic composure, nearly all of them living in Umakwa and making up more than half of the city's population.

The culture of the Umarín places great emphasis on equality between social and racial lines, which they deem only achievable through respect. They serve Yaszuma as advisors, librarians and other scholarly practices but don't hesitate from involving themselves in other aspects of the state such as the now rising army.

One of their elven adaptations is hermaphroditism, the ability to change biological sex at will. This caused Umarín society to ditch any aspect of gender or gender roles, preferring individual gender expression than any kind of strict rules defining how everyone needs to look. This is why Umarín fashion is the most elaborate and diverse of any of the other races in Yaszuma.

Tetszotti
The Tetszotti are Yaszuma's dwarven race. They are the predominant species in Tetszo province and differ in appearance and attitude to any other kind of dwarf. They sport many other hair colors, elaborate facial hair designs and tend to incorporate greenery along with fierce armor into their daily outfits.

Like the Umarín, the Tetszotti initially arrived in Eldham at a similar date, choosing to call the large Tetszo mountain range their home. At first identical to any other kind of dwarf, after discovering Tetszo's beautiful underground ecosystem, they grew attached to it and began throwing away the industrial and polluting lifestyle of most dwarves.

Today they keep the same attitude as other dwarves when it comes to labor and wealth, but prefer to achieve equal amounts of wealth through greener means. They still operate vast smitheries and forges, but never forget to plant shrubbery and trees nearby in order to absorb the pollution. They can be described as the workhorses of Yaszuma, carrying the nation's industrial might on their backs and helping fund the state's military the most.

Kaszatti (Humans)
The Kaszatti are the largest racial group in the Yaszuma, originating from Kaszara province where they formed the Kingdom of Kaszara hundreds of years ago. They are industrious people and renowned woodworkers and fishermen. For centuries they led a pescatarian lifestyle that eventually grew to influence the other Yaszumatti races to adopt fish into their diets.

Poklatti
The Poklatti are a mixture of anthropomorphic fish species that live in the sea south of Umakwa. While they technically don't lie within Yaszumatti borders, they are officially considered as being a part of the state. The Poklatti's underwater kingdoms and city-states are all claimed under the Yaszumatti Poklarai protectorate.

They can vary in color highly depending on the part of the ocean where they originate from, they must keep themselves damp and wear glass tanks on their heads for them not to dry out and suffocate when on land.

Kaenatti
The Kaenatti are the smallest minority within Yaszuma, only residing within the Kaenarai sanctuary in Tetszo province. They are an anthropomorphic species of toads-like people. They are known for being great builders and to be some of the most well composed individuals within Yaszumatti society.

Architecture
Yaszuma is a cultural melting pot, blending traditional state buildings with the old teachings of dwarven architects in Tetszo and the ancient blueprints of long lost temples in the rainforests of Osziro. The federation emphasizes the preservation of knowledge and beauty of every culture situated within the state's borders.

Religion
Yaszuma is a nation that is open to various spiritual beliefs. The most prominent of them Juncism and Uma Atai. But there are a few other religions within Yaszuma that are accepted to (e.g. The North).

Junicism
Junicism is a pantheism religion; the belief that our Universe is a living Deity, a Goddess named Juni. Followers worship the Juni Trinity; The Avatar, The Deity, and The Conscience. The Avatar acting as the humanoid form in Eldham, The Deity representing The Universe, and The Conscience portraying Juni's will.”

Uma Atai
Uma Atai is a polytheistic religion that originated in Yaszuma, and a successor religion to the Eriszetsu faith. The faith is typically practiced by the Yaszumatti, however small groups may be found dotted around Eldham. It revolves around the "flow" of energy from the stars that comes down to our world, which then leaves and rests in the void.

Zenkoism
Zenkoism is the only religion other than Eriszetsu to naturally appear in Yaszuma. Zenkoism has since its early creation spread to cover many different countries within the north of Eldham. Currently the largest Zenkoist shrine in Eldham can be found in Osziro, the temple of Tenko.

It worships the two deities of Naomi and Sadao and preaches inheriting the teachings of elders and prides itself on learning. Due to its nature as a religion that can coexist with other religions, the Tszunare considers the practice of Zenkoism as completely acceptable.

The North
The North is a mysterious and apocalyptic cult founded by Matriarch Snaer following their mysterious appearance under Umakwa. Snaer has garnered a reputation amongst the religious scholars of Eriszetsu as an incarnation of a long dead spirit that has appeared in the material world in order to revive itself within the spirit world. Due to this, the religion is allowed to be practiced freely, it's seen as a long lost part of Eriszetsu that is actively being revived by Snaer.

The largest centers of the religion can be found in the shrine of Anemoi and Snaer's house in Umakwa.

History
(in progress)

Ancient History
The records dating back to the pre Soko era of Yaszuma were lost during the events of the Rosette Rebellion. What remains are disconnected documents that piece together an incomplete tale of the nation’s origins.

The first peoples known to inhabit the area of modern-day Yaszuma were the Yaszumatti Humans. They inhabited the region for thousands of years and were mostly situated in the region's central savannah, their largest city and state being Raikaza. The Umarín were the first new settlers to arrive in Yaszuma, initially settling in the area. However, upon the collapse of the Kingdom of Almador, the Umarín would immigrate to Eldham, creating the large sky islands chains, the largest of which was the sky city of Umakwa. Centuries later, Dwarven settlers would first begin inhabiting the Tetszo Mountain Range, forming the Dwarven States of Beifen, Wen and Atza. They would be the last major group of settlers to immigrate into the area, forming the bedrock of what is now Yaszuma's modern-day demographics. These three groups would eventually begin regularly trading with each other and sharing their cultures and practices. Umakwa and Raikaza were heavily integrated by the end of this period, becoming fully dependent on each other. The end of this period is signified with the formation of a union between Umakwa and Raikaza, marking the First Unification and the formation of the Twin Rule.

First Unification Period
This period is where most of the territorial expansion done by the Proto-Yaszumatti State (PYS) would take place. The PYS would expand down to the southern coast and up to the sky islands of Kinnomachi. Kinnomachi was a lone temple sanctuary created a century or so following the arrival of the Umarín, it was in decline for decades up to the 4th century F.U., but it was still the second largest population centre for the Umarín in Eldham. The sky islands of Kinnomachi would later join the PYS, marking the Second Unification. Not long after this, the majority of Kinnomachi's Umarín population would move to Umakwa.

Second Unification Period
This is the final period of the PYS, while the PYS itself stagnated for the majority of this period, the Tetszo Dwarves would experience a rebirth in culture and would ascend to new heights of development. The Dwarven States of Beifen, Wen and Atza united and formed the Lordship of Tetszo, with the Beifen region being set as the capital location. The dwarves, initially hesitant to cooperate with the Umarín and the humans, were steadily integrating into the PYS during the duration of this period. They replaced their own language with a dialect of future Yaszumatti, and would adopt a new religion that would become Yaszumatti Etherealism. This level of integration would only lead down a path to a full union between Tetszo and the PYS. 23 years later, Tetszo's Lord Duranesz would meet with Queen Matsumo of Umakwa and the two agreed on a unification. This marks the Third Unification and the creation of the Crownlands of Yaszuma.

Third Unification Period
The first Tszunna of Yaszuma was Tszunna Matsumo. Her reign is known for an era of cultural and national prosperity, most of Yaszuma's cultural and religious developments can be traced back to Matsumo's rule. The Tszunna to succeed Matsumo was Tszunna Nizara. Her rule saw the developments of human settlements in Umakwa, Medaka and Kinnomachi, but is mostly known for happening during the discovery of Eldham by Athaz. Nizara found it hard to rule the country under the pressure created by the large influx of new settlers and nations, and would eventually pass away. Her replacement was a young girl shown to her by a young Umarín librarian by the name of Onneszu, her name being Soko. Soko and Onneszu were picked by Nizara to be the new heirs of Yaszuma under the Twin Rule.

Soko’s reign
The initial wave of new settlers into the world of Eldham was a chaotic and turbulent period of time in Yaszuma's history. War scares, caused by nations such as Iremith and Valore along with the formation of the ETC, were signifiers of a time when each year brought a new crisis threatening the existence of Yaszuma.

The new Tszunna would immediately take up the task of modernizing the country into a state that could compete on the new international stage. Yaszuma's military strength along with its international alliances would expand during this period. Following the dissolution of the ETC, these turbulent times subsided, allowing the nation of Yaszuma to breathe more freely and calm down. In the same year, General Benkei of the Yaszumatti Royal Army would announce the discovery of a strange finding in the nation's Kwomitta province, an end portal.

Government
The government of Yaszuma is called the Central Government and is laid out in the constitution in Section 2 "Central Government".

Lord Regent
The Head of Yaszuma and the Central Government is named the Lord Regent. The Lord Regent is in charge of making decisions regarding Yaszuma’s wellbeing, alongside being the face of Yaszuma internationally. A person gets elected to this position, but once they become the Lord Regent there are no further elections unless they are Impeached, or Resign. The Lord Regent also chooses the members of the Central Government (except for the Speaker).

Chief Advisor
The Chief Advisor is the right hand of the Lord Regent. Also, the Chief Advisor helps with diplomatic talks together with the Lord Regent and also focuses on running the internal affairs of Yaszuma. The Chief Advisor keeps up with the Governors making sure they are developing their provinces with projects and keeping their citizens happy. All Governor’s report to the Chief Advisor.

Speaker
The Speaker of Yaszuma represents the people within the Government and is their voice. The Speaker acts to counter any ruling that the Lord Regent might make that would be seen as harmful to the citizens of Yaszuma. The Speaker is chosen by election every year, but a previous speaker may get reelected multiple times.

Provincial Government
A Governor is given the title Lord upon their appointment and is in charge of ruling their respective provinces. They are at liberty to instate any system of ruling within their province, but must not contradict the Constitution of Yaszuma. Each Governor is appointed by the Lord Regent and stays in this position until a new Lord Regent is put in power, they get voted out by a no confidence vote, or they choose to step down themselves.

Lord Commander
The Lord Commander is in charge of all military related decisions and activities. They are in charge of ensuring that Yaszuma has a strong and united fighting force in the event of wars. The Lord Commander is also able to instigate military related diplomatic talks, albeit at the consensus of the Central Government. The Lord Commander is appointed by the Lord Regent and is in charge of this position until a new Lord Regent is put in power,  they get voted out by a no confidence vote, or they choose to step down themselves.

Kaike
The Kaike is in charge of all finance related decisions and activities. They are in charge of ensuring each province pays its taxes and that Yaszuma has a growing economy. The Kaike is appointed by the Lord Regent and is in charge of this position until a new Lord Regent is put in power, they get voted out by a no confidence vote, or they choose to step down themselves