Lenoria

Culture
The ancestors of modern Lenorians are widely believed to have been nomads, and this is reflected in some aspects of their culture. Traditional Lenorian clothes were fashioned as to be most convenient for riding horses, with flowing clothing such as long dresses being completely absent. This type of dress has largely been abandoned by the Lenorian populace due to its unsuitability for the climate of the modern-day province of Lenoria, which is notoriously cold and rainy. On the island of Enderm, the Dermians were said to have had a different style of clothes, but not much is known about it due to a lack of preserved clothes. According to ancient writers, Dermian clothes were more suitable for boating than horsemanship, with men being said to have not worn any clothes that covered their upper torso or arms. They either wore knee-length pants or loin cloths to cover the lower part of their body. The color of the pants/loin cloths were disputed among ancient writers, with varying claims of black, white, gray, blue, and green cloths or a combination of them. There is no consensus as to which claims are true. It is largely believed that loin cloths were worn before the Duchy Era while pants started becoming popular during the middle of the Duchy Era. Lower-class women wore undyed gray dresses made from the wool of the extinct Dermian sheep, while upper class women could afford to dye their dresses light blue with imported blue orchids. Historians have not yet made any attempts to recreate Dermian clothes from the description of ancient writers.

Lenoria has many cultural practices that are not seen in other Haven cultures. A prime example of this is the Lenorian shovel duel known as dirt durt. This duel is traditionally done with no armor and no potions, and an incident in the year 47 E.X. involving former Prince Matthew Lihon using potions in a dirt durt duel caused public outcry.

Lenoria does not have much unique cuisine; the vast majority of Lenorians survive on a diet made up almost entirely of potatoes. Historians are not sure if the potato-heavy diet comes from Lenoria’s Syltoren heritage or due to the influences of surrounding cultures. Due to the Lenorian reliance on a single crop, potato crop failures have a devastating impact on Lenorian society. In particular, the Great Famine is notorious for causing widespread starvation and death among the Lenorian lower class.

Despite the Great Famine’s impact on the country, Lenoria experienced virtually no emigration due to it. Lenorians like to attribute this fact to a major cornerstone of Lenorian culture: endurance. Lenorians are proud of being able to withstand the hardships that come their way, whether that be famine, war, or even the complete destruction of their cities. The Lenorian word most often translated to endurance is “enas”, and it expands on the meaning of endurance. The word does not only describe withstanding hardships, but also growing in spite of hardships.c