Alvada Province

Alvada Province (Fornian: Provens de Fornois) is one of the 12 provinces of the Aurlûnor Velande. It is located north of the Imperial Province in the Aurlûnor Velande and south of the Veassda Province.

The province is a successor to the independent state of the County of Fornois, an independent county that was handed over to the growing Velande during it's period of expansion. The region would become integrated, and become known as the Territory of Fornois, with direct rule from the Velande. For a while, Yeetus Christ III would rule the new province, and was allowed to keep his titles and such, for as long as he converted. He would die from mysterious circumstances, and the territory would fall under rulership of the Velereth, Sareariel Lelya-Earcala and would become her own personal domain, which had no jurisdiction by the government. The territory would be reformed after The Dandelion War into two new provinces, the Alvada Province and the Vedassa Province. Montbégny would be renamed to Valdamar as would most cities within the province being renamed. His son, Yeetus Christ IV, was made Governor after his death, and would reign as the first governor of the province. He would convert to the Twin Dragon faith, and would be confirmed as Governor in late May of the year 931. He would move the capital from Valdamar to Boroligny on May 24th.

Geography
The core of the province is the valley of Fornois, surrounded by the Northern Mountains (Monts del Nors), Morning Mountains (Monts del Mornan) and Mount Drelgaon (Mont Drelgaon). This valley is fertile, temperate and still relatively wild. In the center of the valley flows the Soiran river. The province is also bordered by the Vesteflot river, in the south-west, and the Ostron river in the east.

Although Alvada is sparsely populated, there are a few notable settlements :

- Montbégny (Aurlûnoren : Valdamar), the capital of the county of Fornois. A stone castle built on the ruins of a pagan sanctuary, it was the first Fornoisan settlement in the region. Originally the de facto capital of Alvada, Montbégny was briefly neglected following the death of Yeetus Christ III, time during which it came to be occupied by Solxos under the name of Fort Momonga.

- Boroligny, the current capital of the province. Largest town in the county, it is also probably the oldest still inhabited, since records show it already existed within the kingdom of Almador, 2000 years ago. It became the capital after Governor Yeetus Christ IV relocated the seat of power of the province away from Montbégny, as it fell out of the governor's demesne.

- Drakon Moindre, a fortress in the south of the province.

- Arfiel, an abandoned hamlet near Drakon Moindre, ruins of a failed attempt to build a castle and a settlement by one of Yeetus Christ III's vassals, who swiftly betrayed the count, abandoned the colony, and laid claim to the then empty city of Areska.

History
The territory of the current province of Alvada has been inhabited for thousands of years, however next to nothing is known about the first inhabitants. It later came to be inhabited by sedentary farmers living off pigs and millet, probably related to the Norfst and the now extinct Belkans. These lands, part of which belonged to the kingdom of Dawou, were then conquered by the growing kingdom of Almador.

During the Almador Warlord Era, the Sevans, the ancestors of the people that would become the Fornoisans were brought in as slaves to Syltör from Alteniquia by the warring states bordering the Phagosian sea. Following the unrest and instability in the northern warring states created by the sudden expansion of the Aurlûnor Velande, the Sevans rebelled. Splitting into two groups, the western Sevan tribes migrated to the failed Melwende state, that occupied the current area of the province, thus becoming the Fornoisans. The eastern tribes settled on the gulf's coast and became the inhabitants of Bisezonne. In Melwende, the Fornoisans were split between a number of tribes, that shared the land alongside the native Norfst and a small pre-Aurlûnor Celestial Elf population. Although the Fornoisans were a large majority, the Celestial Elves still held a lot of the power, especially in terms of religious authority.

160 years ago, a young Fornoisan chief united all the Fornoisan tribes and extended his authority over the entire valley. Whilst the Norfst were mostly assimilated, the Celestial Elves were forcefully driven out and their holy place on top of the central hill was destroyed. On top of this hill, known as Montbégny (sacred hill) to the Fornoisans, a wooden castle was built. The County of Fornois was established and the chief, now count, took the name of Yeetus Christ (Fornoisan : Ietus Criste, meaning Righteous Ruler in Sevan).

Fornoisan culture peaked during the countal rule of the house of Fornois. Literature and architecture flourished, a notable example being the reconstruction of Montbégny as a stone castle. Fornoisan culture extended its influence over the nearby Bisezonnians, with many migrants bringing in Fornoisan techniques and art. However, although culture flourished, the county still stayed severely poor and underdeveloped, poorer than most of its neighbours.

People and culture
Most inhabitants of the Alvada province belong to the Fornoisan people, although there are a small Celestial Elf minority and an even smaller Norfst community.

Officially, the vast majority of the people of the province are Twin Dragon practitioners. After the loss of the county's independence, the population was converted en masse and all other religions were banned. To this day however, although most Fornoisans worship the Twin Dragons, these beliefs are often mixed with old Fornoisan gnostic beliefs, philosophy and traditions, especially in the lower stratas of the population. Some houses have shrines dedicated to local deities, and secret or semi-official ceremonies are often celebrated in remote areas of the province. This religious cohabitation is stable, peaceful and widely tolerated in Fornoisan society; however, it is frowned upon by the elite and recent Celestial Elf migrants, and there have been efforts by the ruling class, notably by governor Yeetus Christ IV, devout Twin Dragon follower, to enforce a more orthodox manner of worship.

The most commonly spoken language in the Alvada province is Fornoisan, which originates from Sevan, a language originally spoken in southern Alteniquia. It is related to the languages of Bisezonne and, more distantly, Reyllea. Aurlûnoren is also widely spoken, as the official language. However, de facto, Fornoisan is the most used language in the administration, as the provincial ruling class of Alvada is almost exclusively composed of the remains of the feudal nobility of Fornois. In the past, Fornoisan was considered a sophisticated language of the arts and literature, but recently, it is gradually being replaced by Aurlûnoren as the lingua franca of the upper class.

Fornoisan weddings are celebrated in public places, in the presence of a priest (nowadays belonging to the Twin Dragon faith) who conducts the ceremony. Although marriage traditions have been greatly influenced by the Twin Dragon faith, they have retained a lot of originality and ancestral traditions. Wedding ceremonies are usually short and minimalistic, a relic of the Sevan people's time as slaves. The couples' hands are joined by the priest, who recites a short prayer for good luck. The couple then exchanges jade (or a less rare stone) rings and different flowers picked in the couple's respective homeland. The woman bows to the west and the man bows to the east (in gay marriages, not unheard of in the aristocracy, the wealthiest or more prestigious member bows east) in honour of the gods.