Aurlûnoren Free State

{{Nation|image={{#choose: }}|leader=Pheonix Regent: Nori|demonym=Aurlûnoren|capital=Quacomar {de facto)|largest_city=Quacomar|government=Provisonal Government|ideology=Pacifism|language=*Aurlûnoren Aurlûnor Velande}}
 * Azeral languages
 * Fornoisan
 * Gu-Maek
 * Traveller's Tongue|towns=Esteconmar, Drakovien, Dun, Hanustandor, Hloamar, Nekomar, Quacomar, Shenhua, The Lillypad|religion=*Twin Dragon (Official and State Mandated)
 * Blue Phoenix
 * Ashuran Pantheon
 * Lux|culture=*Angan
 * Dune Elven (Yaza, Istihi, and Nabut)
 * Endanorese (Almadorian and Linye-Melwendic)
 * Fornoisan
 * Hampo
 * Krow
 * Nekojin
 * Seraan|continent=Nándor|climate=Desert, tropical rainforest, tropical savannah, temperate broadleaf forest,|founder=Pheonix Regent Nori|founded=1018 ACA 212 SMP (January 22nd, 2023)|preceded_by=United Crowns of Syltör

The Aurlûnoren Free State, also known as the Aurlûnoren Chancellorate or the Aurlûnoren Regency, is a country in the subcontinent of Nándor. Its capital city is Quacomar, located on the southern coast of the Gulf of Ryzan, close to the border with Deutzan & Chance. It was the first time the Aurlûnoren government had ever truly reformed in over 1000 years of existence, and is the second Aurlûnoren government. It was created as a result of the Treaty of Playistan, where the Pheonixian Imperium was dissolved & High Chancellor Nori sought out to build a new path for Aurlûnor in a post-union world. Its official religion and state ideology is Twin Dragon. It is still by far the largest majority Elven ruled nation in the world.

Etymology
The name Aurlûnoren Free State gets its derivation from the word Aurlûnor, meaning "Sun Dragon Land", which was said to have been the name Velereth Sareariel Lelya-Earcala gave the country, (However, the name could also be due to the fact that the descendance of the Velereth from heaven was on the year of the Light Dragon, with the stars aligning in the form of that of a Dragon, and the Sun being at this constellation's centre.) and  'Free State', which is derived from the form of government, as well as the fact that the reformation has allowed for the people to 'break free' from certain controversial traditions.

"Aurlûn" alone translates to "Sun Dragon" in, as the words aur meaning sun, and lûn meaning dragon, while "-or" while being used alone would mean "land" or "country". "Velandé" means "empire", or literally "[the] empress's country". Note the é used in direct transliteration from Aurlûnoren is not an accent mark, but a tone marker, as the language features four tones which can effect the meaning of the word.

History
Full Article: History of the Aurlûnor Velande

Reformation
Following the Treaty of Playistan, the Pheonixian Imperium was divided up amongst previous constituent boundaries. Amongst these was Aurlûnor, which following the treaty was left isolated outside of a Mutual Defence Pact with Bardonia. Believing full well that the previous ways of governing would not benefit the state in any way, the remnants of the Aurlûnoren government would form the Aurlûnoren Free State on January 22nd, 2023. It stood as one of the most populous of the remnant states, with Ryzan deprived of much of its original population thanks to the loss of its two largest population centres amongst other reasons. This alongside now-Pheonix Regent Nori's previous roles in governance in the UCS gave Aurlûnor a large piece of the pie when it came to post-union peace talks between the Ryzani states & the other political entities in the region.

However, Aurlûnor also had issues following its secession from the union, such as the loss of the city of Lhûmar to the Vale Mandate of Elendor, another Twin Dragon nation with more extremist beliefs. This would pose a challenge for the fledgling state, which wished to push for more liberalisation in how the nation operated on all fronts.

Geography
The Free State contains 6 provinces (not including Deutzan):

Government & Politics
TBA

Culture
Aurlûnoren Culture is among the most diverse in the Nándor region. Almadorian culture that was left over from the remnants of the Kingdom still linger within the Aurlûnoren Free State massively, and is present in everyday life. Unlike the Almadorians, the Aurlûnorens adopted many aspects of Ghûren cultures, most notably Dawou Culture, blending it together with Almadorian culture, creating a unique identity in which the styles of building, architecture and traditions. Aspects of the Dawou culture can be seen today in Lhûmar with the presence of holidays such as Dragon Day with another in Winter and the New Years festival held every 12th of Maureawe.

The Free State is often known as the cultural capital of Western Syltör, and continues to show itself as a shining example of a nation with rich culture.

Food
Main Article: Aurlûnoren cuisine

Aurlûnoren cuisine mostly consists of rice, wheat, berry, fish and meat dishes that are native to the region. Aurlûnoren cuisine mostly appears to mostly steam their foods, most notably vegetables and meat, as said to "enrichen the flavor" and to make food more "savory". One of the most famous dishes in Aurlûnor Free State is known as the Steamed Beef Bun, which composes of a round shaped bun, filling inside with meat, and a flour exterior. Inside, usually composes of either crushed berries, bamboo sprouts or rice, surrounded by the beef.

Sauces are among the most used in any Aurlûnoren dish. Usually, a dish will be seen with sauce being added, which can vary depending on what type of dish it is. Most of the sauces are sweet or salty, with one of the most popular sauces, soy sauce, being used on almost anything to make it tasty. Chocolate Sauce is more widely used in Tacua Province, accompanied with a leaf covering the food as a form of respect to the consumer.

Spice is extremely popular in upper class dishes, and is often used on many dishes to help make the flavors give extra kick. Freshly grown Tacuan Jungle Spices known as Jihaw, Saffron, Anardana, and Sumac are among the most popular spices that are seen, with saffron being reserved mostly for Imperial Family members.

In some provinces, there are a few delicacies that are exclusive to the region's local access to particular sources. For instance, in Nir Province, fish-based dishes, such as the famous fish stew mixed with local grown rice mixed together with shrimps and crawfish are popular to the people of the region. Coastal towns along the Lothranis Sea tend to use lots of fish in their cuisine, often replacing other meats that inlanders would normally eat. A staple food fish of the average Aurlûnoren peasant is the Blue Snapper; Sand Grouper and Red Dolphinfish are more pricey fish. Pufferfish fugu is served as a delicacy, as its preparation must be careful in removing the fish's poison glands. Sea turtles like the Western Hawk Turtle are rarely eaten, and protected by law.

Art
The Free State is well known for talented artists, who appears to have painted many portraits of the Velereth, and that of multiple battle scenes. Famous artists such as Dalatra Mosulia and Aesop Hexen have been renown for their art skills despite their mixed origins. Azan, Governor of Sharla Province is also a famous sculptor, being responsible for such works such as his depictions of the King of Darkness and Queen of Light that still shines outside of the gates of Lhûmar.

Literature
Despite living in a rather conservative country in regards to literature, Aurlûnoren literature is among the most liberal, and open-expressive pieces in Syltör. The most famous of these pieces throughout the country is a book known as The Princess, a currently two volume book written by Aldara Ellan, a well known scholar of Seraan descent. Other political works include Chancellor Mao Meili's Harmony and Politics.

The Celestial Fertilizer is an infamous novel written by an unknown author back in 221 ACA, which is described to be "raunchy" and "extremely informal" by many, but is widely popular by adults as something known as "Pleasure Literature".

Another huge book is known as the Clash of the Three Kingdoms, which was written by an Aurlûnoren Human by the name of Liu Rundon in the mid-600s ACA, which takes place during the time of the Warring Period of the Almadorians, romanticizing the rise of power of the Velande.

As far as more scientific and theoretical literature goes, the scientist Tara Sauranis has written multiple short works describing ancient beasts, bringing the science of paleontology to the public. Her books are popular, with the Fornost Museum holding a copy of her work on Megalonectes on public display. Hydra Blackwater's philosophical work Systems of Harmony details Twin Dragon's epistemology and metaphysics.

Architecture
Throughout the history of the Aurlûnor Velande, the building style of the varying cities changed overtime, with some having a traditional Almadorian-look, such as the ancient city of Ardol, to having more of a mixture of Neo-Dawou, and whatever regions they settled in. Though the dark history of architecture shows that slaves of the Ghûren peoples were shown to have adopted their traditions, when slavery was discontinued in 0 CA, the Aurlûnor Velande adopted many practices of this style, and incorporated into a more varied style. As the nation expanded, and more cultures integrated into the Free State, so did architectural styles. Kumiho style would enter into the scene upon the integration of the Hampo Province, Fornoisan architecture entering the picture in the northern territories blending styles together to create a strange hybrid of the cultures, and even Dune Elven architecture mixing in with the acquisition of the old Ashuran territories from Huitca.

Among all nations, the Aurlûnor Free State is often ranked extremely high when it comes to architectural prowess. Multiple cities, most notably Lhûmar, Dun and Lûnwir, which are often called the "Three Titans of the West", in terms of architectural beauty and prowess. The ancient city of Ebonimemar is also an example of rather high architectural prowess, with Ashuran Architecture mixed in with aspects of Almadorian style architecture.

Music
Aurlûnoren music is widely renowned as "cultured", "refined" and "aesthetic". Most Aurlûnoren instruments are inherited from Dawou or Almadorian culture over 900 years ago. The invention of instruments such as the Aurlûnoren guzhen, the sitar, the erhu and the Tacuan style lute, are among the most popular by many musicians around the world. The most popular Aurlûnoren melody is known as "The Prowl of the Tiger", which is known to be one of the oldest pieces of Dawou music that dates back to 4,700 BCA. The oldest Almadorian piece known as "The Bamboo Forest of the Shining Moon" is among the most popular wood-wind pieces, which is accompanied by a poem, and is usually sung by many bards in taverns and tea houses across the country.

Later instruments such as the Ashuran Ney, which was introduced in the 1600 BCAs, is common among the more lower classes and laborers, as well as many tribes of the Ashuran Desert. The Aurlûnoren Piano, invented in 460 ACA by Larcan Jae-Sailanis, became a widely common sight in many houses, taverns, tea houses and even among the elites.

Science
The Aurlûnoren Free State is considered to be the scientific capital of the world, due to the many innovations that the countries had created. The invention of synthetic Gunpowder, paper money, the arquebus, cannons, the repeating crossbow, wheelbarrow, rice, wheat cultivation and tea are all often attributed to the Free State. Various amounts of scientific discoveries had also been made by Aurlûnoren scientists and people of Aurlûnoren origin. Renowned researchers such as Tara Sauranis, John Pitchardson Rex among other have been contributed to the scientific field. The Rathnir Paleontological Society had picked Lhûmar to be the candidate of its new headquarters. During the 980s & 990s, the Gen II Corporation hosted a series of top-secret government experiments on dinosaur specimens & children, something that the government has refused to bring up ever since, as it is a key point against the existence of the government. One of the most renowned mappers of the Rathnir Cartographer's Guild, Juno, traces his roots to the Free State. Various inventions are inspired by the Aurlûnor Velande's vast innovation in terms of technological prowess, and earned itself as one of the most technologically progressive nations in Rathnir.

Demographics
TBA