The Ahamun
Also known as Northmen, Ahamun (Old Faranxian: "Sea Men") live in the northernmost regions of the Korman Empire (Mainlands) and are culturally and historically related to the Warlanders with whom they interract extensively. The Ahamun king Beor (Beorn) the Old is in fact related through marriage to Murad of Silegby, and led a force of fighting men in the final battle against the Varanáa on the Caerdolas Plain.
Although culturally identitcal to one another, Ahamun do not see themselves as belonging to a single nation or ethnicity. Rather, they identify more with their particular lineages, clans, and liege lords than with political territories, except in cases wherein those territories have become conceptualized as ancestral homelands or otherwise associated with clans and lineages. Thus, two Ahamun from two different clans or chiefdoms will likely consider each other to be "foreigners" or "enemies" depending on current alliances and their respective political affiliations, even if they are considered to be of the same "race" or "culture" by outsiders.
The term "Ahamun" is used primarily by outsiders, including Korman imperial authorities, to refer to all of the people of the northern regions sharing a particular language and culture, but especially to those living within the borders of the empire. Ahamun living in the Northlands beyond are generally referred to as "Northlanders" or "Norlanders" or simply "Northmen," even if they are culturally and linguistically indistinguishable from the Ahamun of the Mainlands. Thus, there is no formal or centralized Ahamun state or nation, but rather a collection of petty kingdoms and semi-nomadic clans living across a vast and largely remote region, and belonging to often fleeting and constantly fluctuating clan coalitions and political alliances.
Although some Ahamun are subsistence farmers or pastoralists, the bulk of their livelihood depends on maritime activities. This includes fishing, harvesting seaweed and marine invertibrates, whaling and hunting in the icy polar seas, but just as imporantly, piracy and raiding for food and trade items from coastal lands. More often than not Ahamun pirates and raiders attack other Ahamun communities viewed as foreigners or enemies depending on the local political conditions at the given time. Ahamun also raid non-Ahamun communities within range of their fleets, and while outlawed by the Korman Empire, most of this activity occurs in places too remote for imperial military forces to properly police them. For this reason, Ahamun piracy and raiding goes largely unchecked, except in territories protected by powerful local rulers. In some cases Ahamun warlords and sea captains collect tribute from small communities in return for "protection" from raids.
Physically, Ahamun tend to be tall in stature and heavy-limbed. They are generally fair complexioned, fair-haired, and with blue or green eyes, although individuals with dark hair and eyes are not unknown (and are referred to locally as "dark" or "black"). Men and women usually grow their hair long, often braided or tied into a large knot at the back of their head. Ahamun men in the Mainlands sometimes cut their hair shorter, in keeping with the styles of neighboring Faranx. Regardless of hair length, though, Ahamun men proudly wear full beards and mustaches, often neatly groomed. Beards are a mark of manhood, of maturity and status, and the ability to grow a full beard often marks the transition from adolescence to manhood, regardless of age. A beardless man is viewed with suspicion as being either "womanish" or even having some supernatural quality (such as Elvish ancestry). Most Ahamun clothing consists of long or short tunics and either fitted or baggy trousers for men, and simple gowns layered under long, apron-like garments and shawls for women, usually of wool or linen often dyed in festive colors, with a preference for blue, green, yellow, and sometimes muted reds or black. In the winter both men and women wear cloaks, capes, hats and hoods of furs over woolen clothing.
Culturally, Ahamun are distinct from other peoples of the Mainlands. They share a language which they usually refer to as "our tongue," "our language," or "the common language," but which is known to the rest of the world as "Ahamunic" or "Norlandic." Most Ahamun also speak Imperial Common (a.k.a. Korman or Modern Faranxian). Across their vast territories Ahamun and Norlanders also share common foodways, rules of etiquette and hospitality, mortuary rituals, material culture including technology, ship-building, art and architecture, music, and a distinct bardic and literary tradition. They also share a common tradition of patriarchy and patrilineal descent (i.e. descent traced along the father's lineage) which is the foundation of their political organization and personal identities.
Most Ahamun are at least nominally Roskian, having been heavily influenced for centuries by Roskian missionary priests and monastic orders. However, even those who consider themselves to be devout Roskians often pray to popular local spirits and legendary heroes (many of which have become syncretised with Roskian saints or reinterpreted in Roskian terms). Roskian religious and cultural influence is most prevalent among the Ahamun living on the Mainlands. Those living in the Northlands (i.e. Norlanders) are more generally apt to worship the "Old Gods," the pagan religion traditional to all Ahamun, and the tenets and worldview of which still greatly informs Ahamun values, beliefs, and attitudes across their entire social world. This religion consists of a pantheon of gods possessing human qualities and led by a celestial patriarch known by the epithets of Sky Father or simply Skye, or by the names Woten, Woken, Wodun, or Odun. On the Mainlands this figure has been syncretized with the Caerdolan Páarun. Nearly as important is a thundering god of earthquakes and smithying known as Torun and often syncretized with Mahar or the chthonic Oken. Both Odun and Torun are warrior gods, and their preeminence in Ahamun religious and mythological traditions reveals the prestige and value given to martial valor and the warrior lifestyle in Ahamun culture. A hereditary class of elite warriors known as bersarks (i.e. "berserkers") are believed to become possessed by the spirits of the warrior gods or their attendant spirits when they manifest a devastating battle rage, and belong to particular lineages said to have been descended in long line from the sexual union of the gods with mortal women. Among many Ahamun of the Mainlands, the Caerdolan god Nehal is also worshipped as a patron of sailors and shipwrights.
While magic is generally feared, and magic-using individuals viewed with suspicion or at best ambivalence, there are a number of magical traditions among the Ahamun, and magic is generally more prevalent than in mainstream Mainlander society. The most common form of magic among the Ahamun is related to their bardic traditions, and involves spells and incantations sung in accordance with ancient formulae and related to myths about creation and the establishment of the social order. A form of wizarding magic based on runic divination, charms, and magical protection also depends on complex understanding of Ahamun mythology and cosmology as related in their bardic lore and runic literature. It is distinct from the Porphyran-Caerdolan wizarding traditions dominating the Mainlands, is associated aspects of the gods Odun and Torun, and believed by some to be related to Dwarvish Maharan traditions. In addition to these, although less common, are Druidic traditions derived from ancient chthonic shamanism and a kind of "natural" magic inherent in individuals believed to have Elvish or Fey elements in their ancestry. This is in fact true, as many Ahamun are descended from human tribes living in close proximity to ancient Elven (including High Elven) strongholds. Some Ahamun are also believed to be descended at least in part from Dwarvish or Giant ancestors. The latter tend to be of great stature, often have a propensity for either heroism or villainy, and usually possess inherent magic. Despite the relatively high prevalence of magic, and the popularity of consulting diviners and charm-makers, most Ahamun distrust it, viewing it as belonging alternatively to the realm of the dead, gods, supernatural spirits, or in Roskian terms, as "witchcraft" or "devilry."
Also known as Northmen, Ahamun (Old Faranxian: "Sea Men") live in the northernmost regions of the Korman Empire (Mainlands) and are culturally and historically related to the Warlanders with whom they interract extensively. The Ahamun king Beor (Beorn) the Old is in fact related through marriage to Murad of Silegby, and led a force of fighting men in the final battle against the Varanáa on the Caerdolas Plain.
Although culturally identitcal to one another, Ahamun do not see themselves as belonging to a single nation or ethnicity. Rather, they identify more with their particular lineages, clans, and liege lords than with political territories, except in cases wherein those territories have become conceptualized as ancestral homelands or otherwise associated with clans and lineages. Thus, two Ahamun from two different clans or chiefdoms will likely consider each other to be "foreigners" or "enemies" depending on current alliances and their respective political affiliations, even if they are considered to be of the same "race" or "culture" by outsiders.
The term "Ahamun" is used primarily by outsiders, including Korman imperial authorities, to refer to all of the people of the northern regions sharing a particular language and culture, but especially to those living within the borders of the empire. Ahamun living in the Northlands beyond are generally referred to as "Northlanders" or "Norlanders" or simply "Northmen," even if they are culturally and linguistically indistinguishable from the Ahamun of the Mainlands. Thus, there is no formal or centralized Ahamun state or nation, but rather a collection of petty kingdoms and semi-nomadic clans living across a vast and largely remote region, and belonging to often fleeting and constantly fluctuating clan coalitions and political alliances.
Although some Ahamun are subsistence farmers or pastoralists, the bulk of their livelihood depends on maritime activities. This includes fishing, harvesting seaweed and marine invertibrates, whaling and hunting in the icy polar seas, but just as imporantly, piracy and raiding for food and trade items from coastal lands. More often than not Ahamun pirates and raiders attack other Ahamun communities viewed as foreigners or enemies depending on the local political conditions at the given time. Ahamun also raid non-Ahamun communities within range of their fleets, and while outlawed by the Korman Empire, most of this activity occurs in places too remote for imperial military forces to properly police them. For this reason, Ahamun piracy and raiding goes largely unchecked, except in territories protected by powerful local rulers. In some cases Ahamun warlords and sea captains collect tribute from small communities in return for "protection" from raids.
Physically, Ahamun tend to be tall in stature and heavy-limbed. They are generally fair complexioned, fair-haired, and with blue or green eyes, although individuals with dark hair and eyes are not unknown (and are referred to locally as "dark" or "black"). Men and women usually grow their hair long, often braided or tied into a large knot at the back of their head. Ahamun men in the Mainlands sometimes cut their hair shorter, in keeping with the styles of neighboring Faranx. Regardless of hair length, though, Ahamun men proudly wear full beards and mustaches, often neatly groomed. Beards are a mark of manhood, of maturity and status, and the ability to grow a full beard often marks the transition from adolescence to manhood, regardless of age. A beardless man is viewed with suspicion as being either "womanish" or even having some supernatural quality (such as Elvish ancestry). Most Ahamun clothing consists of long or short tunics and either fitted or baggy trousers for men, and simple gowns layered under long, apron-like garments and shawls for women, usually of wool or linen often dyed in festive colors, with a preference for blue, green, yellow, and sometimes muted reds or black. In the winter both men and women wear cloaks, capes, hats and hoods of furs over woolen clothing.
Culturally, Ahamun are distinct from other peoples of the Mainlands. They share a language which they usually refer to as "our tongue," "our language," or "the common language," but which is known to the rest of the world as "Ahamunic" or "Norlandic." Most Ahamun also speak Imperial Common (a.k.a. Korman or Modern Faranxian). Across their vast territories Ahamun and Norlanders also share common foodways, rules of etiquette and hospitality, mortuary rituals, material culture including technology, ship-building, art and architecture, music, and a distinct bardic and literary tradition. They also share a common tradition of patriarchy and patrilineal descent (i.e. descent traced along the father's lineage) which is the foundation of their political organization and personal identities.
Most Ahamun are at least nominally Roskian, having been heavily influenced for centuries by Roskian missionary priests and monastic orders. However, even those who consider themselves to be devout Roskians often pray to popular local spirits and legendary heroes (many of which have become syncretised with Roskian saints or reinterpreted in Roskian terms). Roskian religious and cultural influence is most prevalent among the Ahamun living on the Mainlands. Those living in the Northlands (i.e. Norlanders) are more generally apt to worship the "Old Gods," the pagan religion traditional to all Ahamun, and the tenets and worldview of which still greatly informs Ahamun values, beliefs, and attitudes across their entire social world. This religion consists of a pantheon of gods possessing human qualities and led by a celestial patriarch known by the epithets of Sky Father or simply Skye, or by the names Woten, Woken, Wodun, or Odun. On the Mainlands this figure has been syncretized with the Caerdolan Páarun. Nearly as important is a thundering god of earthquakes and smithying known as Torun and often syncretized with Mahar or the chthonic Oken. Both Odun and Torun are warrior gods, and their preeminence in Ahamun religious and mythological traditions reveals the prestige and value given to martial valor and the warrior lifestyle in Ahamun culture. A hereditary class of elite warriors known as bersarks (i.e. "berserkers") are believed to become possessed by the spirits of the warrior gods or their attendant spirits when they manifest a devastating battle rage, and belong to particular lineages said to have been descended in long line from the sexual union of the gods with mortal women. Among many Ahamun of the Mainlands, the Caerdolan god Nehal is also worshipped as a patron of sailors and shipwrights.
While magic is generally feared, and magic-using individuals viewed with suspicion or at best ambivalence, there are a number of magical traditions among the Ahamun, and magic is generally more prevalent than in mainstream Mainlander society. The most common form of magic among the Ahamun is related to their bardic traditions, and involves spells and incantations sung in accordance with ancient formulae and related to myths about creation and the establishment of the social order. A form of wizarding magic based on runic divination, charms, and magical protection also depends on complex understanding of Ahamun mythology and cosmology as related in their bardic lore and runic literature. It is distinct from the Porphyran-Caerdolan wizarding traditions dominating the Mainlands, is associated aspects of the gods Odun and Torun, and believed by some to be related to Dwarvish Maharan traditions. In addition to these, although less common, are Druidic traditions derived from ancient chthonic shamanism and a kind of "natural" magic inherent in individuals believed to have Elvish or Fey elements in their ancestry. This is in fact true, as many Ahamun are descended from human tribes living in close proximity to ancient Elven (including High Elven) strongholds. Some Ahamun are also believed to be descended at least in part from Dwarvish or Giant ancestors. The latter tend to be of great stature, often have a propensity for either heroism or villainy, and usually possess inherent magic. Despite the relatively high prevalence of magic, and the popularity of consulting diviners and charm-makers, most Ahamun distrust it, viewing it as belonging alternatively to the realm of the dead, gods, supernatural spirits, or in Roskian terms, as "witchcraft" or "devilry."
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