History

Andorian history is characterized by periods of extreme turbulence, which reflects the people's tendencies towards violence. Records from before 1692 (Earth-Gregorian) may be of limited value, as nearly all of Andoria's historical documents were destroyed during periods of global civil war, In 2104, the Andorians discovered the existence of the Aenar, who then decided to remain in seclusion.

Government

All Andorians are members of clans, or Keth, which specialise in different professional skills. The Keth all have different views, which need to be represented in some way in the global government. As such, the Kethni council, made up of a number of members from different Keth is the global government of Andoria, and it comprises around 300 members. Legislation, as well as the election of a Chancellor, is decided democratically. The Council is directly responsible for the Andorian Defence Force, which does not fall under the jurisdiction of Starfleet.

Physiology

The Andorian people have white hair, blue skin and 3 to 4-inch antennae sticking up out of their heads. On average, they tend to be a very tall, slim race. They tend to be 1.7 to 2.1 meters tall.

Andorians have very dense bone and muscle tissue that gives them incredible physical strength. In fact, the average Andorian can easily lift twice their body weight with little effort. While they have a normal skeleton like any other humanoid race they also have cartilage plates under their skin that act as a partial exoskeleton. This gives added protection to their vital organs, but it also provides additional strength to their muscles. The Andorian digestive system cannot tolerate chocolate.

They generally have heightened senses, and their visual ability is astounding - well above that of what is considered as generally accepted levels for Terrans. Thanks to their antennae, they have increased senses of smell and hearing, as they process additional information in conjunction with their nose and ears. Antennae are linked to the sinus cavity and can detect (among other things) temperature changes, changes in air pressure, subtle variations in airflow and sub-sonic sounds.

An Andorian's antennae aid in balance as well as the sensory enhancements mentioned above. If one is lost an Andorian's balance is temporarily disrupted, rendering them unable to fight, but they could adapt to its loss within a day. Antennae take up to nine months to grow back, though electrical stimulation and cranial massage therapy can cut regeneration time in half. While it is true that if they lose their antenna they will grow back in about 9 months, most Andorians prefer not to survive the loss. The loss of an antenna is similar to losing an ear, and Andorians suffer from a widespread fear of this loss. There is also the fact that while waiting for their antenna to regenerate that they are at a severe disadvantage in situations that require their balance to be unimpaired such as physical combat. Antennae are moved by muscles that can be controlled separately from one another.

Andorians, with a higher metabolic rate than Terrans, are especially vulnerable to phase pulse infection; even minor phase injuries could prove fatal. However, they have demonstrated resistance to a wide range of environmental conditions. In a climate where the temperature is near the boiling point of water, an Andorian could still thrive, despite losing 10% of their body weight in two days. It is also due to this increased metabolism that they tire quickly during periods of physical exertion.

Neither nocturnal nor diurnal, Andorians can function just as well at any time of the day or night. In fact, they can easily survive on 3 to 4 hours of sleep during a standard 32*hour Andorian day.

The blue skin associated with Andorians is due to a protein/dye called HZB-41. This protein dye is produced by almost every form of animal life on Andoria - though the dye has a very short life span, and as such, Andorians continuously replace this protein through their diet. When an Andorian becomes ill, their skin colouration tends to fade, as their immune system is fighting off illness and cannot produce enough dye to maintain their skin colour.

Psychology

The Andorians are passionate people who are well-known for their military prowess. Deploring dishonesty and never fighting without reason, Andorians are nonetheless capable of duplicity. They consider themselves deeply emotional, passionate, and even violent; not known for their charity or sympathy, they place a high value on family.

Religion

While Andorians do not appear outwardly to be religious, there are tenets and beliefs that they hold dear. Perhaps the most important axiom of the Andorian people is: “With the bond, we are whole, without the bond we are nothing” 

Society

As a race and a culture the Andorians can not stand disabilities among their people, and while obesity is not unknown among them, it is culturally condemned by the majority of them.

Code of Honour

A strict code of honour is adhered to for settling disputes in order to prevent a return to the Time of Lament, an age of planet-wide civil war which almost resulted in the extinction of the Andorian species. In order to limit disputes to small numbers of individuals rather than entire clans, Andorians follow a strict code of honour that governs duelling as a means of resolving differences.

A crucial part of Andorian tradition is Ushaan, a code of honuor demanding a duel to the death, with combatants pitted against one another using an ushaan-tor (iceminer's tool). A vast body of regulations with around 12,000 amendments binds this code. Such a fight can be called off if one combatant disabled the other enough to prevent its continuance. Though Ushaan can be called by someone to avenge a personal loss, there exists a right of substitution wherein each combatant can offer up a replacement, and married combatants could postpone duels indefinitely if they had no children to continue their clans.

Invoked for personal grievances, the Ushaan can be settled by the first strike, first blood, or in the cases of extreme actions such as murder, to the death. Most Andorians reserve these customs for other Andorians only, but traditionalists may hold other species to the same values.  Imperial Guard members who died far from home could count on their companions to transport 

Customs

Andorian weddings require four people and are called "bonding". While sexual union outside of a bond which is frowned upon it is also understood that young adults will experiment. However, once the bond has become formalized it is generally uncommon. Once bonding has occurred between a compatible set of four Andorians, only the clan's ruling Zhavey (oldest zhen) can give permission for one of them to be released from their bond.

Military

Andorians are a militaristic race, exemplified in small part by weaponry without stun settings. They consider it an honour to serve in their Imperial Guard, and military rank greatly influenced their social reputation. The Andorian Imperial Guard continues to act as a defence for Andoria and operates outside of Starfleet's command structure. Although relations with the Vulcan people were once strained, they have now settled onto more friendly terms.

As members of the United Federation of Planets, the Andorians have access to many different types of Starfleet Vessels. However, Andorian Battle-Cruisers are used as the mainstay of the Andorian Imperial Guard.  The Andorian Merchant Fleet is the largest in Federation space.  It is said that Andorian renegades, in the Triangula system, once embarrassed a Starfleet admiral's supposed search when they hid their ship by dismantling it.