Arumandjee

Arumandjee is the name given to the empire of the Djoolaman people, on the eastern coast of the single continent of Yandjee. To the squabbling states of the south it is considered only half an empire, but it remains a major source of coral, fine glassware, and indeed opals. The Djoolaman themselves see their land as one of carefully-cultivated peace, respect and relief hand in hand walking along the beautiful beaches. It is bordered by high mountains and mesas, nearly worn away but with impressive views.

The Djoolaman were originally divided into nine tribes along the coast, each of which competed, without very much effort, for control of the region. Mostly the Djoolaman were content to lie on the beach and relax, gathering food from nearby, flavouring it with the abundant spices, and painting stories of constellations. That is until the arrival of ironworking, originally from meteoritic iron but soon from local ores. The oligarchies fell under the sway of the Ilughee people of Danuhonghee, which appointed its own rulers as High Kings (djedhurnoo) of the region. Today the region is one of the major spice-producing lands in the world, and her ships range far and wide across the world.

Name Cycles

Clans in Arumandjee are patrilineal; colour-lineages (nyamba-nyamba, singular nyamba) are matrilineal. Eight nyamba-nyamba—White, Cyan, Black, Purple, Grey, Green, Blue, and Red (approximate translations, of course)—are found in everyday society, and anyone part of one colour is kin to all those who bear the same colour. And the cycles are fixed; a Grey mother will always have a Red child, and a Red woman, a Grey child. (There used to be rules about which colours were allowed to marry which; these days, bar the "non-incest" rule, mixing and matching is fairly common, although the matchmakers still try to line people up according to their hue.)

Clans, meanwhile, typically are named for simple things, like natural features, animals and plants, or certain tools. They, too, count themselves as kin, although typically cousin marriages within the same clan are acceptable if they are not of the same nyamba.