Tsétlaxó

Tsétlaxó, officially known as the Polity and Republic of Tsétlaxó, is a founding city-state of Énqusqó which also serves as the seat for the supra-national government. Human settlement at the site has been evidenced to date back to around 1000 BCE and the site is believed to be the oldest, continuously inhabited city in Vidina. The modern republic extends its rule over an area of [LAND AREA] since its independence in 1949.

The city-state has exerted heavy political and economic interest over its neighbours for much of its modern history, despite being one of the smaller member states of the Énqusqan Republic.

Prehistory
Several archaeological sites from across the modern city have revealed the site to be one of the longest continually inhabited regions. The oldest evidence of human settlement, a small collection of fishbones, fishing spears and wooden structures comes from the Cecéqon region. Carbon dating of the site puts the active period of the settlement to around 1700-1500 BCE. There approximately 70 such sites spread across the metropolitan area and the three major rivers.

Foundation
Due to the late adoption of writing amongst Énqutsa people, there exist no accurate historical records of the founding of Tsétlaxó. The city, however, does have a legend associated with its founding that relates to it's patron gods. This myth ha shad many forms over the course of history and was often changed deliberately by cultural leaders to push political agendas. The legend states that a young girl had been playing along the banks of the [MAIN RIVER] when she had been bitten by a snake, causing her to drown in the river. Moved by the tragedy of the death of the young girl, the seven neighbouring families convened in mourning and founded a city around the girl's tomb. The city's foundation myth calls upon the themes of the two patron gods Énsémútli and Qaya, mortality and the loss of innocence. These two deities are still reflected in the modern state, with both a moon and two winged serpents appearing on the flag.

Archaeological evidence of a centralised, walled settlement appears in around 1000 BCE, which correlates closely with estimates made from dates from the foundation myths. In further agreement with the myth there were several original settlements located around the [MAIN RIVER] that coalesced into the central walled city.