Higher Tar-dinuu

The Kingdom of Higher Tar-dinuu is a coastal tropical nation located at the northernmost tip of !South America. It shares a land border only with Independent Provinces of Lower Tar-dinuu but shares a sea border with (Whatever is on that peninsula). It is 1,376,536.16 square kilometers, divided into 33 states, each with a rich local history and culture. Though minor skirmishes have occurred on the border with Lower Tar-dinuu, and with (Unnamed Ordrish colonial island countries), it is not openly hostile with any power in the current age. Higher Tar-dinuu has one of the longest histories of any country in the fertile north of the continent, with the first major power in the region being established around 1,000 BCE in Yurdtri’s Fingers. While many hunter-gatherers had passed through the region prior in order to reach Vidina, only a few had settled there, and none had done so in the mountains. However, in the mountains, the settlers found rich deposits of metal. This material wealth allowed them to quickly advance, and conquer most of the peninsula on which they lived. However, their exploitation of the southernmost provinces resulted in their downfall. By around 550 BCE, Tar-dinuu dissolved into a collection of city-states. However, in 1321 CE, the city-states were forced to reunite in the face of a looming threat. They formed a loose confederacy. Unfortunately, this was not enough. (Unnamed Empire) conquered the city-states on the southern edge of the country. While the empire fell due to internal problems, it still taught the civilization that it needed to unite. In 1329 CE, the first king was elected. The southern states, which had rejoined Tar-dinuu, broke off to become their own country known as Lower Tar-dinuu. This state of affairs would continue to the present day. There were no major wars, aside from a few skirmishes at the border with Lower Tar-dinuu. Though during the era of colonization the islands were conquered, the actual mainland remained independent. The nation has proven to be remarkably stable. Today, Higher Tar-dinuu continues to be. Its economy has been kept prosperous by its advantageous position in Srtui’s Strait, the oil reserves found in the area of the ocean they own, and the beautiful reefs and rainforests that have attracted many tourists. It is fairly developed, but it is still grappling with the unwise decisions made by the country's royalty in the past. It has maintained a position of major economic and cultural power in northern !South America, and generally is vocal but not very influential on the world stage.

Etymology
The name “Tar-dinuu” comes from the Archaic-Dinuu word for land (“Tar”) and the Archaic-Dinuu word for themselves, “Dinuu”. “Dinuu” itself comes from a fusion of the Archaic-Dinuu words “Di” and “Nuu”. “Di” means World, and “Nuu” means people. In all, the name “Tar-Dinuu” means “Land of the people of the world”.

Prehistory
The oldest remains of humanity on the peninsula can be dated back to 20,000 years ago, in the form of hunter-gatherers passing through on their way to Vidina. These early cultures restricted themselves to the coast for the most part, as the jungles were difficult to travel through. Though these peoples have left their mark on the local ecosystems. The first actual settlements are dated to approximately 6,000 years ago. These belonged to what is now known as the Burtulaen culture. These people lived at the base of the peninsula, in small agricultural communities. It has been suggested that these people were the ones to originally domesticate qih and spread beans as a food crop. Archeological evidence shows that they were proficient in pottery but never discovered metal-working. All known tools found from these people were made of flint. This lack of metal ultimately led to their assimilation at the hands of the Dinuu approximately 2,900 years ago. The second civilization to appear in the region now under the control of Higher Tar-dinuu is the Kidal civilization. The Kidal were proficient in shipbuilding and were prolific explorers. Evidence of their existence, in the form of monk-seal bone talismans and cultural influences, can be found as far away from the islands which they lived on as the southernmost regions of Vidina. The Kidal people first appeared around 4,000 years ago, and continue to have their culture to this day (though strongly influenced by Dinuu culture). The most recent civilization to emerge was the Dinuu. They were another agricultural civilization, located on the slopes of Yurdtri’s Fingers and the surrounding regions. The Dinuu mastered the technique of terrace farming, allowing them to live in areas where an agricultural civilization would ordinarily have trouble. Their most important attribute was the fact they were the first civilization to enter the Bronze Age. While it isn’t currently known when exactly the Dinuu invented metal-working, it can be presumed to be at least 3,000 years ago. Older smithies and mining operations may exist, but more archeological expeditions into Yurdtri’s Fingers would be required to find them. Either way, after inventing metal-working, the Dinuu entered the Bronze Age. They began what would be later known as the Empire of Tar-dinuu, though at the time it was simply known as Tar-dinuu.

The Empire of Tar-dinuu
The start of the empire of Tar-dinuu is shrouded in mystery. Written language was only invented hundreds of years after its founding, and the actual circumstances of its beginnings had already been distorted by generations of storytellers by the time the first letters were inscribed on the first clay tablets. From the legends that were written, the empire was started by an individual who has been given the moniker Flir-Vur (“Uniter of the Heavens”). The legends state that Flir-Vur was a chieftain who was taught the art of forging metal by the gods. The individual used this knowledge to unite the clans in the mountains and began a crusade to conquer the rest of the world. When the first Flir (the first part of Flir-Vur’s name became a title taken by almost every subsequent emperor) eventually died in combat, the army’s Jul-nuranit (Seer of Death, a religious advisor who supposedly spoke with the spirits of the dead and could help those who had reincarnated remember their past lives) decreed that the next child born would be the reincarnation of the Flir. While the child matured, the second-in-command of the army would act as regent. Due to the difficulty of actually determining which child was the first child to be born after the death of the Flir (especially at the height of Tar-dinuu, when thousands of people lived inside its borders), the first child born was usually decided to be the first child born after the death of the Flir that the Jul-nuranit was told about. Additionally, the Jul-nuranit often accepted bribes. Though the Flir was almost never truly the first child born after the death of the previous Flir, this practice forced the development of some of the earliest censuses and greatly advanced the civilization’s mathematical knowledge.

The empire also advanced by assimilating other cultures. For example, after completely conquering the Burtulaen culture, evidence suggests that Tar-dinuu adopted many of their domesticated species and agricultural techniques. It has even been suggested that the qih (which later became an important meat animal and beast of burden to the empire) were first domesticated by the Burtulaen. Another culture that enriched the empire was the Kidal islands. Their shipbuilding techniques were quickly adopted by the Tar-dinuu navy to aid in trade and maritime combat. Additionally, their religion was combined with the Dinuu’s religion to form the first precursor to Edlerism (approximately 2,500 years ago). Unlike the Burtulaen (who were mostly enslaved by Tar-dinuu), the Kidal remained mostly intact. Keeping the islands subjugated would be expensive, and the Kidal were fairly cooperative with the conquerors. The extent of the nation’s control of the region was the taxation of local resources and a couple of regional governors. The Kidal model was copied in many subjugated areas, as it would be too expensive to maintain strict control of the entire empire. However, a lot of exploitation still occurred, including enslaving portions of settlements to work on projects and heavy taxation of conquered lands. This (along with extensive trade routes that reached eastern !Polynesia and southern Vidina) resulted in the empire growing massively in wealth. This wealth would continue to build throughout much of the empire of Tar-dinuu’s history. As a result of these riches, the empire of Tar-dinuu was able to achieve many amazing feats. They built up an extensive and organized road system, the first wheels in the north of the continent, the first concrete in the north of the continent, a decent understanding of astronomy, written language, and they constructed massive temple complexes in the mountains. An important note is that very few of these projects ever benefited the subjugated provinces. The cities on the coast and in the mountains continued to grow in wealth, while the areas further south or inland were deprived of people and resources.

This was not originally a problem for Tar-dinuu, as the military presence in the subjugated areas (while fairly sparse) was enough to ensure that most of the small rebellions were put down quickly. Additionally, the local leadership and culture were allowed to exist mostly undisturbed in many areas. However, this stopped at the end of the empire, when the Flir was overthrown. This person declared themself the Edrit and tried to establish a dynasty in Tar-dinuu. The Edrit began to try and take stricter control over the entire empire of Tar-dinuu, which resulted in many revolts. However, the army’s attempts at increasing the Tar-dinuu presence throughout the empire resulted in it being spread too thin. Soon, most of the conquered areas had escaped the empire, and by 550 BCE, the core of the empire fell. The Edrit was deposed, and the Tar-dinuu officially dissolved.

Citystates and the Confederation of Tar-dinuu
The era of city-states began with the dissolution of the empire of Tar-dinuu in 550 BCE (though that is the date when the Edrit was deposed, most cities had fallen by 547 BCE), and lasted until 1321 CE (when the Confederacy of Tar-dinuu formed). This time period was characterized by the formation of many small feudal kingdoms, and the degradation of the original Tar-dinuu culture. Each country evolved its own culture, based on a mixture of the culture of subjugated people, traders from other lands, and the Dinuu culture. In fact, the modern Dinuu language evolved during this time. Despite all springing from the same source, these nations often battled each other for supremacy. On many occasions, smaller city-states were annihilated or assimilated by larger ones. Wounds from these old conflicts still are apparent in rivalries between different states. Another limiter on the development of Dinuu and the population of the peninsula was the Norvitin Plague (named for the kingdom it first appeared in). It is suspected to have come from Vidinian traders and quickly laid waste to the civilization. This, along with the wars, resulted in a little less than 100 countries being whittled down to just 54. This devastation was contrasted by sporadic periods of advancement. Some kingdoms began investing in science and philosophy, resulting in the invention of compasses, aqueducts, clockwork, and early forms of democracy, among other things. In addition, Edlerism fully evolved into the modern form we know today.

The period of city-states and kingdoms ended in 1321, when the short-lived era of the Confederacy of Tar-dinuu began. A new empire arose to the south of the region and began attempting to conquer the peninsula, which was economically valuable due to its proximity to Vidina. As this empire advanced, the kingdom of Muralilin called for the organization of a loose confederation of the nations on the peninsula and on the islands of Kidal. In this new alliance, each decision would be made by a council composed of ambassadors from each country. They would ultimately work together to protect the civilization of subjugation by hostile forces and to further the spread of Edlerism and Dinuu philosophy across the world. There was a strong emphasis on equality. The council was one of equals, and no one country had more influence. To ensure this was the case, Srhui island was chosen as the headquarters of this council (it had not previously been under the control of any one nation, as it was not economically or strategically valuable and was uninhabited). Ultimately, the Confederacy of Tar-dinuu failed in its goals. The member-countries in the south of the peninsula were swallowed up by the ever-expanding empire. The rest of the region would have soon followed suit, but the empire fell from internal difficulties soon after conquering the fringes of Tar-dinuu. The ineffectiveness of the confederation made the nations realize that greater unity was required if the civilization was going to continue to flourish. The council decided to nominate one among them to take the mantle of King, and set up a strong central government. Each nation would get to preserve some form of independence, as they formed the basis of new states that make up Tar-dinuu. The nations in the southern reaches of Tar-dinuu did not agree that they needed a king, or a central government, so they seceded from Tar-dinuu and became their own country, based on the Confederation of Tar-dinuu.

In 1329, Trinuun the Great was elected Edmuralit of the Higher Tar-dinuu, and the Kingdom of Higher Tar-dinuu was born.