Munatan

Munatan [Moo-Nah-Tahn] is the southernmost region of Anásthias, south of the Dun Trisan mountains. The name possibly derives from a ancient Thalsic, meaning “Land of One Sun”, since the daystar is not visible in the southern hemisphere. Or it may be a reference to the Manthi people who were once the majority population of western Munatan. The term is an exonym originating in Ororrplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigOrorr

Ororr [o-ROARR, ɒ̝rɔ'ɾ], also called the Holy Motherland of Ororr, is a theocratic nation in Anásthias, one of the world's great powers. It the largest nation in the world, perhaps the largest empire in history, occupying the entire northwest of the continent between the mountains and the sea. Ororrlanguagelanguagelanguage, which the local people have only begun to use recently to describe the whole region.

Traditionally Munatan has been isolated from the rest of the continent, and therefore remote from what was once considered the “Civilised World”. Munatan historically had little contact with the outside, and as a result developed a distinct culture independent of the north. The only exceptions are the port city of Sjil (called Seldan in the north) and Li-Vam-Aur (Levandor), an ancient religious site high in the mountains between Ororr and Munatan. Both regions had regular visits by adventurous travellers, although this contact was not significant.

Munatan has been the subject of many exotic myths and legends in the north, rife with tales of dragons, gods and lost civilisations. Many of these fantastical tales were retold by the explorer Aego Gastrinimer in his fantastical account of his “circumnavigation of the world”.

The majority of Munatan is between 25° and 35° degrees south, making it cooler and wetter than the equatorial nations. Much of the region is rugged foothills of the mighty Dun Trisan mountains, the slopes of which are thick with virid forest and traversed by fast-flowing rivers, making the terrain difficult for human settlement. Most significant populations are on the coastal plains of the south, but there are human settlements throughout the region.

It is separated from Ororr in the north by the Dun Trisan, bounded in the east by the watershed of the River Roul which divides it from Taur-Dji-Oum. These boundaries were formally agreed being Ororr and Hartheraplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigHarthera

The Hartheran Union, commonly named Harthera, is an imperialist maritime nation state dominating the northeast of Anásthias. It is one of the two great powers of the modern epoch, arguably the most technologically and militarily powerful nation in the world, only matched by the vast size and wealth of its neighbour, viridOrorrMEOrorrOrorrOrorrOrorr following the Torthien Crisis, but in practice this is a vague distinction. The nations of La-Err-Rum and Li-Vam-Aur are technically in Munatan, though their Li-Bam-ethnic population has greater physical and cultural ties to Taur-Dji-Oum.

Munatan has a multiplicity of ethnic groups, but they are broadly divided into three.

First are the Li-Bam, people of the northern uplands and Torthien. The Li-Bam consider themselves the “native” population of the region, though they never expanded far beyond Torthien and are mainly found in eastern Munatan and the mountains. Descendants of the Othei-ethnic Manthi migrated in prehistoric times from the west of modern-day Ororr to settled around the western and southern coast. Next were the Essep peoples from Gildot who left their tribal jungles after invasion and persecution by Deltirot, EnSanni and others. Within the last thousand years there has been a significant influx of Doroun migrants from what was once the Empire of Dor-en-Sann, who founded the Ennseperan Empire, and modern Hesjbagaaia, where they form the ruling class. Most recently, enclaves of Ororran and Hartheran merchants have grown in the major port cities, particularly in Schai-dam.

The politics of Munatan are complex and governed by complex religious, historic, political and ethnic factors.

In ancient times, Plós and Li-Vam-Aur were the two great centres of moral philosophy, the roots of Dromeism. For much of the first millenium ME, western Munatan was dominated by the Empire of Ennseperans, which pursued a missionary policy of gaining converts to Western Heterodoxyplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigHeterodox Church

The Holy and Heterodoxic Church of the All-Deity, generally called the Heterodox Church, is a syncretic religion which embraces many historic traditions, believing all faiths are at heart the worship of one essential god, and that there are many routes to achieving transcendence.her through supporting client kings and tribal leaders friendly to their cause. In the east, military revolution in Biinmos saw the massive expansion of that state, and the expulsion of all foreigners and missionaries.

Since the Torthien Crisis the interests of the superpowers Ororr and Harthera have played an increasing role, with the two powers competing to gain influence over the region. Harthera long ago settled permanent trade missions in Schaidam and Hesjbagaaia, and has given covert military support to Biinmos. The Mother Church of Ororr pursued a policy of sending Theristplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigMother Church of Ororr (Therism)

The Mother Church is the state religion of Ororr, which combines both religion and government in one institution. It is based on the teachings of the Great Prophet Therion, who in the early decades of the modern era raised an army that conquered much of northwestern OrorrOrorrOrorrOrorrOrorrMEMEOrorrMEMEOrorrOrorrHerHerHerHerHerHerHerHerHerher missionaries into Munatan, with limited success and sometimes violent opposition. The resulting Torthien Crisis soured international relationships with nations in Torthien.

The position of Hesjbagaaia is complex. Ororr is the ancient enemy of the Heterodox Church, though the national elites have culturally more in common with Ororr than the east. Harthera was historically hostile towards foreign religions, however, recent relaxation of religious policy towards Heterodox churches in Harthera has improved relations, so that Hartheran colonial interests seem to be gaining the upper hand.