Hanad

Hanad is an empire on the Aotan continent of Vald.

History

Main Article: History of the Hanad empire

Politics

Officially, Hanad is an empire, but its throne has been vacant since 1807, when emperor Sakuur XIV died without offspring. The Council of Druids, which had been functioning as government under the emperors long before that, continued to rule by itself and its members decided not to search for a new emperor. Whoever wishes to claim the imperial throne, has to ask the Druids permission to go through a series of secret rituals.

In order to rule a realm as large as Hanad, the Hanad language has been the only official language for centuries. As a living language, the Hanad language died out a long time ago and was replaced by many vulgar variants of it. The few knowing how to read and write (mostly local druids who govern the villages and cities) speak Hanad, whereas the normal people use local languages. The Aota script was introduced less than a century ago in order to replace the many writing systems that were used simultaneously until then.

The present Council of Druids is composed of eight men and women. Druids are selected after knowledge and achievements: only the best students of the country's only university in the city of Sossaum are eligible for the Council of Druids. The maximum number of Druids who were members of the Council simultaneously, was 23; the minimum number was one. The Council is chaired by the Chief Druid; presently Arowaan, son of Ossaa.

Religion

The empire's main philosophy is based on the literary work 'The Words of Asmonuu', which still enjoys significant popularity but which is also used by the Council of Druids to keep the people illiterate. Partly because of this, the country is technologically backward in comparison with some of the smaller neighbouring countries.