Arcadian Altanate

Arcadia (Arcadian: Arqadia [arˈkaːdja]), officially the Sublime Arcadian Altanate (Arcadian: Altanaša Arqadiava Čedaxa), is a nation located northeast of Kogongu on the continent of Koganon. It is a theocratic monarchy, led by a religious and political leader called an Altan. The capital is the holy city of Wahat Almarjan. The Altanate is the center of the holy Mufijo faith, with all of its current followers living within the Altanate's territory. The divine mission of the Altanate is to befriend and peacefully convert Alathrans to the faith of Mufijo, although it rarely undertakes many efforts to fulfill this sacred goal.

Etymology
The name 'Arcadia' comes from the Kogongi word 'Arkhat' meaning 'land that has sun on both sides' due to how the sun could be seen rising and setting on the ocean from the peninsula. From there the word was picked up by Kogongi fisher men who used it to describe the peninsula, a hot spot for fishermen from all over the surrounding area to rest, causing the word to interchange with other cultures to a point where it eventually came to be pronounced as 'Arkada' and it came to mean 'view of the rising and setting sun'. Once settlement came to 'Arkada', the people of nearby Kais Kogong began to refer to the area as 'Arcadia' or 'land of the rising and setting sun'.

Geography
Much of Arcadia is located on the aptly titled Arcadian Peninsula, with small area in the southern forests of Cotona. The peninsula itself could be described as a barren and flat coastal grassland with small caves found in the south along with a handful of small ponds. The peninsula is also surronded by several coral reefs, from which Wahat Almarjan takes its name. The land possessed by the Altanate in the Kogongi forests are hilly with tough rock found only a few feet below the surface as well as a few small ponds. East of the Arcadian Peninsula is the island of Atolia, another territory of the Altanate. It is a flat, grassy, and sandy island surrounded by many reefs, similar to the Arcadian Peninsula.

Ecology
Little plant life besides small shrubs, tall grass, Cacti, and a very small amount of oak trees are truly native to the Arcadian peninsula. Many species were brought in from other lands nearby such as Gausha, where Acacia saplings were found and then brought back where they would go on to be a very popular plant amongst the people of Wahat Almarjan. Bamboo was also imported, however; it is not known from where it came but scholars believe it may have come from the jungles of nearby Prospit. A number of different flowers can also be found, it is believed the vast majority of them are not native besides the rose bushes and oxeye Daisies. In the South, the land is dotted by mainly dark oak trees, mushroom trees, and a few Birch trees, all of which are connected to a larger forest within the borders of Kogongu. The fauna of modern day Arcadia is quite diverse but this is mostly thanks to creatures being imported from other lands. It is believed that the only animals that originally inhabited the peninsula were sheep, chickens, and horses. Cows and pigs can now be found roaming around Arcadian lands and have managed to fit in well with the various species native to the area.

Government
The Arcadian Altanate is a highly centralized state controlled by the 'Altan', a leader supposedly chosen by the gods to rule over the state. The Altan holds almost all power over the lands of Arcadia and wields significant political influence when it comes to the nation's actions. In order to keep the Altan in line however; the gods created the 'Mumbas' who act as checks on the Altan's power in order to make sure he does not become a tyrant. As of writing, there is no democratic component to the Arcadian government and the peasants wield little political influence besides their appeals to the Mumbas or the Altan.

Law
The Arcadian Altanate, as of writing, has no official code of conduct and set of rules, however; the Altan enforces basic rules including:
 * Murdering fellow citizens is strictly prohibited, violation of this rule will result in significant punishment.
 * Stealing from fellow citizens is strictly prohibited, violation of this rule will result in significant punishment.
 * Making political statements in the name of Arcadia without the Altan's direct and clear consent is strictly prohibited, violation of this rule will result in significant punishment.
 * Construction projects must be approved of first by the Lead Architect, this includes the design and placement of any structure, especially in a highly developed zone.
 * Discrimination against other citizens based on their race, gender, sexuality, or other affiliations (discounting religion) is strictly prohibited and will result in severe punishment. (Discriminating against in game religion is allowed, however real religions are not included with this clarification)

On top of these rules, the Altan also employs a loose system known as 'The Euro System' named after the famous Arcadian hero, Euro Johnson. The system is meant to keep citizens in line and also give reward for doing good deeds. When a citizen does one good deed, the Altan will judge the value of that deed and then give an appropriate number of 'Euro Points' to that citizen for their work. Once one meets the goal of 64 Euro Points, the Altan will reward that citizen handsomely. These 'Euro Points' come in the form of 'golden coins' and cannot be used as currency as doing so is strictly prohibited.

Foreign Relations
The Arcadian Altanate only holds one real political relation, which is a spoken agreement with Kogongu, its largest and most influential neighbor, that dictates that the two nations will have peaceful relations.

As well as this agreement, the Kingdom of Elyria has reached out to Arcadia simply to tell them that they are not a threat to the fledgling nation and do not intend to colonize their native continent. Talks of a written agreement between the two were briefly suggested but never materialized.

By far, Arcadia's closest ally in history would have to have been the island nation of Atolia. The two nations conversed greatly and completed a large infrastructure project together to help better connect the two's capital cities. The continued good relations between the Altanate and Atolia culminated in the latter joining the Altanate on August 15th, 2021.

Languages
The official language of the Altanate is Arcadian, the sole remaining member of the Yuvo-Arcadian language family. For most of its history, the Arcadian Peninsula was devoid of any permanent settlement, but was frequently visited by Kogongi fishermen, speaking the Kogogni language. However, when the Altan arrived, and founded Wahat, he brought with him an entirely foreign tongue. The Altan spoke a dialect of the extinct Yuvantiyan language, yet after being expelled from Yuvantiya, the Altan's dialect began to morph into its own language. The new language became known as Arcadian, taking its name from the peninsula the Altan now inhabited. Arcadian acts as the religious lingua franca that crosses the different cultures and languages of the Mufijo faithful. All signage, religious services, and media must be printed in Arcadian. Kogongi is used heavily by the Kogongi people residing in Arcadia, but was originally not a recognized language of the Altanate. However, after requests by the Kogongi for more linguistic rights, the Altan allowed for the language to become nationally recongnized.

A Sample Sentence of Arcadian:

English: I was going to cook the food, but we don’t have any coal for the fire.

Arcadian: Ri pižanotijo, peqo poero aq ǧu pozanó.

Towns

 * Wahat Almarjan
 * Gint
 * Atolia