The Tarande: Karaam in context.
- Map of Tarande.png (96.52 KiB) Viewed 5010 times
Geographically, it corresponds to the area shaded red on the map; there are no clear dividing border. The best definition is probably ecological; the Tarande corresponds to the areas of Mediterranean or Pontic climate. (Summers are hot and dry; Winters are either severe - in the North or mild - in the South.) It's bordered by mountainous steppe to the East, desert in the south, and the Sea of Serenity and the Sea of Anger to the West. For scale; this is about the size of Western Europe.
One meaning of Tarande is 'calendar.' The Tarandim share a common calendar; this meshes in with religion -- they share a common belief system or more accurately, a family of related belief systems.
Politically we can say that the Tarande is defined by political disunion. There are about 300 independant states, all connected in a complex network of alliances, rivalries and vassal relationships. The natural political unit is the city-state or mansa. There have been imperial periods in the past, but imperial rule in the Tarande has always been difficult (typically city-states would formally accept suzerainty and then do what they pleased) and short-lived anyway.
Currently the largest states are Alwas and Qanan; both about the size of England. (In both cases, most of the area is marginal land, with only theoretical control over the local nomadic population.)
Language in the Tarande
The linguistic situation is one of considerable diversity: there are seven major languages -- each with many distinct dialects, belonging to four distinct language families.
The language with the highest number of speakers is, by far, Simbri. Quite naturally, it serves as the lingua franca for the whole Tarande.
Also relevant is Asuraam . Asuraam was spoken about 1500 years before present; it's the direct ancestor of Simbri and the former lingua franca.
Before Asuraam, the prestige language was Karaam (spoken 3500 years before present.)
Asuraam and Karaam are still widely learned and used. All three languages belong to the Dimoan language family.
In this thread, we will take a plunge 3500 years before present and focus on Karaam.
Karaam is still widely used as the language of priesthood, religion, theology and magic. For that reason it is sometimes called Hieratic Tarandim.
The Dimoan family
Karaam is pretty close to proto-Dimoan. At the time it was spoken, most of central Tarande (in deeper red on the map) spoke a Dimoan dialect; the Dimoan dialects, though diverse, were still mutually intelligible.
Karaam was used for the Mannamis (Karaam Moggagwis), 'the Inquiry', the Tarandim holy books. Further religious commentary used Karaam as well; and Asuraam later on.
Karaam means 'clear' or 'holy'. The other Dimoan dialects are collectively known as Gwemoam or Memoam 'demotic.'
The Tarandim believe that Karaam is the ancestor of Asuraam and Simbri; and indeed of most of the Tarandim language. That is probably not the case; Asuraam derives from another branch of Dimoan. There doesn't seem to be any direct descendants of the Karaam branch.
Asuraam, Simbri and in fact all of the Tarandim languages borrowed extensively from Karaam. In addition they freely calque Karaam word-formation and syntax. So the traditional Tarandim view isn't completely inaccurate either.
The Tarandim believe Karaam is the original tongue, spoken when the world was recreated; which they date back to their year 0 (5192 years before present.)
The Dimoan languages can probably be related to the Newari and Kaysan families; proto-Dimoan-Kaysan probably spread along with agriculture.
