Archive:Jáhkavarra

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High Chiefdom of Jáhkavarra
Jáhkavarrá Issohálga
Flag of Jáhkavarra
Flag
Location of Jáhkavarra
Location of Jáhkavarra to the north of Atsiq
CapitalJávravuohtji
Official languages Jáhkarrá
Demonym Jáhka
Government Constitutional monarchy
 -  High Chieftess Ruoŧŧá Rievča
Legislature Tribal Council
 -  Upper house House of Chieftains
 -  Lower house House of Appointees
Establishment
 -  Treaty of Čuoikkás 1931 
 -  Constitution of Jáhkavarra 1973 
Population
 -  2016 estimate 800,000
Time zone SCT-11
Drives on the right
Calling code +908
Internet TLD .jv

Jáhkavarra (Jáhkarrá: [ˈjahːkɑʋɑrːɑ]), officially the High Chiefdom of Jáhkavarra (Jáhkavarrá Issohálga [ˈjahːkɑʋɑrːaː ˈisːɔhalːkɑ]), is a country located in the western Jaxukuk Sea, to the north of the Atsiq mainland. It encompasses the main island of Jáhkavarra Proper as well as several surrounding islands, collectively referred to as the Jáhka archipelago. Formed in 1931 as a loose confederation of largely independent chiefdoms united under an elected High Chief, centralisation efforts increased in the 1950s as the strongest constituent tribe, the Ruoŧŧa, managed to tighten their grip on power, transforming the union into a hereditary monarchy in 1973. Since the early 2000s, the country has stepped up its involvement in global affairs and is in the middle of a rapid transformation into a modern nation.

Etymology

Jáhka, from which the name of the country, its language and its demonym are derived, is the Jáhkarrá word for "human" or "person". The suffix -varra means "land of"; thus Jáhkavarra is simply "land of the people".

History

Geography

The Jáhka archipelago lies approximately XXX kilometres to the north of the continent of Atsiq and consists of one main island, connonly referred to as Jáhkavarra Proper, and several dozen much smaller islets, only the largest of which are inhabited. The Arctic Circle runs through the southern part of the mainland, which consists of two large landmasses connected by the Čuoikkas Isthmus. The geography of the western part is dominated by the Suoiŋa Massif, a mountain range that contains several active volcanoes and takes up more than half of the landmass, while to the east of the isthmus the land is mostly flat, rising only in the northeast to form the Neaččá Ridge. This clear east-west division has influenced Jáhkavarra society and politics since the main island was first settled.

Geology

Climate

The climate in Jáhkavarra is subarctic, with tundra covering most of the mainland. However, warm currents ensure there is little to no permafrost, making agriculture possible to a limited degree.

Biodiversity

Politics

The Treaty of Čuoikkas united the various independent chiefdoms of the island, establishing an island-wide government in Jávravuohtji, until then an independent city-state. True central authority remained weak, however, with the chieftains enjoying considerable freedom in governing their provinces. The office of High Chieftain was largely ceremonial and, although formally filled by election, was monopolised by the leader of the Ruoŧŧa clan, who administrated the richest and most populous province of Jáhkavarra. The election of Ruoŧŧá Vierra in 1962 marked the beginning of a different interpretation of the position, leveraging the economic and military power of the Ruoŧŧa over the other clans to steer the country closer to unification. The only notable resistance against the growing dominance of a single clan collapsed with the Veálgas Indicent in 1970. In the following year, the Constitution of Jáhkavarra made the title of High Chieftain hereditary to the Ruoŧŧa clan and furnished the ruler with far-reaching executive powers, although the other chieftains retain political influence through the Tribal Council which acts as a balance to a limited amount.

Government

High Chieftess Ruoŧŧá Rievča.

Head of state and government is the High Chieftain or Chieftess, who bears the title Issohká. Legislative and executive authority largely lies with them. A semi-democratic element is the Tribal Council, which can introduce bills and has the right to be heards by the Issohká, but has no constitutionally guaranteed legislative power. Its first chamber, the Council of Chieftains, consists of the sixteen provincial governors, who for most provinces are identical to the chieftain of the tribe the majority of inhabitants belongs to. The second chamber (Council of Appointees) is assembled from envoys from the provinces, which are not elected by popular vote but appointed by each provincial governor. The provinces differ in how strong the popular element is in influencing the composition of the Council delegation, but on the whole the Jáhkavarra political system cannot reasonably be called a democracy, not even on municipal level. Ordinary citizens of Jáhkavarra, unless they have ties to a member of the ruling class, have little to no say in how the country is run.

The tribal leaders are granted special rights in the Constitution to preserve their pre-eminent position, largely a concession to forestall local unrest in a country that still is a federation more than a unified federal state. While they are nominally subservient to directives from the central government, the detailed implementation of these is explicitly mentioned as the prerogative of provincial leaders. This makes the degree to which a High Chieftain can influence Jáhkavarra politics highly dependent on their ability to balance local and national interests and has in some cases proven to be an impediment to radical reforms. Since the passing of the Constitution, each High Chieftess has had her own way of working with the Tribal Council and has respected its status as an independent political identity to different degrees.

The current High Chieftess, inaugurated in 2014, is Rievča, the eldest daughter of her predecessor Jeaksarru. She belongs to the highly progressive, modernist faction of young and ambitious Jáhka politicians that seek to put an end to the fragmentation and particularism of their country. As Jáhkavarra involves itself more and more with other Sahar powers, the Issohká's political vision is sure to raise tensions among the established elites and their own designs on the country's future. The first four years of Rievča's rule have been characterised by regular clashes with the Tribal Council, which has repeatedly voiced its concerns about being marginalised in the light of the High Chieftess's frequent refusal to cooperate with the Council's wishes in regard to foreign affairs.

Administrative divisions

Provinces of Jáhkavarra.

The administrative organisation of Jáhkavarra reflects the structure of its society. Administrative regions largely correspond with the territories under the control of a tribe, whose leaders agreed to form a federation in the Treaty of Čuoikkas, thereby securing their autonomy instead of risking conquest by the largest and most powerful Ruoŧŧa tribe. The provinces are grouped into three superordinate administrative regions based on geographical location.

In total, there are fourteen provinces. The capital, Jávravuohtji, is an administrative region of its own, together with the island of Ruoskás:

Province Administrative region Population
Gorgŋos Western Mainland 101,200
Ispivarra Western Mainland 48,700
Čiezzá Western Mainland 55,000
Hastavirrá Western Mainland 87,000
Ruoŧŧávarra Western Mainland 125,000
Čuoikkas Eastern Mainland 87,300
Reaibmi Eastern Mainland 76,700
Bárraleahci Eastern Mainland 102,000
Neaččil Eastern Mainland 53,000
Doaldnu Islands 3,100
Miežžavuodna Islands 4,200
Veáŋačuvin Islands 2,100
Heajjačuvin Islands 2,300
Arrajietna Islands 600
Jávravuohtji Jávravuohtji Capital Province 52,000
Total 800,200

Foreign relations

Military

Economy

Transport

Energy

Science and technology

Tourism

Demographics

Ethnic groups

Urbanisation

Language

Jáhkarrá, an isolate with no known links to any other Sahar language family, is the sole recognised language of the islands. There is little dialectal variation, but the speech of the wealthy elites of Jávravuohtji functions as the de facto standard. Very few of the natives speak any other language even to a limited degree. A small number of Achiyitqan speakers resides in the capital, most of them scientists or embassy officials.

Education

Healthcare

Religion

Culture

Heritage

Architecture

Literature

Art

Music

Theatre

Film

Cuisine

Sport

Symbols

See also