Mountain Dwarves

The **Mountain Dwarves** were a dwarven ethnic group native to the Dwarven Mountains and the lands surrounding them. Generally, the Mountain Dwarves shared a common language and culture, although slight cultural distinctions could be observed within each of the four tribes of the Mountain Dwarves. Both Mountain Dwarves and Valley Dwarves were Dwarven Monotheists, and worshipped the god Kumulak.

## History

### Ancient History

According to dwarven legend, the first settlements in the Dwarven Mountains were made by eight out of ten original dwarves created by their god, Kumulak. These eight dwarves laid the foundation for dwarven civilization in the Dwarven Mountains, and established the four tribes of the Dwarven Mountains, those being the Fukan, Zugin, Kuban, and Sulin Tribes.

As the population of the tribes grew, so did the number of their settlements, and soon the Mountain Dwarves could be found all across the Dwarven Mountains, not to mention underneath them as well. However, with an increasing population also meant competition, and wars were sometimes fought between the four tribes over resources and land. For 930 years, the tribes of the Mountain Dwarves fought with one another off and on until they were united by Akadfukan, the chief of the Fukan Tribe, in the year 60.

### The Mountain Kingdom

Through diplomacy and warfare, Akadfukan brought the four tribes of the Mountain Dwarves together, and for his efforts he was proclaimed king of the Mountain Dwarves. Thus, the Mountain Dwarves shifted from being governed by four ununified tribes, to being governed by a kingdom which had the loyalty of the four tribes. During Akadfukan's reign as king, he sent explorers to find new lands outside of the Dwarven Mountains, and to construct settlements there. It was through these efforts that the Mountain Dwarves made settlements in the region of Yabdash on August 19, 104.

### The Mountain and Valley War

Approximately in the year 109, Akadfukan declared war upon the Zahab Tribe, in an attempt to established complete dominance over the dwarven race. The war was long and costly, lasting nearly twelve years, and resulting in the deaths of both Akadfukan and Akadzahab, chief of the Zahab Tribe. During the war, dwarven regions were conquered and reconquered by the Mountain Kingdom and the Zahab Tribe, and with every conquest, the lord of a region was replaced by another. Soon, the territorial holdings of the Mountain Kingdom and the Zahab Tribe had been reversed, with the Mountain Kingdom controlling the regions of Akamuz, and Hushamuz, and the Zahab Tribe controlling the regions of Nāzehān, and Yabdash (as well as Ketīn, a region founded by Valley Dwarves). Now, Mountain Dwarves owed their allegiance to members of the Royal House of Zahab, the dynasty which ruled the Zahab Tribe, while the Valley Dwarves owed their allegiance to members of the Royal House of Fukan, the dynasty which ruled the Fukan Tribe and the Mountain Kingdom. In the year 121, Fukan II, new king of the Mountain Kingdom, and Zukagal, chief of the Zahab Tribe, began peace negotiations. The resulting treaty saw the end of the Mountain and Valley War, and the merging of the Mountain Kingdom and the Zahab Tribe into the Dwarven Empire. In the following year, a council of dwarven chiefs and lords elected Fukan II as the first emperor of the Dwarven Empire.

### The Dwarven Empire

As emperor of the Dwarven Empire, Fukan II

## Culture

### Beards and Hair Styles

Before the formation of the Mountain Kingdom, and the unification of the tribes, the four tribes of the Mountain Dwarves lived in separate, underground settlements. Due to being separated from one another, the Fukan, Zugin, Kuban, and Sulin Tribes developed slightly different cultures. These cultural differences decreased after the formation of the Mountain Kingdom and the Dwarven Empire, for rulers of both states enacted policies which saw the increased cultural unity of the Mountain Dwarves. However, while many of the cultural traditions of the four tribes blended together during this time, the tribes retained the beard and hair styles which had defined them for hundreds of years. It is believed that this aspect of dwarven culture survived due to ability of one to distinguish dwarves of different tribes by looking at their beards. These tribal beard styles are known as *nakhal shan*, or "style of the tribe".

### Personal Names

Mountain Dwarven personal names consisted of a given name, followed by a surname. A dwarf typically received their given name from their parents, although sometimes dwarven parents relied on priests to name their children for them. The surname of a Mountain Dwarf was derived from the tribe to which they belonged. An example of a Mountain Dwarf name would be Shukumin shan Fukan. *Shukumin* is Dwarven for "miner", and is the given name; *shan Fukan* is Dwarven for "(of the) tribe of Fukan", and is the surname.

### Marriage

Like the Valley Dwarves, the Mountain Dwarves were monogamous, and married typically in their mid-forties to early-fifties. Not long after marriage, a couple would try for children. If a dwarven couple did not produce children within three years of their marriage, it was assumed that they were either unwilling, or unable, to have children. Despite there being no law against it, divorce was highly taboo in Mountain Dwarven culture. Mountain Dwarves perceived marriage as an almost sacred rite between two dwarves, and to break it was exceedingly shameful. Because of this, divorce was extremely rare.