Durnhol

**Durnhol** (Also known as Durnhol-Sarkaaz), is a region of North Volonté known for it's frigid environment, mountainous views, and unique cultural history. Despite being part of the Republic of North Volonté, the culture of the region is more aligned with neighboring Prübensia to the south west- the region speaks a pidgin between the Prübensian Dialect of Samoran and Volontéan with primary Prübensian/Samoran characteristics, the building style is similar to Prübensian originating the building off of stone and wood rather than clay and brick.

How did this occur? It is thought that a great event of migration and population, called the Durnholi Waltz, played a large role in the demographic makeup of Durnhol.

### Origins - Dwarves and Early Prübensians

Durnhol originally was made up of a now extinct group of dwarves that lived inside of great Mount Prüben (Which they called Icestone Peak), not much is known about their civilization as the runes they wrote in are still today untranslated. At the same time- a group of Prübensians from Pruben migrated to modern-day Frostwall and settled inside of the Mount Frost to hide from the hostile tundra environment, which is directly to the south-west of the dwarves. Eventually the Frostwallian Prübensians were able to establish infrastructure outside of the mountain with the help of GermanGingerGuy and Schimmel dov Vikuija-Trilius.

### Kryvonean Rule and Migrations

Eventually the land of Durnhol was conquered by Kryvonea under the regime of Yigon, which immediately began to replace the dwarven settlements with Kat Kryvonean ones. The Prübensians attempted to settle multiple times but were everytime drawn out by the Kryvoneans across the border with Samoran Prübensia, although eventually the Kat Kryvons were forced to migrate east due to a need for manpower and an ongoing political crisis. The Yigonian Regime therefore enacted a policy that permitted individuals from the Kronetsk province (Now North Volonté) to resettle Durnhol. This began the first ongoing wave of current immigration, as many peoples from the cities of Pioresná, Vetka (today known as Fréris), and Kirvograd settled the region and began to develop the northern coast. Not long after this policy was implemented, however, the city of Kirvograd declared independence from the Kryvonean regime, starting the Kirvograd War. Due to the conflict, many of the Volontéan residents of Durnhol were forced to migrate east to defend their old homes from Kryvonean attacks and to participate on attacks further south in Vodyanagrad and Kenka.

With little Kryvonean Authority remaining; a group of remaining Volontéan settlers, with little trade to the east due to wartime scarcity, began to trade with Prübensia in order to get the necessary materials to survive. This prompted Prübensians to get first connections in and began to develop the Pidgin known today as Durnholi (Prübensian Samoran/Volontéan). Prübensians also began to settle in the region and comingle with the Volontéans with no authority being able to control their entry. By the time that North Volonté won its independence at the conclusion of the Kirvograd War, the entire region primarily shifted demographically from Volontéan to Prübensian. It was around this time that the Icestone Peak name was dropped in North Volonté in favor of Mt. Prüben to signify where the Prübensian homeland was.

### Durnhol Today

The result of all of this is a Durnhol that is economically, culturally, and linguistically dependent on Prübensia, due to the hesitance of both the national governments of North Volonté and Samora to care much about their far flung territories comingling with each other. The border, besides some small adjustments in recent days, has remained the same, with the group of primarily Prübensian settlers in Durnhol remaining a part of North Volonté. However, due to the creation of the Leifmyrr Crowned States, with Samora and North Volonté both being principal members, the border has become more irrelevant as two nations become closer allies and friends on the global stage. Durnhol and it's people will only become more and more interconnected with it's cultural brethren in both Prübensian and the rest of North Volonté as a result.