Somarma

**Somarma** *(Somarman: Uոմարմա)* is a country in northern Terra Sinister. The country borders Telders and has a reported population of 139,102,922 in a 2085 census. The country notably contains the most rivers within Terra Sinister, with an estimated 8% of the entire country being covered in them.

Somarma is one of the worlds largest exporters of forestry related products, as well as automobiles and precious metals, such as gold. The country has a generally higher elevation than that of other countires, with an average elevation of 1,306 meters (3,400 ft) above sea level, as much of the country is covered in rolling hills, with the northern regions being covered in mountains, Somarma is also home to the Valley of Somarma, one of the deepest valleys in Tarra, and the deepest in Terra Sinister.

Somarma has been an important region historically for its production of hardwood trees, including the Sinisterian Sprupine, Greater East Sinisterian Beechwood, and the Common Fir.

## Etymology

The name for Somarma, in Somarman is "*Uոմարմա,"* which roughly translates to "wild world." Scholars debate whether the original name, Somarma, was for the region, or for a completely different area. Nonetheless, the name was regularly used upon the countries inception in 1626.

## History

The region surrounding Somarma was first settled by Avatians roughly 40,000 BCE. These early Avatians brought Sinisterian culture and language to the reigon. Early hunter-gatherers moved throughout the vast wilderness, and usually did not aggressive confrontations with each other. Unlike other countries, Somarma's high quantities of rivers eliminated the need to compete over the territory near them. In fact, carbon dating has measured certain tools of siege warfare such as trebuchets to date back only to 150 BCE, though earlier conflict almost certainly occurred.

The region received heavy rainfall through roughly 100 CE to 150 CE, and along with a small Ice Age on the continent, much of the region saw declines in Avatian population brought on by a lack of animals. Soon, much of the region would be abandoned, as agricultural practices failed under the heavy rains.

The region recovered throughout 200 to the early 1000s, and the area was reintroduced to agricultural practices on a new, fertile soil. In 1299, the region united into the Union of Somarma-Telders, a loose confederation of counties, city-states, and provinces, each with it's own ruler and rules.

In roughly 1350, the region was conquered by the Sinisterian Empire, and would not regain independence until 1626, when local leaders took advantage of a poor harvest to stir up Somarmans against Sinisterian rule.

The newly created Republic of Somarma-Telders saw general failures as a nation, and nationalists in the north broke free from the republic, forming Telders.

During the Interran Spice Trade, many Hunetians docked in the country, bringing culture and religion into the country. A few Sinisterian natives would produce offspring with the Hunetians, and small populations of Sinisterian-Hunetians still exists in the eastern parts of the country. Many non-Sinisterians immigrated to Somarma directly after the Spice Trade, seeing a vast wilderness for opportunity for economic gain.

During and after the trade, Somarma became a prime exporter of hardwood timber for the construction of ships. Within Zandovia, roughly 85% of all naval ships in 1800 used almost or entirely Somarman hardwoods, as Zandovia was largely against domestic deforestation.

Throughout the 1800s, severe shortages of tress lead the country on an economic downturn. In 1839, leaders in the country determined that the protection of the local tree populations were of the utmost priority, and that the nation had to transition to other exports to survive, especially as most eastern traders had transitioned to other regions for wood imports.

By 1860, the Somarmans successfully began planting more trees than it had been cutting down, and once again a stability allowed the export of wood to continue.

In 1866, gold was found in a river by a local merchant, E.D Booper, who had published his findings within the *Somarman Times*, which quickly garnered international attention, and the Winter of 1866-67 Gold Rush ensued, where upwards of 500,000 rushed into the country, looking to get rich of the gold, However, Booper had not reported which river he had found the gold in, only that it was in the northern regions. Of the 500,000 prospectors, 400,000 ever made it to the northern parts of the country, 100,000 were able to purchase parcels of land near rivers to prospect within, less than 1,000 found gold, and under 20 individuals ever found substantial amounts to enrich themselves. However, many prospectors remained in the country after the gold rush, and the northern region of Somarma still has a large amount of their offspring, who established Pyrite, the ironically named capital of the province in 1888.

In the 1900s, Somarma began to manufacture and export automobiles at an extremely high rate. Somarman Motor Works (SMW) became the largest company in the country by 1956, revolutionizing the automobile industry.

In the turn of the millennium, Somarma experienced the largest economic recession in its history, thanks to crashing Real Estate prices. This recession created a national automobile shortage, as most automobile producers purchased parts directly from Somarman companies, especially SMW, who went out of business in 2004.

In 2026, the nation celebrated it's 400th anniversary since creation by hosting one of the largest parades in Avatian history, with a crowd of 6 million attendees.

Throughout the past 50 years, the nation has mainly focused on transitioning into a green economy, with the goal of becoming entirely nuclear-powered by 2100,