Teńku

## Race

The Teńǵo are a species of centauroid hexapods. They have a fully human upper torso, including the first set of limbs, which resemble human arms. Their second pair of limbs are more similar to human legs, although they have hand-like extremities that can grab objects. These extremities do not have opposable digits, so they cannot be used for more intricate tasks. Their lower body and final pair of limbs resemble those of a horse, and they have a reduced tail. The feet on those limbs have extended hooves, and the heel touches the ground for better balance.

The Teńǵo are able to stand on their hind limbs for extended periods of time, which they do as a sign of their strength. However, they prefer to walk on four limbs during long periods of travel, at home, or in the presence of higher ranking ndeńǵo.

## Religion

The Teńǵo are a polythiestic people. There are three main gods: Unbamo, the goddess of the space, sky, and all that is invisible, Udonda, the god of souls and the physical, and Undetorý, the god of the giant planet in the sky and power. Together, they bore the Undoǵo, lesser gods of the world who mainly act as natural phenomena.

The Teńǵo will pray to different gods depending on the season or other pressures against the divine balance, Utýnkýtu. Gods are indifferent to the suffering of any creature in their wake, but ndeńǵo can convince them to reduce the chance of death through worship. However, gods are reluctant to disturb Utýnkýtu, so worshipers must prove their requests will not upset the balance by presenting the god with a gift.

Most often, they will give an item associated with that god to another family and refuse to take anything in return, expecting the god to repay them instead. A less common strategy is to cast those items into a bonfire in praise to utýǵuńga, the god of fire. Utýǵuńga will then alert the other gods the prayer wishes to address so that they can fulfil the prayer’s request. An archaic form of worship that is only practised in dire times of need is sacrifice. Families will sacrifice their last-born son and hope the returning of soul to Udonda will grant them greater fortune in the near future.

## Moral Values and Principles

Made in the image of the goddess Unbamo, women are essential to the survival of the Teńǵo population. As a result, they command a certain degree of respect. Unrelated men must address women formally, using the title “ńiembe” and bowing their head to avoid eye contact. If they disrespect the importance of a specific woman’s motherhood or keep inappropriate eye contact with her, then they must perform Totamcezi, the Apology Ritual. (See Traditions for more information). Only men of higher positions are formally addressed with the title “ńienda," but this does not permit them to avoid punishment.

Women choose their husbands, usually by physical fitness. However, their fathers and brothers may provide suggestions for partners based on their past experiences together. Once a woman marries a man, he no longer must refer to her as “ńiembe,” and he becomes an honorary member of her family.

Since there is a large amount of sacrifice, polygamy is a common practice. Women are more likely to marry kind, diligent workers, so men pride themselves in securing those qualities. Marriage is less binding in Teńǵo society, so individuals may be married to multiple partners. Due to the nature of male sexual organs, men are more likely to marry multiple female partners, although it is not uncommon to see a woman marry multiple male partners.

## Traditions

### Totamcezi

During Totamcezi, the Apology Ritual, male wrongdoers must impress the women they targeted by creating a delicious pot of msýlyanzy (soul food). A common phrase women will use if it tastes good is "jirebe, msýlyanzy!" (Yes, it's soul food!) Otherwise, they will exclaim in disgust, calling the food "mseyozy" (disgusting food).

Msýlyanzy is a seasonal dish made by the Teńǵo. First, the ulyanzy (soul liquid) of an animal and some mashed or chopped plum-like fruit are boiled over a fire to make a protein-rich jam. Then, mseyeǵe, a rice-like grain found in the Ñeriý region, is soaked in the jam while it is still over the fire. This creates the final product, which is similar to a sweet rice pudding. Under normal circumstances, it may be served immediately or reheated, although it is always served immediately during Totamcezi. If the cook messes up this process, then they will instead produce mseyozy.

Offenders who cook msoluanzu are not punished further because their ability to make a delicious meal acknowledges their newly learned respect for the woman they wronged. If a woman describes the food as mseyozy, then she will most often sentence the offender to eat the rest of his repulsive concoction. In addition to this sentence, wrongdoers sometimes contract illnesses from their improperly cooked food. Ndeńǵo believe that those who survive live on with a newfound respect for motherhood.

Many of the nomadic centaurs that occasionally pass through the Teńku believe that Ndeńǵo women used to sentence offenders to boil in mseyozy, although the Teńǵo insist that this is a false rumour.

### Ńdenzeñemi Unbamo

Ńdenzeñemi Unbamo is an annual celebration of the beginning of the year in spring. It represents the day that Unbamo birthed the first living creatures on Delthoria. In her honour, the Teńǵo sanction a portion of the woods for the festival and construct mounds around that area. They cook a feast and share a small portion of it with all of the animals residing within the border of mounds.

The Teńǵo use Ńdenzeñemi Unbamo to track their ages. As a result, they consider a person born the day after Ńdenzeñemi Unbamo to be the same age as someone born the day before the next celebration.

## Stories

This section has been moved to the subpage Stories due to its extreme length. Whereas the history section seeks to give mostly accurate overviews of significant time periods in the history of Teńku, the Stories page provides folktales and more detailed accounts of events mentioned in the history section, sometimes from the perspective of a teńǵo.

## History

This section has been moved to the subpage History due to its extreme length. It provides a somewhat detailed collection of important time periods in Teńku's history.

## Government

### Ncimvambe

The Teńǵo government used to be highly decentralised, with a jirýmbe as a local ruler in every village. However, after Ndenkýtu ku Jielyanzy, the riýmbe elected one of their own as the monarch Ncimvambe. The Teńǵo view Ncimvambe as the earthly embodiment of Unbamo. Thus, she may not be seen by anyone besides her husband, her parents and the riýmbe. Her husband is the Unciso (god-tongue), who acts as her public voice.

### Riýmbe

While Ncimvambe oversees national matters, riýmbe (chieftesses) tend to local matters. Riýmbe may act independently, but they cannot go against the word of Ncimvambe. Despite their inferior power to the Ncimvambe’s laws, the riýmbe meet for Jirýcýlo twice every season. During this convention, they discuss trade, innovations, morale of citizens, and more. During this time, they may provide suggestions for new laws or reforms to the Ncimvambe. Additionally, if the last Ncimvambe has passed away, the riýmbe will elect her successor at the next Jirýcýlo.

### Utýtýñoba

The utýtýñoba are the talýlota council members. Although they have no true authority, they may accuse the Ncimvambe of creating laws that go against Utýnkýtu. After such an accusation, the riýmbe invite them to the next Jirýcýlo meeting. Ncimvambe remains unseen to the utýtýñoba, although she resides in a special room to listen to the conversation and whisper her arguments to the Unciso. During the discussion, they must come to a compromise that satisfies both parties.

## Economy

### Overview

The Teńǵo have a barter economy. Their religious beliefs of Utýnkýtu extend to the field of economics, so all trades must uphold the standards of balance in the world. If people do not have a material trade for what they desire, then they may offer an amount of labour equal to the production of what they want. Due to this principle, indentured servitude is relatively common. However, the Teńǵo forbid slavery of any denizens of Teńku (despite permitting the slavery of foreigners). The government does not have any power in determining the quality of products, nor do they concern themselves with the matters of small, local trades.

### Major Exports and Imports

The top export from Teńku is msýdamumo (blue spice). Teńǵo use this spice in their most famous dish, msýlyanzy. Msýdamumo gives those who consume it a feeling of sleepiness or calmness, so it has found popular usage as a medicine. However, there is no proof that its effects are potent enough to truly act as a painkiller.

Another popular export, which msýlyanzy also features, is mseyeǵe. This rice-like grain is the main part of Ndeńǵo’s diets, so traders often bring it to the Ndenve living across the eastern border.

The largest import comes from the far lands of Tuanji (Taadži), in the form of uanda (alcohol). Currently, the Teńǵo have not discovered a way to create uanda of their own, so they can only get it from imports. Uanda is highly prized for its intoxicating effects and may be blended with msýdamumo powder to form stronger concoctions.

### Riýmbe Nzuńga’s Reforms

During the late Jieginsazo Jiemzi period, Riýmbe Nzuńga led Teńku’s first major economic reform. This reform was a major catalyst in ending the nation’s isolation, and it gave the government its first real powers in the economy. The terms were enforced by the riýmbe after Riýmbe Nzuńga hosted another Jirýcýlo. Many Ndeńǵo know these reforms as Ńdetandesiejezi Tedenjiǵa, although the name only describes one of the many new aspects.

Ńdetandesiejezi Tedenjiǵa was Riýmbe Nzuńga’s first decree. These trade settlements were to be built at the eastern border of Teńku in order to bolster foreign trade. As their name implies, these trade settlements were built on the border of Tejizi Tedenjiǵa (Tènduranŷn).

Similarly, the jirýmbe ordered all villages, no matter their size, to build at least one talýjizi. These trade houses would be used for foreign trades and trades of a larger scale. Each talýjizi would be run by a tecýnde, who would act as a neutral third party to advise the trades and make sure that they adhere to Utýnkýtu. Local trades remained unregulated since they occurred often and regulation would be overly time consuming.

The final major implement Riýmbe Nzuńga brought in her reform was improved trade routes. She employed ndyanzy to create massive dirt roads along common paths traders took from Talundamsi and aside the water-born coastal trade route. The paths decreased travel time and encouraged traders to sell and purchase in bulk.

### Taxes

There are only four taxes: payments for the local jirýmbe, the local ndecýnde, the talýlota council members, and the Ncimvambe.

All citizens must provide food and certain other appliances for their village’s jirýmbe and ndecýnde in exchange for their services. In the riýmbe’s case, these goods must also sustain their families. Ndecýnde do not have to pay taxes for jirýmbe and vice versa.

The talýlota council members and Ncimvambe receive necessities from Teńǵo citizens, but jirýmbe must provide them with a special product every season. Citizens may also give further offerings to these officials for good luck, as they believe they have profound connections with the gods.

## Prejudice

Although the Teńǵo have strict policies for adult males, they understand the insatiable curiosity of younger children. Therefore, all children below the marrying age of 12 are exempt from certain laws and punishments, such as Totamcezi. Girls under this age are not referred to as ńiembe.

The Teńǵo dislike foreigner's insolence to the goddess Unbamo. However, they do not wish to start any wars in her name since that could upset a natural balance and anger one of the many Undoǵo. They know that all those gods will punish the impertinent nations since they do disregard the natural balance. Additionally, the Teńǵo love the concept of trade: because trade is the exchange of one good for another, it exemplifies the balance on which life relies.

After Ndenkýtu ku Jielyanzy, foreign trading became heavily restricted. Ndeńǵo built new two-room trading centres at the border of every village. Traders would have to sit in one room to bargain with locals in the other. If they made one distasteful comment or gesture, they would be forbidden from returning.

On the contrary, after relations began to form with Tènduranŷn, the Teńǵo lightened trade restrictions. The two-room trade centres are still in use, but Ndeńǵo share each room with different groups of traders. They have also become more tolerant to distasteful comments as they know some foreign traders lack knowledge of their customs. However, if they show continued disrespect, appropriate action will be taken.

The Teńǵo absolutely despise the Njokateka (enemy centaurs) and inverted centaurs. The Njokateka were responsible for starting Ndenkýtu ku Jielyanzy, and hate towards them sears through any and all generational gaps. Inverted centaurs are held with equal disdain, as they have been known to eat entire families of Ndeńǵo near the Jirevibe Forest. Although the Teńǵo claim the same animosity for centaurs and inverted centaurs, they usually just chase away centaurs while they often kill inverted centaurs on sight.