Barkalor

Flag of Barkalor

The Barkalor Republic is a democratic state run in the northeastern parts of Grand Zavira, which it shares with Tir Zavira. Barkalor formed as the Kingdom of Barkalor in 1422, and was one of the first modern states to become a democratic society in 1739, forming the Barkalor Republic in 1752.The Barkalor are a group native to the island of Grand Zavira, having migrated to the island through a land bridge. Mostly secluded throughout their history, they lived and evolved their language and culture until in the industrial age they developed a powerful fleet and rejoined the international community their richness in natural resources, making them a powerful and valuable ally.

## Vexillology

The flag is a tricolour of green, blue and black. The green represents the nature of Barkalor and the natural richness of the lands. The blue represents the ocean and liberation from tyranny. The black represents the determination of the people against tyranny.

## History

Barkalor shares much of its history with Tir Zavira, with which it formed Grand Zavira until 1422 AD, when Barkalor split off.

### Prehistory (8000 BC-500 AD)

The first humans in Tir Zavira probably came from the west where a land bridge existed between c. 8000 BC and 4000 BC. These people were hunter gatherer tribes that spread throughout the whole island of Grand Zavira. When the land bridge was gone the natives lived in relative isolation to the rest of the world. During this time the traditional role of Kings and Queens as leader of the tribes came into existence. Around this time the Doneiga writing system was invented.

### Early History (500 AD-877AD)

Circa 500 AD the first contact was made with merchants from outside Grand Zavira, mostly from the kingdom of Barri. It was then that the ideas of agriculture and livestock keeping was introduced. This led to a great food surplus and tribes became cities. Around 570 AD the idea of electing a High King or Queen as the spiritual leader was adopted. In 712, the High King Gazaíd changed the High King or Queen system to also hold political power, thus forming what is now called the First Federation of Grand Zavira. It is still unknown how he exactly managed to do this, as no readable records have been left of that part. The federation ultimately fell apart in 745, shortly after the beginning of the Cold Infant Era. Grand Zavira lost a big part of their population, estimates range from an eigth to a third of the population. During the Cold Infant Era the city states of Grand Zavira again began to exclude themselves from the mainland. The worst of the Cold Infant Era ended in circa 800 AD.

### United Kingdom Period (877-1422)

In 877 AD the High Queen Bladig institutionalised the High King or Queen system, thus becoming the first High Queen of Tir Zavira. Up till 1367 AD the kingdom was peaceful and stable, but in 1367 AD the Malechor plague came to the island. The Malechor plague killed about 3 million people on the island of Grand Zavira, destroying countless villages and severly depopulating the cities. The Malechor was effectively over in 1407 AD, in this time period the council had chosen 8 different high kings and queens, of whom most died prematurely due to the plague. In 1409 the council elected another high king, who put the island on the road to prosperity, but ultimately failed to spread this prosperity to the north eastern part of the island.

### Tir Zavira and Barkalor split (1422-1515)

In 1422 the council elected a high king and queen, with a 50/50 split. So in 1422 the kingdom of Barkalor formed on the island with the high king at its head. The kingdom of Tir Zavira was ruled by the high queen. After the death of the high queen in 1456, the council would again be split 50/50 between the king of Barkalor and the king of Tamanon, thus cementing the divide between the two. The council officially split into the council of Barkalor and the council of Tir Zavira in 1474.

### Early Modern period (1515-1739)

The early Modern period of Barkalor starts with Onatre becoming the official capital of the country. During this period the ideas of anti-slavery started spreading to Barkalor from Tir Zavira. In Barkalor the nobility was fervently against this anti slavery, this led to tensions with the merchants, sailors and port workers. Eventually this led to a uprising among the sailors and port workers against the nobility in 1546 AD, which was brutally ended by the nobility, resulting in hundreds of casualties. This uprising would be known as the sailor's revolt in Barkalor and started the anti nobility sentiment among the people.

The Early Modern period of Barkalor also saw 5 wars with Tir Zavira:

* The First Tirian-Barkalor war (1522-1525)
* The Second Tirian-Barkalor war (1531-1532)
* The Third Tirian-Barkalor war (1568-1574)
* The Fourth Tirian-Barkalor war (1607-1610)
* The Fifth Tirian-Barkalor war (1647-1673)

The Fifth Tirian-Barkalor war was devastating for both sides and resulted in a status quo. At the end Tir Zavira and Barkalor made a peace treaty that said the border would never again be militarized.

### Middle Modern period (1739-1961)

The Middle Modern period started when Barkalor became a democratic society in 1739 AD after the High King was deposed. Barkalor officially became a republic in 1752 AD. Between 1739 and 1752 Barkalor had very little government authority, which resulted in widespread crime, corruption and no economic regulation. Barkalor became a safe haven for smugglers and political refugees. In this period there were multiple attempts to make a constitution and regain control over the country. However, this only succeeded in 1752, when the constitution was signed by representatives from all the cities of Barkalor. This constitution reformed Barkalor into the republic of Barkalor. It took Barkalor till 1764 to regain proper control over its cities and economy. The industrial revolution of Barkalor started in 1823 and was mainly focused on maritime techniques, and multiple large drydocks were made to produce ships. This made Barkalor into a forerunner in the naval technology.

### Late Modern period (1961-present day)

The Late Modern period of Barkalor begun when the Barri colonies in Barkalor were returned to Barkalor in 1961 AD. Between 1962 and 1967 tensions were rising between Barkalor and Tir Zavira due to the nationalist coup in Tir Zavira. When the Tir Zaviran parliament was restored, Barkalor was among the first to reopen formal diplomatic relations. Barkalor also took in many refugees from Tir Zavira during the nationalist coup, this resulted in a feeling of brotherhood between the two countries and they started working together to strengthen themselves. In 1997 Barkalor signed an agreement with Tir Zavira towards greater cooperation between the two countries, starting with a single market agreement. In 2004 they signed the Single Currency Agreement, creating the Kalo currency. Currently there is talk between the two governments to unite into a country, to reinforce their standing in the world.

## Government and Politics

The Barkalor government is a social democracy, consisting of a president with ceremonial powers as the head of state, a prime minister as the head of parliament, a parliament and a senate. Elections for parliament are held every four years. The new parliament chooses who sits in the senate. The parties in parliament form a coalition to get a majority, as no majority has been achieved by any party since 1960.

### Foreign relations

Barkalor forms the Grand Zavira Cooperation Council together with Tir Zavira. It has trade deals with most countries around them, except for Barrion due to the long occupied areas for which Barrion never officially apologised for. Barkalor foreign policy is based on Ofaran co-operation, international development and international law.

## Geography

Barkalor occupies a third of Grand Zavira and four major islands around Grand Zavira. The north coast is entirely on the sea of Galn, or sea of Kamana as its known outside Barkalor. The south coast also lies on the sea of Kamana. Barkalor only has a land border with Tir Zavira, but has maritime borders with Kamana'aora and Barrion.

Barkalor consist mostly of flat farmland, with a few hills in the middle of the country

## Demographics

Every ten years a census is taken in Barkalor, the last census of 2012 showed that Barkalor has a population of 32,265,932. The estimated growth rate is 0.64%.

### Ethnicity

The majority of the population of Barkalor is ethnically Barkalor, with 93%. Other ethnic groups are Tirian with 3%, Barri with 2%, Kamanese with 1% and other groups for the last 1%. Barkalor is part of the Zaviraic language family, which is believed to be part of the Greater Druan ethnic group. The Tirian population is mostly situated on the border, but are spread throughout the whole country due to the open borders with Tir Zavira. The Barri population is located mainly in the areas of the former Barri colonies. The Kamanese population is situated mostly in the big port cities like Onatre, where they probably arrived as sailors.

### Language

The official language of Tir Zavira is Tira, which is spoken by about 95% percent of the population. The Tira and Barkalor languages are mutually intelligible. There are various dialects within Tir Zavira, with the Tamanon dialect being the accepted standard.

### Religion

The Official Religion of Barkalor is Dauwerynus in Barkalor, or shortened to Dauwe. It is a polytheistic religion encompassing thousands of local deities. Its head deities are:

* Daida, the mother of all the lower gods and Yuzoa itself
* Tadwyr, the sea god and father of all the lower gods
* Cymulau, the god of the clouds and the first son, represented by the Albatross
* Gedwiga, the goddess of the forest and the first daughter, represented by the deer
* Madarch, goddess of death and the second daughter, represented by the mushroom
* Rhyfel, god of war and the second son, represented by the bear

The head of the religion was originally the High King or Queen. In Barkalor, the head of the religion is a separate office from government and politics and is chosen by the shamans. The centre of the religion in Barkalor is situated in Falagé, a town in the centre of the northern peninsula. The first High King or Queen, nobody knows for sure which it was, was chosen in the village of Vygdaw, this village became the holiest place of the religion and many shrines to the gods have been built there. There are however shrines throughout the nation. The religion is officially followed by around 60% of the population, although the actual percentage is estimated to be about 25%.