Berat

**Berat** (Beratian: *Բերատ*, *Berat*), officially the **Kingdom of Berat** (Beratian: *Հանադասինա Բերատւ*, *Hanadasia Beratu*), is a sovereign state located in Eastern Eurea, bordered by Borgizstan to the north and northeast, and Horvatia to the northwest. Its capital and most-populous city is Caspar, located in the south of the country. Berats has a population of about 10.7 million inhabitants.

Organized civilization first began in the territory of modern-Berat in the 11th-century, following the establishment of the Kingdom of Berat. While an independent kingdom, Berat practiced a policy of isolationism, and was commonly thought of as being one of the most mysterious nations in the world. In the 19th-century, the Kingdom was conquered by the Kashan Empire, and incorporated as an autonomous province. Following a *coup d'état* in Kasha in the 20th-century, the Empire was overthrown by fascists and became the Kashan Union. Berat was incorporated as the Beratian Fascist Republic of Kasha, and its royal family was forced to flee, living in-exile in Draconia for more than six decades. Individual freedoms and liberties were greatly diminished under the fascist regime, with high levels of poverty, famine, and instability. Following a weakening of the Union and increasing foreign pressure from democracies, the Union began to fall in the 1980s; Berat declared its independence in 1988, being the first former Republic to be granted independence.

As an independent state, Berat has established itself as a unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy, allowing its royal family to return to their home country following the restoration of independence in 1988. Its head of state is the Monarch, who wields very little actual powers, instead merely acting as a ceremonial figurehead. Berat practiced a system of agnatic primogeniture, where only men could inherit the throne, for centuries. This rule was changed in 2002, adopting a system of absolute primogeniture, which allows the eldest-born heir to inherit the throne, regardless of gender. The head of government and chief politician of Berat is the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is typically the leader of the governing coalition in the Council of Deputies, the 220-seat unicameral legislature. The Prime Minister is in charge of legislation, acts as the chief international diplomat and ambassador of Berat, and heads a council of ministers tasked with drafting legislation.

Of Berat's population of 10.7 million, approximately 96.2% identifies as ethnically Beratian. A further 1.9% identifies as Kashan, while 1.9% identifies as other ethnic groups. A relatively homogenous nation, most ethnic minorities arrived in Berat from other Kashan Republics during the Kashan Union-era, and since remained in Berat following independence. The national and sole official language of Berat is Beratian, a Tagik language distantly related to Borgiz. Beratian is spoken natively by 97.5% of the population, while 99.4% of the population can communicate in it. While no other language holds official status, Kashan is widely spoken and understood, especially amongst the older generations; approximately 87.4% of Beratians born before 1980 can communicate in Kashan, while 55.4% of those born after can. Approximately 90.5% of the population are adherents of Eurean Islam, while 2.7% identifies as Christian, 0.4% as belonging to an different religion, and 6.3% identify as irreligious, agnostic, or atheist. Despite most of the population identifying as Muslim, overall religiosity is very low, with weekly religious attendance estimated to be about 14.6%. Religion is commonly seen as simply a formality in Beratian culture, with many identifying with a religion but rarely practicing it.