Barbarians

"**Barbarians**" is a term used towards a group or people that is considered to be less-civilised.

"Cavepeople" or "Neanderthals", are a cliche representing barbarians.

## Sarmelonid definition

Any people would be considered as "barbaric" if they practice the following:

* Killing off its people to preserve its ecosystem, resources, or environment
* Human sacrifices/ritual murder
* Using sapient beings to create products (such as blood, bone, or skin).
	+ Animals are fine as food as long as they do not behave like people or look sapient.
* Using a test to kill off most of its people, so only the strongest may live and create the next generation/Eugenics
* Mutilation
* Cannibalism, or eating the body of any sentient being (including eating the remains of the dead for recycling)
* Too much perverted behaviour
* Consumption of excrement, hazardous, or toxic substances
* Abusing women or men by treating them as lower than the rest
* Less-advanced technology, as in "unable to build or utilise spacecraft, firearms, or electricity"
	+ Even more so if they look and behave like cavepeople!
* A nomadic lifestyle
* Raiding and pillaging
* Frequent usage of drugs
* Aggressive attitudes and frequent violence
* Lack of hygiene

Such people, who were then condemned as "barbarians", are considered worthy only to be conquered, enslaved, and assimilated into the Vozonid way. It was considered acceptable to exterminate them, hunt them for sport, and torture them for entertainment, for their "barbaric" behaviours made them unworthy of earning any honour, making them closer to animals. The most common reasons for the Sarmelonid authorities to declare war on certain peoples were "cruelty", "raising and pillaging", "human sacrifice", and "eugenics".

That was one reason why the Sarmelonid Empire spread, mainly out of disgust towards less-advanced peoples and groups that its rulers considered to be "barbarians", and to cater to the more-civilised peoples' desires for revenge against raiders.

In earlier times, other civilisations used "mleccha" as a translation for any disparaging word towards foreigners considered "barbaric". That also included the Vozonid word "kashkoz".

## Igarin definition

The Igarin Empire's classification of a "barbarian" was not just for any less-advanced community, but it also involved communities with weaker militaries or odd beliefs (such as Nandegakko and its openly-atheist society).

However, Igarins (and other galactic peoples) were fine with killing and eating slaves and clones.

## In Bujan

   In Wonao folklore, "barbarians" are more akin to outlaws. Criminals become barbarians because they reject justice, so they go insane; however, people who are less advanced in technology are not considered as "barbarians" because they still practice some form of order. Even people who are more technologically-advanced than Wonaos are also called "barbarians" because of their lack of civility and honour.

The ethnic Arnadjanai minority of Bujan were considered as "barbarians" because of their primitive society before slavery, and that was used by the Wannaenids to torture them for sport. In Bujanski, the word for a "barbarian" is "zværǐljōd", which means "beast people".

Another slur used towards Arnadjanai is "peščarnik", which means "caveman", again referring to their warrior culture and violent habits.

Common stereotypes of Arnadjanai include depicting them as barely-dressed cavepeople who kill and eat people, are very violent, and are very stupid. As this led to bullying and harrassment, many Arnadjanai willingly adopted the Bujanski culture to fit in and avoid further mistreatment. Some people in Bujan were displeased at the mistreatment of Arnadjanai, so they encouraged society to treat them nicely.

Ironically, in older times, Bujanski Slavs were sometimes seen as barbarians to the Wonaos and their Darroskei relatives!

## Cliches about cavepeople

* They wear animal skins as robes or loincloths
* Only good with sticks, stones, and occasionally crude sculpting
* They mostly fight with clubs
* They live mostly in caves
* Their language consists of grunts
* Men drag women by the hair
* Very stupid, but very strong

## People who were (and are) considered to be "barbarians"

### Humans

* Freyrgardians (Novantirnas, Malendors)
	+ When the Novantirnas first encountered the Freyrgardian Norse humans, they were appalled by their attacks, that they treated the Norse humans as mockeries of the Aesir. Eventually, the Norse worked together with the Novantirnas.
	+ The hunts to kill Aspierans for sport was the worst example of how Norse humans were treated in the Malendor civilisation, due to their violent society.
* Zonunjas (Peren, Vozolaz)
	+ The Zonunjas were the ancestors of the Vozonids. Ironically, they also denounced certain peoples as barbarians, while they built a civilisation that was greater than the Gauvajut Empire!
	+ During the latter days of the Gauvajuts, the Zonunjas were renowned as the greatest smiths and engineers of their empire.
* Arosilans (Bivos)
* Maardau Rebellion (Ardesch)
	+ Very infamous for practicing a violent religion that practiced killing people as offerings to their gods, and especially eating other people like animals. They emerged as a threat at the end of the Ardeschen Empire, a theocratic rebellion that was corrupted into absolute violence to overthrow the imperial government. Directorist Ardesch almost suppressed their domain, before turning eastward to wage war against Zarijana, when their warbands emerged from hiding to prey on unsuspecting colonists and loyalists. The Red Ardeschen armies exterminated them, but their lands were haunted by the ghosts of their tormented members and countless victims.
* Red Ardesch (Gauvajut Empire, Zarijana, Rannar, Marnoxai)
* Terrans (various civilisations of the latter Sixteenth Age)
	+ The peoples of the Sixteenth Age were appalled by the Terran warlords' cruelty, that they assumed that *all* Terrans or Earthlings were very uncivilised and evil.
* in general, anyone who was outside one's own civilisation

### Aliens

* Nagiruge (plant humanoids)
	+ The Nagiruge were infamous for being fearful cannibals during their early years, when they were first created.
	+ In later times, they were more civilised. However, they also grew thorns on their arms as their weapons alongside spears, axes, and swords.
* Ontemazei (plant humanoid clones)
	+ The Ontemazei were infamous for being cannibals - cannibalism was part of their function, and many Ontemazei who were not slaves were doomed to be driven into a savage rage, preying on anyone their masters abandoned to their jaws.
	+ Ages later, the Ontemazei Empire implemented cannibalism to frighten enemies and their own subjects into obedience. This led to the Jerdiskar superstition that assumed that anyone with pink hair is a brutish monster who wants to eat people.
* Arnadjanai (humanoid clones)
	+ The Arnadjanai were more primitive than the Jerdiskar when they first arrived on Jerde, with their raiding, their concubines, their cannibalism and human sacrifice making them look more like monsters.
	+ Even then, muscular blonde people are sometimes suspected of being Arnadjanai if they show any sign of extraordinary strength or toughness, or anything too violent or steamy.
	+ In some countries, Arnadjanai tend to be exceptions who are allowed to have polygamy.
	+ In Bujan, because the "barbarian" stereotype was an excuse for the Wannaenids to treat them as beasts, the local Arnadjanai adopted the lifestyles of Bujanski gentlemen and ladies to avoid being abused again.
	+ In the early years of Bujanski independence, Arnadjanai were depicted as unintelligent cavepeople. One recurring gag has Arnadjanai characters eating books or reading them upside down.
* Heronoi (humanoid clones)
	+ In their early years the Heronoi were seen as barbarians because of their abusive treatment under the Vigefionians, and their emotional and unstable behaviour, making them seem more like dolls. This view has also spread to other nations, to the point that others dislike blonde people for their resemblance to Heronoi.
	+ Even though the Heronoi had become a sophisticated, spacefaring civilisation, their weaknesses (such as excessive excitement and romance) made them look weak and uncivilised to the Rannariskar to the west. The Rannariskar used these as among their reasons to exterminate the Heronoi.
	+ The past abusive treatment of the Heronoi seemed ironic when their descendants also denounced and abused their Waxeroi children as "barbarians".
* Waxeroi (hybrid humanoids)
	+ The Waxeroi were the children of mixed marriages between Rauteko's servants and Arnadjanai slaves. They adopted the freegoing lifestyle of their Arnadjanai peers, and forced into it by Heronoi society in mockery of their customs, such as polygamy. They were blamed for the Thralondian Invasion and driven out of the country.
* Zuronnonzo (wolf humanoids)
* Monterjos (humanoids)
	+ They later became the Vovtarlans, a proud and arrogant civilisation influenced by their Vozonid colonisers whom they expelled from their world.
* Kuelgons (humanoids)
	+ The Kuelgons were notorious for their warlike culture, their cannibalism, and their shapeshifting. They were proud to be monsters, bringers of terror and masters of dark magic.
	+ Some Kuelgons rejected the ruinous wars of the Konjor Supercorporation for more refined beliefs.
* Nandegakkovians (humanoids)
	+ The Nandegakkovians preserved much of the Igarin civilisation's ancient history and culture, but their atheism was seen by other Galactic civilisations as "uncivilised" or "bizarre".
* Valgetans (humanoids)
	+ The Valgetans were very notorious for being warmongering cannibals.
* Qogandrans/Greyfolk

## In other languages

* Gauvajut: kashkaras (pl. kashkares)
* Sarmelonid Vozonid: kashkoz (pl. kashkoppo)
* Sanskrit: mleccha ("one who mutters")
* Rukanian: dyčnyk ("wild person")
* Eosome: naorek ("wild person"); tozundlam ("beast person")
* Bujanski: zværǐljōd ("beast person"); črævonik ("eater of intestines, fool")
* Autean: jotthol ("on the other side of the Wall of the World/Jasper Mountains"); zlenuthri ("cannibals, demons")
* Tyrskan: dikari ("savage")
* Qyuvian English: uoka ("infidel, nonbeliever")

## See also

* Orcs
* Monsters
* Nordic aliens