Notosha

**Notosha** (Asbanian: *Notosha*; Lorbian: *Нотошо*, *Notošo*), officially the **Republic of Notosha** (Asbanian: *Respublikë ë Notoshë*; Lorbian: *Республика с Нотоше*, *Respublika s Notoše*), is a sovereign state in Southeastern Eurea, bordered by Karsylvania to the north, Mulgaria to the east, Asbania to the south, Vitrospebia to the west and northwest, and Lorbia to the north. Its capital and most-populous city is Astina, located in the south-central portion of the country. Notosha has a population of approximately 1.1 million people.

Organized settlement in modern-day Notosha first began in the sixth century CE, with the formation of several Asbanian-speaking city-states and local territories. The territory was unified in 1058, after being incorporated into the establishment of the Kingdom of Asbania, which functioned as a small kingdom in the region for five centuries. In 1577, the Kingdom was annexed by the Limian Empire. Following the Limian Empire's loss in the Limo-Kashan War (1620–1634), the territory consisting of modern-day Notosha was ceded from the Empire to the Kingdom of Lorbia, an ally of the Kashan Empire during the war. Following this, Lorbian settlers began to populate the territory, leading to numerous ethnic conflicts, genocides, and instances of persecution which would last centuries. In 1823, the Kingdom of Alaslavia was formed amidst a unification of several smaller kingdoms within the region, and Notosha was designated as one of the Kingdom's cultural regions of significance. Following a fascist revolution in 1930, the Kingdom became the Fascist Republic of Alaslavia, with civil liberties greatly diminished. Notosha Asbanians were in particular targeted by the fascist regime, becoming second-class citizens and being legally segregated from Lorbians in all aspects of public life. In the 1990s, the Alaslavian Wars (1990–2000) broke out amidst the break-up of Alaslavia. In 1998, the Notosha War (1997–2000) began, following the invasion of Notosha by Lorbian forces intending to initiate a genocide of the Notosha Asbanians. The war was not ended until 2000, after the Supranational Council intervened. Afterwards, Notosha was administered by the Supranational Council as a special region of the newly formed Republic of Lorbia, until the declaration of Notoshan independence in 2010. Since the declaration, Notosha has been recognized as an independent nation by all members of the Supranational Council apart from Lorbia, and officially joined the SC in 2017.

Since the adoption of the Notoshan constitution in 2010, Notosha has functioned as a unitary parliamentary republic. The head of state is the President, who is a ceremonial figurehead with few actual powers. The President is elected by the legislature for a term of five years that may be renewed once. They must remain unaffiliated with any political parties or movements during their tenure, and have duties including signing passed legislation, swearing in the Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, ambassadors, and members of parliament, serving as the commander-in-chief of the Notosha Defense Forces, and acting as a representative of the nation both at home and abroad. The head of government is the Prime Minister, who is the chief politician of the country and leader of the executive branch. The Prime Minister is nominated by parliament and appointed by the President, with the ability to serve an indefinite number of terms. The Prime Minister is typically the leader of the governing coalition in parliament, and duties include nominating cabinet members, setting national policy, and leading the country's day-to-day administration, effectively making them the chief decision-maker for the country. The legislature of Notosha is the 105-seat State Assembly, a unicameral parliament. State Assemblymembers are elected every four years by Notoshan voters in six electoral districts, corresponding with the districts of Notosha.

Notosha has a population of approximately 1.1 million people, of which approximately 93.5% identify as ethnically Asbanian. A further 1.2% identify as Lorbian, and the remaining 5.3% identify with other ethnicities, often Gorniaks, Horvatians, Vitrospebians, Mulgarians, and Dushans. It is believed that the Lorbian population is greater than government census records indicate, as the majority of Notosha Lorbians boycott the Notosha census in protest of Notoshan independence, although the large majority of Notosha Lorbians left Notosha following the 2010 independence declaration. The two official languages of Notosha are Asbanian, a Eurean language belonging to its own language sub-family, and Lorbian, a South Slavoric language considered to be a dialect of the Alaslavian language, and mutually intelligible with Horvatian, Gornian, and Vitrospebian. Approximately 94.2% of the population identify Asbanian as their native language, while 3.3% identify Lorbian as their native language. Furthermore, 97.9% of the population can communicate fluently in Asbanian, while 60.1% can communicate fluently in Lorbian, primarily ethnic minorities and older, urban Notosha Asbanians. Approximately 75.4% of the Notoshan population adheres to Eurean Islam, while 5.9% adhere to Eastern Eurean Orthodox Christianity, and 15.1% identify as atheist, agnostic, or irreligious. The remaining 3.6% primarily belong to other Christian churches.

## Politics

### Administrative divisions

#### Districts

*Main article: Districts of Notosha*
Notosha is divided into six districts. The districts exist solely for statistical purposes as the largest subdivisions of Notosha, and hold no political authority. All local political authority is delegated directly to the municipalities.

#### Municipalities

*Main article: Municipalities of Notosha*
The six districts of Notosha are further subdivided into municipalities. Municipalities are designated by the federal government as either a city or a town, although only the seats of each district currently hold city status. All municipalities are further subdivided into a core city or town, which serves as the municipal seat, and surrounding villages. Villages are typical rural in character and sparsely populated, and have no political representation or government separate from that of the municipality as a whole.

All local political authority is delegated to the municipalities, although as Notosha is a unitary state, most political power is still vested in solely the federal government. Municipalities are given local authority over various local services such as public education, sanitation, and emergency services. Each municipality is led by a municipal and a mayor.