Iboma
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Queendom of Iboma lwuTendane lw'Iboma | |
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 Flag
 Coat of arms
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Motto: "m'Vura, hhina" ("May the rain fall") | |
Anthem: Mama Iboma (Dear Mother Iboma) Royal anthem: mwuTendo m'Tshikidzi (Our mighty Queen) | |
 Political map of Iboma | |
 Location of Iboma | |
| Capital and largest city | Komodu |
| Official languages | Ibomian |
| Ethnic groups |
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| Religion |
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| Demonym(s) | Ibomian |
| Government | Unitary matriarchy, theocracy and parliamentary democracy under constitutional monarchy |
• Queen | Rutendo III |
• Chancellor | Rufaro ng'Asanda |
| Legislature | National Assembly |
| Council of Peers | |
| Council of the People | |
| Area | |
• Total | 308,734 km2 (119,203 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• Census | 50 million |
• Density | 184.62/km2 (478.2/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2021 estimate |
• Total | $ 2.052 trillion |
• Per capita | $36,000 |
| GDP (nominal) | estimate |
• Total | $1.026 trillion |
• Per capita | $18,000 |
| SDI (2021) | 0.834 very high |
| Currency | Ibomian rawa (IRW) |
| Time zone | Ibomian Standard Time (UTC -9) |
| Date format | DD/MM/YYYY |
| Driving side | right |
| Internet TLD | .ib |
The Queendom of Iboma (Ibomian: Lutendane la'Iboma) or simply Iboma is an independent island nation off the coast of southwest Novaris. Clockwise, starting from the west, it is surrounded by Lapinumbia, Tretrid, Dvalheim, Tiervan and Dvergerland. Spanning slightly over 300,000 square kilometres (slightly over 119,000 square miles), it consists of 5 islands, the largest, by far, is Ibomanengwa. Highly biologically diverse and volcanically active, it has stunning scenery and attracts substantial foreign tourism.
Elvine habitation spans thousands of years, with evidence of stone and bone tools used for fishing, hunting and gathering suggesting that ancient elves originated 20,000 years ago. First nomadic, occasionally living in caves (as known by cave markings), they adapted to the temperate climate and the presence of good soil spurred the first signs of Agriculture about 10,000 years ago. Iron age civilizations emerged about 4,000 years ago, followed by bronze age civilizations 1,800 years ago. The industrial age followed in the early 20th century, with Iboma now having a population of 57 million people.
With Akronism as the state religion, a matriarchal society emerged at the head of which is the Queen. Ruling from the capital and largest city, Komodu, the Queen presides over a 1 trillion dollar upper middle income newly industrialized mixed-model economy. With a sizeable military of about 500,000 and a budget hovering around 50 billion dollars, the nation is a regional power. As the total annual GDP is slightly over 1 trillion dollars and the per capita GDP is 18,000 dollars, the country is a newly industrialised emerging economy known for its incredible agricultural output.
Etymology and terminology
The name of the country is "Iboma" and the long form of the country’s name is the "Queendom of Iboma". Iboma originates from Ancient Ibomian. While the vowel rendering is still undetermined due to the inability to deduce the pronunciation from the abjad script which the country formerly used, it is possible to deduce that the name's pronunciation shifted over time. The demonym/genitive and adjective are Ibomian (singular: Mubomi and plural: Babomi in Ibomian).
History
Prehistory
The islands which comprise the modern-day territory of Iboma have been inhabited by the ancestors of the modern Golden Elves for over 20,000 years. The presence of stone tools, bone-made fishing rods and primitive bows and arrows made from animal hair and sticks, points to nomadic people who hunted game, gathered roots, fruits and greens, and fished in the lakes and rivers. They also built primitive shelters of animal hide, wooden sticks and plant materials. They also took shelter in caves whenever possible and they painted the cave walls with animal fat, animal blood, ash and other materials. These cave paintings survive and they contain rich mythology, information on useful plants, animal migrations, social relations and community customs. From these markings, it seems that society gave equal roles to males and females, and pregnant women were held in esteem in the society. Their idea of religion and spirituality was rich, with a variety of mythological figures such as gods and spirits forming part of their pantheon of deities. Because they lived in small groups, they did not form permanent social structures such as tribe such as tribes or nations.
Ancient history
Around 10,000 to 15,000 years ago, the people developed agriculture. They domesticated wild goats, mountain sheep, wolves and aurochs which roamed the island's fertile plains. These wild animals formed the basis of their societies and revolutionised the way they lived and did work. these wolves which were bred to modern dogs, were helpful in herding animals, fighting enemies and hunting game. Sheep were bred to produce incredible quantities of wool which allowed the people to produce yarn and woollen clothing. Aurochs became cattle and became powerful work animals and a massive source of meat. Their societies became sessile and they began experimenting with plants. They began to domesticate varieties of wild mustard which are today plants like cabbages, Brussel sprouts and kale. They also domesticated wild grasses which eventually produced grains like maize, sorghum, rice, wheat and millet.
Living in these sessile communities they spread throughout the islands and began constructing large rafts that formed the foundations of navigation. Originally, the rafts were barges used to transport goods and people between islands and along rivers. They also began constructing shelters out of thatch grass, clay mud and stone. They were able to build walls around their settlements and developed strong systems of authority. These societies began to develop gender roles, whereby women gradually assumed a stronger role in society as the emphasis on birth created important female deities. As physically larger and better at allocating resources, they began to take leadership roles. The seeds of matriarchy were born in this era.
Geography
Iboma is a middle-sized island nation surrounded by Tretrid and Lapinumbia to the west across the Tretridian Sea, the Veridian Union to the north-west, Dvalheim to the northeast, Tiervan to the east, Dvergaland to the southeast, and Bersaleria to the south. The nation spans an area of 308,734km² (about 119,203 square miles), with water comprising 3% of surface area and an exclusive economic zone of 120,500km².
The islands broke off from mainland Novaris over a period of several million years due to tectonic plate movements which have resulted in high levels of geological activity. Thus, several volcanoes remain active and the country is prone to minor earthquakes. The rich supply of geothermal energy and abundant rivers has helped the nation become energy independent. Coupled with high rates of volcanic mineral deposition and waterlogged land areas, Iboma has some of the highest rates of fertile soil in the world.
Comprised of 5 islands, the largest is Ibonanengwa (Great Iboma Island) which composes over ⅔ of the surface area. Due to the proximity of its neighbours, it maintains territorial disputes over maritime boundaries with most of them. The nation is rich in biodiversity with about 25% for nature reserves, 35% for agriculture, 10% for urban development, 20% for unprotected wilderness and 10% for mixed-use. With four seasons, divided equally across the year, rain falls throughout the year, snow is probable but rare, and temperatures rarely fall below freezing or rise above 35 degrees Celsius.
Politics
The politics of Iboma take place in the framework of a multiparty liberal representative democracy under an elected constitutional monarchy whereby the Queen of Iboma (muTendo mw'Iboma) is the head of state, nominal chief executive and commander in chief of the armed forces. The Queen makes laws together with the bicameral National Assembly (composed of the Council of Peers and the Council of the People) and most of the daily running of the country is delegated by convention and statute to the Council of Ministers with the chair, the Chancellor (muKanziliri), being the de facto head of government as the leader of the largest party of the National Assembly. The judicial functions of the Crown have been fully delegated to the judiciary, at the head of which is the Supreme Chamber of Justice.
When the Queen's reign ends due to death, abdication or declaration of permanent incapacity by the Council of State, the Council of State holds the Crown and exercises most royal prerogatives. It appoints a Regent to rule the country and summons the Council of Electors to choose a new Queen. Once a new Queen is named, she must take an Oath to uphold the laws of the land and status of the Akronist Church of Iboma and rule according to the tenents of Akronism. By convention a member of the House of Mujaji, usually the eldest daughter or closest female relative of the preceding Queen. She is then invested with the symbols of monarchical and spiritual officials and subsequently becomes the Queen.
She can then dissolve and reconstitute the Council of State as she sees fit. The Queen can remove Electors and appoint new ones from among the nobility and clergy of Iboma. Currently, the Council of Electors consists of the heads of the Houses of Nandi, Makeda, Asantwa, Ndzinga, Zwaditu and Mujaji who all hold the rank of Duchess and the top 5 ranked clerics of the Akronist Church of Iboma of which the Queen is the Supreme Guardian. In the early days of Iboma as a unified country, the Queenship rotated among the major houses, but with the ascension of Queen Mujaji II of the House of Mujaji as the head of the family that formerly ruled and maintained aristocratic titles with respect to the capital and largest city Komodu, the Queens have all come from the House of Mujaji since 1721 making Iboma a de facto matrilineal primogeniture and proximity of blood hereditary system.
The reigning Queen is Queen Rutendo III, of the House of Mujaji who ascended at the age of 64 in 1998 and is the eldest daughter of the preceding Queen Makadzi II who passed away at the age of 101 and her heir presumptive is her eldest daughter Princess Liyana, the Duchess of Nkurunza and her consort is Lady Mutunde, Countess of Ntshimirara.The Queen can appoint and dismiss members of the Council of Elders as she sees fit, however she can only appoint as the Chancellor the leader of the largest party in the Council of the People on whose advise she appointed the members of the Executive Committee of the Council of Elders, commonly known as the Council of Ministers whose members have been delegated authority over the daily running of the country and collective decision-making and responsibility over most executive functions of government. Each member is known as a State Councillor and heads a national executive department known as the State Office of which the most powerful are the State Offices of Justice and Police, Finance and Economics, Defence, Homeland Security and Home Affairs.
The incumbent Chancellor and Head of Her Majesty's Government is Rufaro ng'Asanda, the President of the Iboma National Congress (INC, lwuKhongolose lwaMhumolwohe lw'Iboma), the largest party in the Council of the People. Isabela ng'Fumanda is the Leader of Her Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition as the Federal Leader of the Iboma Democratic Alliance (IDA, lwuZambararohe lwuDemokratiki lw'Iboma), second largest party in the Council of the People. The INC, is a centre left organisation that has run the country for a period of 50 years while the IDA has run the country for 40 years and is a centre right party. The other major party is the People's Freedom Front (lwuFronti lwalwuYumbura lwaBhantfu) which has run the country in as a leading coalition member for a total of 15 years and is led by the Central Command Leader Mhumiya ng'Shambari. There are many other parties that comprise the Council of the People but due to the first-past-the-post system of single member constituencies where district boundaries are drawn by the Electoral Committee of the Council of the People which heavily weights the two or three biggest parties, districts hardly change the main party.
When a vacancy arises in the Supreme Chamber of Justice of Iboma (lwuZiko lwiNtshunengete lwalwuDjumburisha lw'Iboma), including for the position of the Chief Justice of Iboma, currently Nushamba nga Sumaya, the Chancellor can receive nominations from the Judicial Committee of the Council of the People and advise the Queen on which of the nominations to appoint. Supreme Chamber is the last body to which judicial decisions can be appealed and it only listens to appeals. Beneath lies the High Chamber of Justice which both listens to appeals and deals with issues beyond the jurisdiction of lesser judicial bodies and consists of divisions distributed throughout the country. Justice is dispensed in Queen's name by judges who ascend to their positions by meritocratic appointment.
Military
The Ibomian Armed Forces (zwiMbutfo zwamwuTendo mw'Iboma or informally zwiMbutfo zwamwuTendo, directly: the Forces of the Queen of Iboma) comprise the military of Iboma. They are responsible primarily for protecting the country from foreign military aggression. Their secondary roles include protecting national key points from violent aggression, humanitarian aid, search and rescue, disaster relief and emergency response, border security, and law enforcement support. The Queen is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. This is a symbolic position because the Queen is required to follow the advice of the Chancellor regarding military matters including the declaration of war and making of peace. Thus, the civilian military control is exercised by the Chancellor and by extension the Council of Ministers and the State Councillor of Defence. The highest professional commander is General Shwimbara nga Hundini.
The Ibomian Armed Forces consist of the Royal Navy (zwiMbutfo zwalwuNyondjera zwamwuTendo, the Queen's Maritime Forces), Royal Air Force (zwiMbutfo zwalwuHandwimba zwamwuTendo, the Queen's Air Forces) and the Queen's Army (zwiMbutfo zwalwuShintsa zwamwuTendo, the Queen's Ground Forces).
The military has an annual budget of 51.3 billion SHD (5% of annual GDP and about 15% of the national budget). It has a total force strength of 2.1 million, about 1.6 million of whom are conscripted reservists, with 500,000 comprising the full-force. Men have only been allowed to serve since the 1990s and today only comprise less than 25% of the force. The nation imports military hardware largely from Novarian countries but also has a domestic arms manufacturing sector dominated by the state-owned Ibomian Arms Corporation.
Economy
The economy of Iboma takes place in the framework of a mixed Socialist-free market economic model characterized by state regulation and control of key sectors alongside private property rights and free enterprise. As an upper-middle-income newly industrialized emerging economy, it has a GDP of 1.026 trillion SHD and a GDP per capita of 18,000 SHD.
Experiencing growth rates of 3% or more annually, it has leveraged its fertile soil and low-cost highly productive labour to become a major source of foodstuffs and a competitive supplier of low to middle value-added goods. With its primary exporting nations being Novarian, Concordian and Gondwanan nations, it is a major exporter of consumer goods, industrial equipment components and agricultural products like rubber, grains, fruits, and beans. It imports lots of vehicles, military hardware, chemicals and petroleum.
With the national currency, the Ibomian rawa (IRW) worth 58 IRW for 1 SHD, has a highly stable inflation rate managed by the Ibomian Reserve Bank. Unemployment remains incredibly low, but figures are obscured by high rates of seasonal agricultural labour and high rates of males who stopped looking for work due to domestic responsibilities. Due to the high purchasing power of the Ibomian currency and low cost of goods, people enjoy lifestyles comparable to those in matured industrialised nations. Although Ibomians are long-lived, they can work for over a century. Moreover, because Ibomians are so long-lived, they prioritize personal fulfillment and tradition instead of innovation. This has led to lower economic productivity relative to economic potential.
Demographics
The country has a total population of 57 million people. Gender distribution is slightly unbalanced, with 23 million males and 24 females. About 55% of people live in urban areas vs 45% in rural areas. Around 2% of the population consists of immigrants. Native golden elves (differentiated from other elves by their brown skin) comprise 98% of the population and consist of ancestral and cultural groups called tribes, the largest of which is the Bangwe tribe which comprises 32% of the population. 78% of the population follows Akronism with the rest following Tunseism and Thaerism. About 12% of the population is irreligious.
The annual population growth rate is around 2%. The average birth rate is 2.7 births per female. Infant mortality sits at 0.3 per 1000 births. The average life expectancy is 140 years. About 34% of the population is considered children, 58% is considered working-age adults and 8% consists of retirees. 98% of the population is literate, 95% completed formal education, 84% completed secondary education, 37% completed tertiary education.
98% of people have access to clean running water, 94% have access to a chemical or flush toilet, 88% have access to indoor plumbing and 85% have access to hot piped water. Although extreme or absolute poverty is non-existent, about 4% of the population live below the national poverty line of 300 SHD per month. Social programs such as government feeding schemes, public housing, food subsidies, and income grants alleviate the struggles of the poorest groups. Ibomian is the most widely spoken language with about 99.7% of the population able to speak it. About 67% have proficiency in a second-language especially Codexian, Tieresh, Tretridian and Norgsveldtian.
Culture
Cuisine
Since both the laws of Iboma and the Akronist religion forbid the consumption of meat, people have been forced to develop creative approaches to cuisine. Coupled with the highly fertile soil and optinal weather conditions for growing crops, a highly diverse plant-based diet emerged. Thus, Iboma is a entirely vegan and vegetarian. Dairy and eggs, despite being animal-based are legal, yet because of the low domestic production and high import duties, they are considered luxury goods. Ibomian famous beverages include highly refined grape wine, palm wine, coconut milk, fermented grain alcohol, and fruit juice beverages. With a highly diverse variety of high-starch foods such as grains, gourds and tubers like sorghum, butternut, and yams respectively, the country enjoys a highly balanced and diverse diet. Coupled with legumes, beans, and peanuts, people are able to meet their protein needs. As a major producer of herbs and spices such as thyme, parsley, rosemary and many more, Ibomian food is highly flavourful and aromatic. Sugary treats and deserts are limited to dried fruits and corn-sugar-sweetened roasted nuts, warm light grain-based puddings and gelatinous treats.
Literature
The country has a very rich literary history that while spanning a broad range of art-forms, has prominently featured the long-form prose and poetry anthologies. As the earliest form of writing was in the form of painted murals and embroidered tapestries, the focus of writing was to convey simple but impactful lines. Thus, the 6-5-6 Syllabic Poem, the 5-count Rhythmic Poetry Form and many others emerged. With the rise of the printing press, long form prose emerged and poetic anthologies arose. Some of the earliest commercial novelists include Machiporo Nga Yambawuri, whose satire of misandrism was critically acclaimed, while Opano Nga Ndimiri was praised for the critical examination of the self. These two are among a litany of writers who include male poet, Dibira Nga Jezenge, who brought the role of the feminine male protagonist into the mainstream and whose passionate portrayal of gay love shook the Akronist establishment. The availability of printed books and the proliferation of tokenised digital literary works have resulted in high reading rates and book sales in the country relative to its income level.
Visual arts and fashion
As mentioned before, tapestry and Wall murals have been the mainstays of Ibomian art but sculpture and fashion have also grown. The proliferation of tapestry and embroidery eclipsed wall murals because the demand for domestic and personal decorative art grew substantially in the late 20th and early 19th centuries. Thus, fashion has also grown and cultivated a robust domestic and international following. With Iboma being famed for brightly coloured clothing with lots of metallic especially gold beads, bracelets and necklaces, Ibomian fashion has been a means of expression in a highly regulated and emotionally disconnected country. Isildora Nga Nojuguru was famed for her abstract geometric themes while Tsikinga Nga Vanda was a proponent of ultra-realism and brought sculpture into the social mainstay.
Performing arts and music
The performing arts are dear to Ibomians because they allow a level of self-expression that the society does not readily provide. The advent of the modern recording system and the growth of computer, led to the emergence of electronic dance music which has come to dominate the Ibomian music scene. Of note is the unique style of tribal house, Chinga and Masambo that has emerged from EDM. Traditional choral music emerged from the Akronist monestaries and is the hallmark of Ibomian classical music. Unlike the other Novaran music, there was a lack of instruments that led to the dominant role that harmony and rhythm played as opposed to melody in Classical Ibomian music.
Society
Ibomian society is matriarchal i.e. dominated by women. This manifests in its political system where most political leaders are women and in economic life where women earn, on average, higher wages than men and occupy most senior corporate roles. Stemming in part from the physically larger character of women, Akronism built the idea of male impurity and aggression into the social fabric and femaleness as its counterbalance. Nevertheless, this society eschews many of the social values and norms displayed by other societies.
In intimate relationships, Ibomians are polyamorous with four types of legal and social relationships exist that are often filled by different people, with women playing a dominant role in each. Child-raising relationships are geared towards assisting one another in raising and providing for a child. Sexual relationships are purely for mutual physical intimacy and pleasure. Birthing relationships, whereby a mate is chosen on the basis of phylogenetic traits to optimize the characteristics of the child. Living partnerships consist of people sharing resources and space – this is usually the most emotionally intimate relationship.
Ibomian society exhibits three key social values: excellence, integrity and freedom. This society values hard work, studious attention to detail and outstanding quality, unfortunately to the exhaustion and social stigma of some. It also values being honest, disciplined and true to one’s self. Above all else, it values freedom and encourages people to express their personalities. Coupled with the fluidity in sexual practices and gender norms, the majority of the population is not exclusively attracted to a single gender and people often form emotionally and physically intimate relationships with several partners. Social interactions call for respecting complex social hierarchies, kindness and courtesy, but may seem distance as people do not like small talk or talking with strangers.
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