Mt. Avotro

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Mount Avotro
Avotronívan
Mt. Avotro pictured from the Avotro National Forest in Crystal Province, Tavaris.
Highest point
Elevation7,010 m (23,000 ft)
Naming
Wikipedia:EtymologyTavari
English translation"Mountain of the Elder Brother"
Geography
LocationFar North Crystal Province
CountryTavaris
In this topographic map of the island of Avnatra, Mt. Avotro is located in the white region in the northwest.

Mount Avotro (Tavari: Avotronívan, "mountain of the elder brother") is the tallest mountain in Tavaris and on the island of Avnatra. At 7,010 meters tall (6,657 Tavari nai), it is one of the tallest volcanoes on Urth, though it is considered extinct. It is located 383 km (363 Tavari avnai) almost directly due north from the city of Crystal Coast, in the Tavari Far North. The first climber to have been recorded and authenticated as reaching the summit was Zona Takandra Vanaš, a Tavari climber, in 1927, though ascents to as high as 5,000m have been recorded a handful of times since Tavari unification in 1304. An extinct stratovolcano, it is believed to have not erupted for at least one hundred thousand years and is believed to no longer have a magma supply capable of causing it to erupt again.

Mt. Avotro is known as one of the most "prominent" peaks on Urth, meaning that it has relatively few mountains of similar height near its highest point. It is not in a range of mountains but is instead believed to be the last remaining uneroded peak of a former chain of volcanoes that has since weathered into the Ranat Plateau in central Avnatra. The Tavari Far North in general has a vastly different climate than the rest of the country, with the relatively sudden, drastic increase in elevation bringing aridity and bitter cold temperatures to the otherwise tropical island. The volcanic history of the Ranat Plateau is believed to be the reason for the region's rich soil fertility. However, conditions around the mountain itself are harsh, and it marked the farthest northern boundary of areas of Tavari settlement until the modern era.

The entire region surrounding the mountain is unpopulated, with much of the area within 200km of the mountain designated as natural park or other state-owned land. In fact, there is no archaeological evidence of any permanent settlement near the mountain ever in history. There is only one maintained road that leads from the city of Crystal Coast to the mountain, which is owned and used by the Tavari Ministry of Defense and can sometimes be closed without reason given. Because of this isolation, Mt. Avotro is both one of the more dangerous mountains on Urth to attempt to climb and one of the more popular target for climbers. As of 2020, there have been 1,336 recorded ascents of Mt. Avotro. Only three of these were done by solo climbers.

Etymology

"Avotro" is the Tavari word for "older brother." The name is traditionally (and poetically) translated as "Mountain of the Elder Brother" in Staynish-Codexian. This name is believed to be related to the Tavari name for the island Avnatra ("elder sister"), the island of Lunaria (Tanatra, "younger sister"), the Oculus Islands (Natratomini, meaning "sister's children"), and the name of the broader archipelago of islands in the Gulf of Northwest Gondwana (excluding in Ayaupia and Zukchiva), "Natrani," meaning "sisters." The reasoning for these family-themed names is unknown, as it preceded the adoption of written language among the Tavari (which occurred in 600-800 CE), but it is commonly said that Mt. Avotro is the elder brother of the family and watching over his sisters, which are the islands. While no geographical features are so-named, folklore says the "mother" and "father" of the brother and sisters are the sea and the sky, respectively. Little archaeological or historical evidence for these claims has been found, though a consensus does exist that the proto-Tavari animist religion that preceded the Tavat Avati tradition likely considered the mountain to be an important spiritual figure.