New Veltorina
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New Veltorine Republic | |
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(3-5)(civil_flag).svg) Flag
 State Emblem
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Motto: Nova Aurora in Nova Terra ("A new dawn in a new land") | |
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| Capital and largest city | New Taxades |
| Official languages | Veltorine Latin Julian Ænglish |
| Religion | Catholicism |
| Demonym(s) | Veltorine (noun) Veltorine (adjective) |
| Government | Unitary Julian republic |
• State-President | Niko Meletine (PNM) |
• State-Overseer | Niko Meletine (PNM) |
• Majority Leader of the National Convocation | Makis Lucerna (PNM) |
| Legislature | National Convocation of the Veltorine Nation |
| Establishment | |
| 30 September 2024 | |
• Provisional Government established | 16 May 2026 |
• Constitution effective | 1 January 2028 |
| Population | |
• Estimate | 9,904,304 |
| Currency | Taler (₮) |
| Driving side | right |
New Veltorina, officially the New Veltorine Republic, is a country in Crona. It is neighbored by Varshan to the south and Quetzenkel to the east.
New Veltorina is the nation-state of the Veltorine people. Veltorines people began to settle in northwestern Crona in the 1960s and 70s as part of a movement to find a new homeland following the conquest of the original Veltorina by Caphiria at the conclusion of the First Great War. Veltorines received some status in Quetzenkel and Veltorines migrated to from Sarpedon to the Brudxaan Province, a territory taken by Quetzenkel from Zurgite Varshan in the 1960s. Conditions gradually worsened as political stability in Quetzenkel declined, precipitating the South Nysdra War in the 2010s and Urcean intervention. Following that intervention, the Veltorines established their first independent state in a century with the proclamation of the Principality of Cetsencalia, a declaration which led to precipitous migration of remaining Veltorines from the Occident to the territory. The growth of an Occidental population in northern Crona was particularly offensive to the government and people of Varshan, and when Varshan began the Final War of the Deluge against Urcea, Cetsencalia was its first target. Cetsencalia eventually capitulated to Varshani occupation, beginning a slow-moving genocide of Veltorine people in the territory. The genocide was interrupted by the advanced of Urcean and allied forces, which liberated the territory and placed it under the Veltorine Territories occupation government. Subsequently, popular political movements under the Veltorine Popular Defense Committee participated in the liberation of the country, and following the war the VPDC took control of the country. Negotiations between it and the sometimes-rival Veltorine government-in-exile resulted in a merger and the formation of a new, unified New Veltorine state in 2026 under the New Veltorine Provisional Government. A constitution was subsequently ratified in 2028.
It is a member of the Nysdra Sea Treaty Association.
Etymology
The country is the "New Veltorine Republic", signifying both the geographical position of the territory (in Crona, distinct from old Veltorina) as well as a degree of continuity from the original Veltorine Republic. The territory underwent several name changes during the 2010s and 2020s. The first Veltorine state in Crona, Cetsencalia, was a latinization of the name of Quetzenkel, from whom it gained indepenence. After the capitulation of Cetsencalia during the Final War of the Deluge, this name was considered to have negative connotations, and the territory was reorganized as the Urcean military rectory of the Veltorine Territories. Subsequent negotiations between Veltorine factions produced the name "New Veltorine Republic", primarily as a concession to the Veltorine government-in-exile.
Geography
New Veltorina sits on a promontory to the northwest of Crona, adjacent to the large Varshani plain and Sea of Nysdra. The promontory, referred to as the Brudxaan Peninsula, extends approximately 500 miles into the ocean and serves as a primary dividing feature between the Sea of Nysdra and the Sea of St. John. To the northeast of the promontory sits a large coastal plain which serves as New Veltorina's primary population center, while to the southeast is the country's hinterland region, a plain sitting between the Varshani border mountains and the highlands to the north which backstop the northern plain. On the west coast sits a minor urbanized region surrounding the city of Qozala, which sits at the southern base of the peninsula. The entire country is considered to be in the Oceanic climate.
History
New Veltorina is a country that, in many respects, has two histories: the history of its indigenous peoples and that of the Veltorine people, who arrived in the 20th century. The territory of what is today New Veltorina was, prior to the 1960s, a territory of Varshan known as the Brudxaan Province, and, before that, generally part of the Quetzen sphere of influence but not always directly a part of that state. Quetzenkel's acquisition of the Brudxaan region precipitated the arrival of Veltorine people, beginning a period of settlement which resulted in the establishment of a Veltorine state.
Indigenous history
The Brudxaan area was first settled by humans in the period of the 6000s BC along with neighboring Quetzenkel and parts of Varshan.
The city of Čak Qozal was established in the 12th century BC at the southwestern base of the Brudxaan peninsula.
The eastern hinterlands and northern conquest were conquered by Varshan in 1525. This region became a critical point which allowed Varshan to project its influence across the Nysdra Sea into Venua'tino. The inhabitants of the Brudxaan were ethnically related to the neighboring Quetzen people. In the 20th century, the collapse of Varshan's Yun-harle dynasty critically weakened the state. Several foreign powers, especially Daxia, encouraged Quetzenkel to annex the Brudxaan Province in order to establish a so-called "Varshan gradient" that would buffer Cusinaut from Varshan. The annexation occurred in 1962.
The Diaspora and Cronan settlement
The conquest of Veltorina at the end of the First Great War brought to an end the independence of the nation-state of the Veltorine people, a people native to northeastern Sarpedon. Their conquest by Caphiria led to a century of various efforts by the Veltorine people to reestablish their independence, both in their home territory and, later, abroad. The Veltorine government-in-exile supported efforts to reestablish Veltorine independence, while later movements such as the Life Abroad Movement and 21st century resettlements supported by Urcea sought to establish a new Veltorine state abroad.
The Quetzen acquisition of the Brudxaan Province (an area adjoining the Nysdra Sea) of Varshan in the 1960s had important societal effects both for Varshan and the conquering party, Quetzenkel. Occidentals with expertise were sought after by both countries to help modernize their economies and armed forces, and the Quetzen sought to supplement the local Quetzen population of Brudxaan with a non-Varshani population. Accordingly, both countries began to solicit the Life Abroad Movement (with the Caphirian government serving as intermediary) to begin settling Veltorines in the area. Brudxaan, rather than Varshan, was the more popular destination of the Movement, though Varshan generally paid higher and offered unprecedented exemptions to Veltorine experts and consultants. Accordingly, a few Veltorines settled in Varshan's northwestern borderlands, but most agreed to relocate to Brudxaan. Veltorine settlers began to arrive in 1971. In the first decade and a half of Veltorine settlement, Veltorines generally enjoyed specific legal protections and a prominence in society protected by the Quetzen state. In this period, the new arrivals served as technical experts, consultants, and advisors to Quetzenkel as it modernized its military and economy; many of the arrivals had been scientists, civil servants, and even military officers in Caphiria, and accordingly they imparted on the Quetzen state a semi-Caphiric model of administration and organization of the military. The impact of the Veltorines within both Quetzen and Varshani society began to decline by the 1980s, as the highly sought after professionals began to age out or die; in their place, a well-cultured but poorly-educated second generation of Veltorines began to mature, most of whom taking positions as non-skilled laborers. Veltorines maintained their place in society, however, as waves of them from Sarpedon continued to arrive through the year 1992.
In 1980, the Catholic Church created the Diocese of Brudxaan (under the Province of the Nysdra) to serve the Veltorines of the Brudxaan Province, replacing an early Apostolic vicariate. The first Bishop of Brudxaan was a Veltorine priest named Guias Melinkes, and the establishment of the Diocese was the first distinctly Veltorine social or political institution within Quetzenkel. Melinkes, who would serve as Bishop until his death in 2001, became the world's most prominent Veltorine and was viewed by many Veltoriens - both in Crona and in Sarpedon - as one of the primary leaders of the Veltorine people.
Deluge developments
By the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the Veltorine people living in Brudxaan faced rapidly deteriorating material conditions and social position. Now in their second or even third generation, many Veltorines had become agricultural workers, soldiers, or other non-specialist positions which were of little use to the Quetzen people. As their utility and conditions declined, the Veltorines began to be the subject of scorn to the other Quetzen and indigenous peoples they lived alongside. For a time, the state was able to maintain order and prevent violence, intermittently making attempts to integrate the Veltorines into Quetzen society. Those efforts came to an end as Quetzenkel descended into political chaos. Archchief Honau V's death in 2013 inaugurated the reign of Quetzen XXIII and a traditionalist regime, which began a crackdown on Veltorine civil rights. The Veltorines launched an insurrection aimed at seizing control of Brudxaan, becoming a combatant in the South Nysdra War now consuming Quetzenkel. A Veltorine assassin killed Quetzen XXIII in early 2014, plunging the country further into civil war and ending the ability of the Akwesasne government to project power into Brudxaan. By mid-2015, the Veltorine militias were nominally in charge of the territory, but the coalition of Veltorine leaders began to fragment while facing indigenous guerillas. An inter-Veltorine civil war appeared likely in 2016 as the general Quetzen conflict intensified, but events would soon unfold such that a relatively unified Veltorine state would be established by the end of the year.
Urcea, following intense negotiations with Varshan, began intervention in the South Nysdra War.
Capitulation and resistance
Veltorine unification
In the waning years of the Final War of the Deluge, the alignment of Urcea and the Cape together in the war against Varshan opened dialogue between both countries. This created a diplomatic window in which rapprochement between the Veltorine Popular Defense Committee and Veltorine government-in-exile could explore collaborations with regard to a Veltorine state in Crona.
Republic established
Government
New Veltorina is a unitary Julian republic with a unicameral legislature. It is governed by the Constitution of 2028, which took effect Jan 1 of that year following a convention and ratification process that took place in 2026-27. As a Julian republic, the Veltorine constitution is modeled on the form of the Urcean government, which employs different offices each for the head of state, the chief executive, and the head of government. Unlike most other Julian systems, New Veltorina employs civil law; accordingly, the National Convocation is the final court of appeal and the judicial system is largely made up of appointed arbitrators rather than a freestanding court system. Some courts are established in the largest cities, such as New Taxades.
New Veltorina is an officially ethnic state, and the Constitution of 2028 provides that it is a state "by and for the Veltorine people". As such, it provides that the three main roles of state can only be held by an individual who has "demonstrable ancestry to the Veltorine people of northeastern Sarpedon", but it provides that indigenous Cronans and others may serve as members of the National Convocation. Although the state is stated to be constructed "for the benefit and protection of Veltorines", the Constitution of 2028 and protocols under the Nysdra Sea Treaty Association provide for civil rights for minority groups. However, the strength of those protections has been questioned by international observers and by authorities within NSTA. Discrimination, though nominally illegal, is viewed to be one of the serious political and governmental problems of the New Veltorine state, though much of this occurs in on an individual or organizational basis rather than at the state level. Protection of indigenous farmers and mountain peoples added to the New Veltorine state by the Treaty of Electorsbourg is an ongoing concern for New Veltorina's foreign allies and partners, especially Urcea.
Executive
The executive branch of New Veltorina is considered to be a conventionally arranged Julian republican system. The State-President serves as the head of state and the symbolic representation of New Veltorine sovereignty, but has somewhat limited day-to-day authority over the affairs of the government. The State-President is responsible for declaring war (with the approval of the National Convocation) appointment of military officers and judicial officials as well as the awarding of honors. Next to the State-President is the State-Overseer, who serves as chief executive. The State-Overseer is responsible for the administration of the state and oversees the national cabinet which answers to the State-Overseer but is appointed by the Majority Leader of the National Convocation. The State-Overseer, accordingly, directs public policy, orders the implementation of executive orders and initiatives, and proposes budgets to be adopted by the Convocation. Unlike many other Julian systems, the New Veltorine constitution enables the same individual to serve as both State-President and State-Overseer, but prohibits either executive officer from serving as the Majority Leader of the Convocation, creating a branch separation that doesn't exist in most other Julian governments. The 2028 Constitution laid out a complex mechanism for the appointment of the State-President. It required the appointment of a Presidential Conference Committee (PCC), composed of the State-Overseer, the Majority Leader of the Convocation, and three individuals selected at random by means of sortition from eligible voters nationwide, with each member having a different weighted vote and the randomly selected members rotating annually. In the PCC, the Overseer held six votes, the Majority Leader three votes, and the randomly selected individuals one vote. The State-President serves so long as they enjoy the confidence of a majority of the PCC. By contrast, the State-Overseer is elected very five years in a nationwide election with the same term and same election year as the National Convocation.
Legislature
In New Veltorina, legislative power is concentrated in the National Convocation, a 282-member legislative body. The Convocation's members are elected in first-past-the-post elections in 250 geographic legislative districts apportioned every decade, as well as a 32 member nationwide constituency which is distributed proportionately based on the share of vote in the 250-seats for each major party. Convocation members serve 5 year terms, with elections following the Urcean calendar of having elections in years 0 and 5. The Constitution of 2028 provides that the National Convocation is the supreme authority of the New Veltorine state. It has the authority to make or unmake laws, appoint or remove government ministers, impeach the State-President or State-Overseer with a two-thirds margin, approve treaties, pass or reject budgets proposed to it by the State-Overseer, remove judges and military officers by a three-fourths margin, and most other matters of state. The leader of the Convocation is the Majority Leader of the National Convocation, who serves at the pleasure of the majority (or coalition) party and who is responsible for the appointment of government ministers as well as the conduct of the legislature.
Local governance
As New Veltorina is a unitary republic, few policy choices are made at the local level. The country is nominally divided into four prefectures (and one special governance area) whose governments were dissolved at the time of the implementation of the constitution; most of the municipalities or other local administrations are now directly under the central government. Despite this theoretical , the country has a very large patchwork of local administrative systems due to the way in which it was established. A majority of New Veltorina's populace live within Urban Community Areas (UCA), a municipal government which in theory is intended to function democratically but in practice is primarily made up of central government appointments, including, in some cases, continued holdovers of the provisional government municipal committees. A majority of the land area, meanwhile, is directly under the authority of a central government body known as the Parcel Administration, which was responsible for the survey and division of the New Veltorine countryside into parcels to be sold off to Veltorine settlers. The "Parcel Area" consequently collectively refers to all lands divided by the Parcel Authority but not yet sold. When a parcel is sold, it automatically leaves the jurisdiction of the Parcel Authority and becomes subject to the local Urban Community Area (UCA), creating a geographic patchwork of municipal boundaries with some parcels being separated from the cities in which they are a part by hundreds of miles of Parcel Area land. A smaller portion of the country, particularly in the south, are part of various legal entities which predate the Veltorine settlement and are referred to as "antique commons", which are centuries-old village communes of the indigenous Cronan population. Very few antique commons are legally similar to each other, and though national law treats them the same as Urban Community Areas in theory, in practice relations between the communes and the government vary greatly. Significant outside intervention in the form of lobbying and grant-giving, particularly by Urcea but also increasingly by New Harren and Quetzenkel, is required to prevent the encroachment of both the government and private land owners onto antique common areas.
Qozala Special Governance Area
The Qozala Specal Governance Area (QSGA) is an autonomous region on New Veltorina's west coast which encompasses the city of Qozala and its immediate environs within fifteen miles of the city limits. Qozala, originally Čak Qozal, is the primary indigenous city in New Veltorina, and is the oldest urban settlement in the country. The QSGA has its own government led by an elected twelve person parliamentary body (the Area Dazga) led by a Premier. Residents of the QSGA pay no taxes to the government in New Taxades, and instead the QSGA is given a certain financial levy by the central government it can meet by any means at its discretion. National penal laws generally do not apply in the QSGA, with its own local criminal code in force. The QSGA also has certain ability to nullify some New Veltorine law within its own jurisdiction. Critically, the QSGA has restricted entry protocols, allowing it to maintain a mostly indigenous character to the exclusion of would-be Veltorine settlers. The QSGA's status is guaranteed by New Harren.
The city, once prominent under the Varshani and Quetzen administrations, became politically sidelined once Cetsencalia was established, and its fate was a constant source of political discord in that country. When Varshan occupied much of Cetsencalia during the Final War of the Deluge, the city had a minor uprising in support of Varshan before the uprising was suppressed by the Urcean military. After that time, the city was subject to reprisals from Veltorine militia forces, and it became evident that the city would be in danger of public violence unless afforded special status. Such status was mandated by the Treaty of Electorsbourg and created by agreement with Urcea in 2025.
In practice, the QSGA is considered by many international observers to be a ghetto. From 2030 to 2034, international humanitarian groups have leveled dozens of credible accusations of forcibly relocating indigenous Cronans to the QSGA off their land by means of spurious eviction and legal proceedings. The QSGA is very poor and is reliant primarily on international aid from Urcea to provide for the basic needs of its citizens. In the face of diplomatic pressure from NSTA and international criticism, the New Veltorine government began to invest millions of talers into the QSGA tourism sector in 2034.
Politics
New Veltorina is a multi-party democracy in theory, with moderately well constructed political systems ensuring free and fair elections. In practice, however, New Veltorina is a dominant-party state, led by the Party for the National Movement (PNM). Most policy disagreements and change in power usually take place within the context of the PNM. The PNM maintains its hold primarily through cultural and social pressures on New Veltorines rather than by state-based intimidation, though isolated incidents of voter intimidation have been recorded. Besides the PNM, there are three other major parties.New Veltorina's major political parties are as follows:
- The Party for the National Movement (PNM) is the ruling political party in New Veltorina. It is a nationalist party that is ostensibly an "organic socialist movement party", but in many senses the Party is a big tent political party; some have observed increasing strains of Restarkism entering the party since the accomodation was reached between Cronan Veltorines and the Veltorine government-in-exile. The PNM was formed out of the political elements of the Veltorine Popular Defense Committee, the wartime military resistance against Varshan. It is avowedly pro-NSTA and was the primary agent behind the current Constitution of 2028, and of all of the political parties it is the one most closely identified with and largest supporter of the notion of New Veltorine being a self-described "ethnic state of Veltorines."
- The Socialist Revolutionary Industrial Progress Party (SRIPP) is the political party which ruled Veltorina prior to its conquest by Caphiria. Then, as now, the party describes itself as constitutional socialist, and states that its aims are to bring about the "constitutional revolution in New Veltorina so as to bring the state in line with the great achievements of our party and people in Sarpedon". In practice, the SRIPP is considered to be a centrist political party. At the end of Veltorina's existence, the SRIPP transformed from a vanguardist left wing party to a big tent party, and in that respect the SRIPP is considered to be the general party of opposition against PNM rule in New Veltorina. Besides its lofty ideological views, the Party has few concrete policy positions beyond a vague commitment to indigenous civil rights, a general opposition to continued membership in NSTA from a nationalist perspective, denunciation of the status of the state as an ethnic state, and reform of the state to follow a modified version of the 1882 Constitution with more liberal elements. The SRIPP was the dominant organization in the Veltorine government-in-exile until the 1970s, after which time it gradually lost position vis a vis independent liberals.
- The International Veltorine Party (IVP) is a centrist liberal party, generally concerned with free trade and reconciliation with Caphiria, but also has a minor focus on enhancing the civil rights of New Veltorina's indigenous Cronan population. The IVP views the existence of the New Veltorine state as an opportunity for Veltorines to denounce their ideological past but also to step onto the world stage as a full participant in international diplomacy rather than, in its words, as a "bitter, defensive minority trapped in a siege mentality." The IVP supports NSTA as a defensive alliance but views its import-ban and exclusive trade policies as harmful to the Veltorine people. The IVP denounces the concept of New Veltorina as an ethnic state and supports its reform as a "multiracial, multiethnic democracy" similar to states such as Cartadania; some factions in the party also support revising or replacing the Julian 2028 Constitution.
- The Party of the Continuing Revolution (PCR) is a far left political party which espouses council communism and denounces the SRIPP and constitutional socialism as revisionist. The PCR-SRIPP split predates the settlement of Veltorines in Crona, being founded among exiles in 1954, and the disagreement between council communists and constitutional socialists dates to before the dissolution of the original Veltorine state. The PCR is generally Urceoskeptic, opposes continued membership in NSTA, opposes New Veltorina's status as an ethnic state, and, as council communists, generally advocates for the dissolution of the state. It is abstentionist in practice, and usually comprises only a handful of members of the National Convocation.
Culture and society
New Veltorina has a culture extending back several millennia due to the shared history, common traditions, and imported social mores of the Veltorine people, who emerged in Sarpedon during the medieval period from the intersection of Ancient Istroyan civilization and Latinic people. Beyond this longstanding tradition, New Veltorines have taken on a more militaristic and solidaristic worldview due to the effects of the Final War of the Deluge on Cronan Veltorines. New Veltorine society is considered to be deeply hierarchical and, as is the case with other Veltorines, Catholic bishops have a position of personal influence, social standing, and cultural tastemaking virtually unknown in most other Catholic countries; in New Veltorina, this began with the appointment of Bishop Melinkes in 1980, who instantly became an international symbol of Veltorine resilience. Cultural commentators have observed that the country's three Catholic bishops have a semi-monarchical effect on cultural tastes.
New Veltorines are generally divided into three major cultural groups, the first two of which are ethnically Veltorine (and both of which make up about half of the Veltorine population) while the remainder is the assorted Cronan indigenous persons which are mostly marginalized within New Veltorine life and live in and around Qozala. The first major group is the so called "Brudxi", named for the Varshani province settled by Veltorines first during the 1960s. The Brudxi are Veltorines who relocated to Crona during the middle and late 20th century, and accordingly most are part of multi-generational families that have lived in what is now New Veltorina for decades. The Brudxi are usually observed to have a more rustic character, having shed many of the tastes of high Sarpedonic culture and affluence in the decades since moving to Crona. The Brudxi are also considered to be more world-weary in outlook due to several decades of status as a minority ethnicity; while Sarpedonic Veltorines also share this view of themselves as a minority, the Brudxi were victim to multiple waves of attempted ethnic cleansing before and during the 2010s, which make them observably more suspicious of indigenous Cronans as well as authority in general. The Brudxi tend to have a distinctive accent with some Hieratic Varshani words introduced, particularly as slang. The Brudxi also have a mixed cuisine style, retaining many Veltorine traditional favorites and family recipes while including indigenous meals, which they have eaten for generations. Politically, the Brudxi are more cynical, more populist, and socially conservative. The Brudxi made up a majority of the personnel of the Veltorine Popular Defense Committee during the Final War of the Deluge. Most Brudxi would be considered nationalist in a sense (and most are members of the Party for the National Movement), but scholars have observed that the Brudxi eschew more intellectual or Romantic senses of nationalism in favor of a "defensive" or "possessive" view of nationality. Brudxi mostly have lower levels of educational attainment than their Fero counterparts; though their ancestors were largely technical experts or scientists, the children of those experts were generally not given easy access to education. Economically, many Brudxi occupy working class and agricultural jobs as well as service in the New Veltorine military, though the Brudxi also make up the senior clique in the Party for the National Movement and consequently form the country's political elite.
The "Feros", short for "transfero" (transplant), are the second major Veltorine cultural group in New Veltorina. Feros generally moved to New Veltorina during the 21st century, especially following the establishment of Cetsencalia as a Veltorine principality in 2015. Accordingly, the Feros are first generation immigrants to Crona and retain nearly all of the extant social mores and traditions of Veltorines in Sarpedon, Halfway, and Lariana. Feros are usually highly educated and consider themselves relatively culturally sophisticated, preferring higher level cultural amenities in major cities such as New Taxades. The Feros are diverse in terms of political allegiance but have generally similar outlooks. As the Feros are better educated on average than the Brudxi, they tend to have a more philosophical, ideological, and high-minded view of politics. This takes two main forms: about half of Feros are members of the dominant Party for the National Movement and make up the Romantic nationalist wing of that party, viewing New Veltorine nationalism as a culmination of historical forces and ultimately filling a vacuum on the world stage left by the destruction of old Veltorina. The other half of Feros, meanwhile, hold to modified versions of the ideology of old Veltorina, constitutional socialism, with all of the complex philosophical and sociological frameworks that come with it. Many of the Feros were followers of the Veltorine government-in-exile and then made up virtually all of the membership of the Veltorine Social Council when it was made the governing authority in Cetsencalia. New Veltorina's Fero population considers itself more internationalist in outlook than the Brudxi, and tend to identify themselves as more in favor of civil rights for indigenous Cronans than the Brudxi, though interntional cultural observers have noted that this distinction may be more relevant in self-identity than actual policy proposals or outcomes. Feros make up many of the high level corporate and white-collar positions within New Veltorina as well as the majority of members of the National Convocation, but are outnumbered by Brudxi in senior leadership positions within the state and the ruling Party for the National Movement.
The divisions among the nation's ethnic Veltorines have produced a relatively varied national culture, whereby the very identity of being Veltorine is viewed more highly than concrete shared mores and customs, including and especially cuisine. The Feros and Brudxi do continued to share a number of similarities, including the Veltorine propensity for waking early and a late morning (roughly 11 AM) nap, a tradition which shapes the Veltorine workday and eating patterns.
Demographics
In 2030, the population of New Veltorina was 9,904,294. Of these, 72% of the population - 7,131,091 were considered to be Veltorine people, including self-identified Veltorines with one or more indigenous grandparents. As an ethnic state, ethnicity of origin is considered important in New Veltorina, and the state is responsible for taking an annual (rather than decennial) census which tracks not only residency statistics but also self-reported ancestry and relations between household and extended family units. The remaining 28% of the population - 2,773,203 - are of varied indigenous Cronan ancestry. The indigenous population has no single majority ancestry group, with ethnic Varshanis making up a plurality along with Quetzens as the second largest group, with being from other parts of Crona or displaced persons from Cao, Xisheng, and elsewhere. Many of the indigenous people live in the hinterland region or in the mountains annexed from Varshan, but a majority live in and around Qozala.
New Veltorina has significant income inequality which is based mostly on ethnicity. Generally speaking, indigenous Cronans make up the vast majority of the lowest income bracket and most of the indigenous Cronans within the country are at or only slightly above poverty levels. Though there are many ethnic Veltorines who rely on subsistence farming who form the bottom end of the wealth spectrum of Veltorines, they are nonetheless significantly wealthier than their indigenous counterparts and neighbors. The top 15-20% of the country's wealthiest people, meanwhile, all live in and around New Taxades. Many of these individuals would be considered middle class in other developed countries, demonstrating the large wealth gap and gradient that characterizes New Veltorine economic life.
Linguistic Demographics
New Veltorina has a highly diverse linguistic landscape. Approximately 85% of its people - both Veltorine and indigenous - primarily speak Veltorine Latin. However, there are significant differences within the Veltorine Latin linguistic group. About half of speakers speak the so-called Brudxi Dialect, a form of Veltorine Latin which features significant vocabulary introductions from Hieratic Varshani which is spoken primarily with what was considered to be a rural accent in old Veltorina. This group tends to have Veltorine Latin as a first language. The second group, mostly corresponding to the Feros but also with indigenous Cronans, speak traditional "High" Veltorine Latin as it was taught in schools and universities in Veltorina around the time of the First Great War. Many of these speakers, however, speak Veltorine Latin as a second language, with most of the ethnic Veltorine Feros speaking Julian Ænglish as a first language. A minority of this cohort speak Caphiric Latin as their primary language. The remaining 15% speak a mix of indigenous languages, with 7% speaking Hieratic Varshani, 6% speaking a variety of Quetzen, and the remaining 3% speaking rare Cronan indigenous languages or foreign languages such as Housatonish or Algosh.
Religious Demographics
Religious affiliations in New Veltorina (2034)
New Veltorina is a predominantly Catholic country, as was old Veltorina before it. In terms of Church governance, it is divided into two dioceses and one archdiocese (New Taxades). Virtually all ethnic Veltorines are Catholics in New Veltorina, in addition to a significant percentage of the indigenous population. There are several prominent indigenous religions that form small minorities, namely M'acunism - primarily practiced using Quetzen traditions and customs - as well as Arzalism. Orthodox Arzalism was banned by the Urcean occupying authorities in late 2024, and those Arzalists in New Veltorina are required by law to be part of the State Arzalist belief system.
Economy
New Veltorina's economy has been called "divergent" by several prominent observers and economists, due to the heavily urbanized and relatively modern economy in and surrounding New Taxades, the capital and socio-economic heart of New Veltorina on the country's northern coast while the southern and interior parts of the country are functionally a developing economy. The primary export of both regions of the country is foodstuff to neighboring Varshan, whose intermittent post-war famines have produced significant demand for food from across Crona. In terms of consumer products, mead is by far the most well known and popular agricultural export of the country, with well-capitalized apiaries and meaderies existing alongside subsistence farms within the interior.
New Veltorina's most prosperous and productive region is its northern coastal plain, centered on the city of New Taxades. Since 2024, this area has become increasingly urbanized, with increased demand for consumer goods (mostly foreign) and services dominating the economic life of the city. The presence of the government in New Taxades, as well as a significant concentration of both New Veltorine and Urcean military personnel, is the primary driver of demand on the tertiary service industry. The northern plain is also a prosperous fishing area, producing major catches often exported to Varshan. The other major urban area of New Veltorina is in and around the indigenous city of Qozala on the country's southwestern coast. Unlike the New Taxades area, Qozala (and its Qozala Special Governance Area) is extremely impoverished and is primarily reliant on international development aid. In the 2030s, the area began to see a small influx of tourists, as Qozala is one of the few areas where pre-Deluge Varshani architecture and historical structures remain intact. The Qozala tourist sector has been the recent target of significant investment from both foreign capital and the New Veltorine government.
Outside of the major urban corridor, much of New Veltorina is a developing economy, with most of the population living there conducting subsistence agricultural activity and ranching. Some of the New Veltorine hinterlands have become successful and productive farms and ranches, and like the northern coast most of its surplus is sold to Varshan. Construction is a growing sector in the New Veltorine hinterland as well, especially in the territories acquired from Varshan, where extensive transportation infrastructure and transportation linkage with the rest of the country has been constructed since 2024.
Military
The New Veltorine Armed Forces were established first as the Army of New Vetorina. The core of the new Army was made up of the two corps previously organized under the Veltorine Popular Defense Committee Army of National Reclamation, with an additional division organized in January 2028 out of various militia forces and operatives that had been organized by the former Veltorine government-in-exile during the Final War of the Deluge. Much of the army served under Royal and Imperial Army allied command during the Final War of the Deluge, and current defense doctrine calls for them to be subordinated to allied command in the event of another war as part of the Defense Coordination Initiative.
The New Veltorine Government also authorized the creation of the Air Force of New Veltorina, which began its existence on paper as personnel were trained by the Urcean Royal Air Force. Several surplus aircraft have been provided by Urcea to New Veltorina and these vehicles made up the vast majority of the AFNV's fleet by 2030. The New Veltorine Government has begun a project of local aircraft manufacturing, with the government intending to phase out foreign made vehicles by 2050. In addition to this domestic air defense service, Urcea's Royal Air Force maintains a mid-sized airbase in the country, RAF New Taxades.
In February 2028, New Veltorina joined participation in the Nysdra Sea Guard, the joint naval forces of the Nysdra Sea Treaty Association. The Sea Guard was designated the official naval armed force of New Veltorina that month.