Aciria: Difference between revisions

Aciria, officially the Grand Empire of Aciria (Acirien: Grande Impero di Aciria), is a country located in southwestern [[Sarpedon]], bordering [[Pelaxia]], [[Grajnidar]] and [[Volonia]]. It also shares maritime borders with [[Kiravia]]. The seven administrative regions, three special administrative regions and imperial dominions span a combined area of 1,326,488 km2 (512 160 sq mi) and is home to over 76 million people. Aciria is an Absolute Monarchy, with its capital in [[Trosseurs|Trossera]], which is home to the Imperial Seat. Trossera is the largest city in the country, and its main cultural, political and commercial centre. Other notable urban areas include Soleramo, Marocino, Pantevenna, Dalora, Guidono, and Carrara.

The land of modern day Aciria was inhabited by a peoples known as the Glaistos to the Istroyans. The Glaistos were described as a warlike people, with the multiple tribal kingdoms in almost perpetual warfare with each other. Most notable of the tribal kingdoms was the one lead by Three Sisters, who are still beloved in the Aciriano nation today. Aciria was eventually annexed into the Caphirian realm which introduced the Latinic people into the region which eventually created the Glaisto-Latinic culture, laying foundation to the Acirien language. The introduction of the Latin and eventual Catholicism brought stability and peace into the region which lasted until Aciriano independence in 1615, started by the declaration of the [[Free Republic of Aciria]]. An inefficient democracy, the Free Republic suffered from corruption, constant revolts and an unstable leadership due to coups and the People's Senate's inability to agree on various subjects. Despite this, the Free Republic era is remembered for not only its instability, but the first formation of the Aciriano identity, highlighting the various tribes that made up the Aciriano nation. The tumultuous succession of the governments came to an end in 1783 with the establishment of the Grand Empire of Aciria, declared by [[Jean Dupois|Jean I]] after arresting and executing the First Speaker and crowning himself Grand Emperor. Thanks to the power concentrated on the highly popular emperor and former military leader Jean I and his various reforms, Aciria reached stability it hadn't seen in over a century. After the reforms, a period of rapid cultural, economic and scientific development followed. The stability and prosperity the [[Emperor of Aciria|House of Dupois]] has brought to the region is the reason the Emperor is still very popular among the people, still ruled by direct descendants of Jean I.

The Acirien economy is highly developed, with the Acirien GDP being third largest on Sarpedon. Despite this, the population has vast economic differences, with a large number of the population living near or under the poverty line. Acirien population is the fifth largest on Sarpedon, with the population growth guaranteed by the controversial law that requires all physically able women to give birth to a minimum of two children in their lifetime. The population enjoys a well-developed public transport system, and benefits from universal healthcare which has quickly raised the Acirien life expectancy since the founding of the Imperial Health Service in the 1950s.

Dupois quickly established a more efficient administrative system known as La Chaine, and reduced corruption remarkably with the establishment of Polizia Amministrativa Imperiale in 1790, which also functioned as an intelligence service, allowing him to arrest and kill any opposition before it became any real risk to his power. For a brief moment Dupois also instituted conscription for any able-bodied man in 1795 to bolster the army's numbers and deter any foreign invasions, but in 1805 conscription was removed due to how insubordinate the army had become. Similarly to the senate, out of both respect and fear, the general populace also allowed Dupois' oppressive regime to stay in power, along with the fact this had been the first time in nearly two centuries a single person had kept power for more than a decade. Dupois knew Aciriens feared instability and return to disorder more than anything, using the stability he brought as a propaganda tool.

File:3982px-Mapcarta.jpg|The Acirien heartlands are home to communities built in lush, green valleys.

The geography of Aciria has been both a blessing and a curse for the Aciriens. Most of the Acirien lands are plains and flatlands, which has made Aciria an easy source of invasion from both foreign- and domestic powers. This has directly affected the turbulent history of the nation. The plentiful flatlands alongside the multiple rivers splitting the nation allowed the Aciriens to turn the landscape into vast fields to grow various crops in, and to this day Acirien heartlands are known for their vast and beautiful fields, which still feeds the nation.  

In the Griffe peninsula in the southwest of the nation and the southeastern Montagner regions are the only sections of the country with notable elevation from the rest of the country, shown by the Montagners who've managed to stay as a distinct language and ethnic group despite Acirien efforts to assimilate them into the masses. Various mines have been established in the Montagner region over the years, with various minerals, most notably chromium being discovered in the mountains there.

The Acirien nation experiences mainly three kinds of climates; in the southwestern Griffe peninsula a marine climate can be experienced, making the summers warm and humid with cool and damp winters. Rainfall is common during both seasons, and during summer the temperatures can go up to 30°C, and during the winter it can reach as low as 15°C. The mean average temperature of the year is 11°C. Majority of the nation experiences a lessened maritime climate, resulting in hot summers and cold winters. In the mountainous Montagner region of the southeast a subarctic climate is experienced, making the region notably colder than rest of the nation. Summers are short and mild, while the winters are cold and snowfall is common. During summer fog is a common sight in the valleys when moisture coming from the ocean gets trapped between them.

[[File:Trosseurs2.png|thumb|left|The center of Acirien economy is the financial district in [[Trosseurs]], pictured above.]]

Aciria is a well-developed, middle-high income mixed economy. According to the 2018 report, 58% of the population is employed in the service industry, followed by 27% in the industrial sector and the remaining 15% in the primary sector. Despite the well-developed economy, many Aciriens live near or below the poverty line, employed by both the industrial and primary sector.

The second largest employer is the mining industry located mainly in the southeastern Montagner region by the Grajnidarian border. The industry has caused mass migration of Aciriens to move to the Montagner region since 19th century after jobs and in the early 20th century, a gold rush. The largest resources excavated in the Acirien mines are gold, chromium, tin and iron.

The fishing industry is located almost exclusively in the Aciries Marines region on the Griffe peninsula, with small fishing companies over time being bought out into larger conglomerates, such as Nutripois. The fish populations have been waning for decades, causing activists to campaign for the government to intervene in the large scale fishing operations off the Acirien coast for the sake of biodiversity.  

Acirien industry has slowly waned as the population moved away from factories to service jobs in the second half of the 20th century. As a result of this, many domestic companies went bankrupt and were either bought out by other domestic companies, birthing conglomerates like Voielle, buying out both Auto Impeariale and AcirAir's manufacturing wing. Because of these mergers, Voielle employs thousands of Aciriens in the manufacturing industry, creating cars, airplanes and telecommunications. Other major Acirien industrial sectors are pharmaceuticals and chemicals. Minor oil deposits off the coast of Aciries Marines in the 1980s has also caused a small oil industry to pop up in the region.

For most of Acirien history, infrastructure inland was practically nonexistent, causing settlements to grow on the coast due to the ease of movement between cities via the sea. It wasn't until Emperor Julien formed the Imperial Railway in 1865 and began building nationwide railway systems, finally connecting the smaller inland settlements to the prosperous coastal cities, allowing both goods and people to move with ease. Imperial Railway is still the only rail company in the nation, but with the invention of cars and the massive highway projects Emperor Florien ordered, the importance of the railways has lessened over time. The local railways and subways in larger cities such as Trosseurs are referred to as Rail Metropolitan, and the railways stretching longer swathes of land are referred to as Rail Rural. The Rail Metropolitan in Trosseurs is highly affordable and the main method  of transport  in the capital, transporting 120 000 passengers daily.

By far the majority of nation identifies as Acirien, an umbrella term consisting of multiple former tribes that inhabited the modern day area of Aciria. The only notable minority in the nation is known as the Montagner, who are one of the Acirien tribes that refused assimilation under the umbrella term due to their distinct cultural and linguistic development caused by their remote location in the mountainous regions of the country, having limited contact with the other Aciriens until the 19th century. Other ethnic groups in the country are made up of whatever expats and other foreigners that have settled in the country over the years, which aren't accurately accounted for in the census.

Both the Free Republican constitution of 1615 and the Imperial constitution of 1783 declare Acirien to be the sole official language of Aciria. The establishment of Académie Acirien in Trosseurs in 1799 has overseen the linguistic development and sanctity of the Acirien language, ensuring minimal foreign influence in the language. Prior to the 19th century, Acirien was only seen as the dialect of what is now known as Acirien spoken in the region in and around Trosseurs, but assimilation and nationalism efforts in the 19th century created an Acirien language and identity. The only dialect that to date has refused to assimilate has been the mountaineer peoples of the southeast, the Montagners, who still demand to be recognised on a judicial level as both an official language and a minority language, which would grant protection against assimilation.

The modern Acirien education system can be traced back to the Education Act established by Jean I Dupois in 1783 which enforced the construction of People's Schools in the countryside to raise the literacy rates in the nation. The attendance in People's Schools was voluntary however, causing many parents to not send their children there and instead enlist their help at the farm as usual. Mandatory schooling was signed into effect by Emperor Florien in 1888, who is commonly seen as the father of the Acirien education system.  

The Acirien health care system provides various healthcare services to all Acirien citizens, with the patient paying a percentage of the fees themselves, based on their income. Typically the patient has to pay between 10 to 30 percent of the fee. The government established Imperial Insurance is required to be able to benefit from the subsidized healthcare. This only applies to public, government ran hospitals and clinics, while the private owned, for profit hospitals can bill the patient for the full price of the treatments they received. Typically, higher income households prefer to use private insurance and use private hospitals, benefiting the lower income citizens by freeing up hospital beds and medical professionals in the public sector.

Smoking is common in Aciria despite  decades of government campaigns against smoking to reduce the future medical expenses caused by the health problems that develop from smoking. Obesity has been on the rise since the 1970s, which is another source of concern for the government, causing the government to fine companies with overweight employees to encourage companies to encourage physical activity in their employees. Despite the rising obesity, Aciriens are some of the slimmest people on Sarpedon.  

Acirien culture combines indigenous heritage, rooted around the cult of Three Sisters of antiquity, along with the Latinic and Catholic influences brought over to Aciria over time. The culture of Aciria has rapidly changed since the dawn of the 19th century after never before seen stability in the region brought by the Empire, particularly the rapid urbanization after the dawn of the Empire. Due to the different tribes of [[Acirien people|Aciriens]], regions have minor cultural and linguistic differences from Aciria Proper, the tribe that eventually assimilated most of the cultures into it in the 19th century. In the south by the border of [[Grajnidar]] the local Montagner people have a vastly different culture and dialect to that of rest of Aciria, caused by their seclusion from the other tribes and influence from trade with the Vsikites that also inhabit the region.

Acirien cuisine has a relatively short history and not largely known outside of Aciria. The instability caused people to prefer simple cuisines based on the meats, fish or various crops grown in their local area, and even these changed from tribe to tribe. It wasn't until the 1850s when an Acirien cuisine was uplifted from its humble roots due to wanting to change the public perception of the nation from a backwater unstable country to a sophisticated, modern 19th century state. One of the most well-known dishes of this era is Prosciutti Al Vapore, lit. Steamed Hams. It is the most widely known Acirien dish, with traditionally a steamed pork cutlet in the middle with buns both under and above it. Various condiments are usually enjoyed with it.

Acirien entertainment industry has quickly risen from basically nonexistent to a billion fiore industry since the beginning of the 20th century. The most widely appreciated piece of Acirien entertainment is Conflitti Galattici, a space opera set in a galaxy long time ago, far, far away. The creator Grégoire Luc rose to international fame shortly after the release of the first movie in the franchise in the 1970s. Most Acirien entertainment is directed at the Acirien market, with majority of it being exclusively in Acirien. Popular domestic products often are subtitled or dubbed and shipped to foreign markets, but in small amounts due to little demand. Acirien detective dramas are popular on foreign markets, particularly titles such as Doubting my Visions, The Phantom with Silver Hair and Whispers of Patriots. The appreciation of Acirien entertainment on the international markets has started slow expansion of the film industry with both private and government investments, with putting emphasis on quality subtitling or dubbing to make Acirien language entertainment less intimidating to foreign markets. The majority of the entertainment industry is located in Trosseurs.

Sports in Aciria has played and continues to play an important role in Acirien society, with international sporting events with Acirien teams followed closely by both the people and the media. Various types of sports are played and followed in Aciria, with the most popular being football, particularly in the Valarién region, where the most successful teams and players come from. Other regional favourites are sailing in the marine regions of Aciries Marines and Portée Nord, equestrianism in Trosseurs and skiing and archery in Sainte-Beatrice. Aciria is also the first country to host the [[Istroyan Games|Winter Games]] in 1976, alongside hosting the 2002 Summer Games in Trosseurs, and the coming 2032 Marothien Winter Games.