Alkharvis

The Alkharvis, or Alkharvian Chouseinis, are an Istroyan people in Southern Sarpedon, constituting the titular nationality and dominant ethnic group of Alkharvia. They make up approximately 65% of Alkharvia's population, and are also visible globally in a diaspora numbering roughly 20 million, primarily in Punth.

Alkharvis are closely related to the other Istroyan-speaking peoples of Southern Sarpedon, sharing a heritage rooted in the ancient Istroyan Civilization. Following the collapse of Istroya, Selena, the medieval Mariopolis and today the Alkharvian capital of Sophia, became the center of Istroyan political and cultural life until its conquest by the Oduniyyad Caliphate in the 8th century, after being weakened by a decade of war with Caphiria. Since the Islamic Conquest, significant cultural divergence has occurred between the Alkharvis and other Istroyan groups: Alkharvis practice Shia Islam, in contrast to the Orthodoxy of most Istroyans. The Alkharvi language is written in an Arabic-based script, and has taken numerous loanwords and honorifics from Arabic, and is not mutually intelligible with Standard Istroyan. Alkharvi cultural norms are a combination of its Islamic influences and Istroyan heritage.

In recent years a debate has emerged over to whom the term "Alkharvi" is applicable. A significant portion of Alkharvia's population are Christian Istroyans, known as Masihis (from the Arabic "Masihiun", meaning "Christian"). Many progressives and secular nationalists have pushed for the Masihi to be considered part of the Alkharvi ethnic group. However, the popular and scholarly consensus remains firmly in favor of the ethnoreligious conception of Alkharvi identity.

The term Alkharvi should not be confused with Alkharvian, which refers to all inhabitants of Alkharvia, regardless of religious or ethnic affiliation.

Origins and Early History

Alkharvis trace their origins to the city of Selena. Founded in circa 600 BC, Selena was one of the last significant Istroyan sites founded before the major city-building era of Istroya ended. Historical evidence and cultural links show that Selena was one of many settlements founded by Istroyans across Sarpedon during antiquity, but nothing more concrete is known. According to civic myth it was built as a citadel for the fifty daughters of Selene, goddess of the moon, to protect them from seduction by men. According to one account, an army of barbarians laid siege to the city, sparing it only after obtaining the goddess' permission to marry her daughters and settle in the city. According to another chronicler, the daughters of Selene fell in love with the city's male guards, created by her from clay with the instruction of Prometheus.

Located on the southernmost outskirts of the Istroyan pale of settlement, Selena was insulated from the internecine inter-city conflict, Latinic raids, and general political collapse that afflicted Istroya from the 5th century BCE. Many refugees settled in Selena as a result, and the city's growing population combined with the decline of traditional trade networks gave it impetus to expand west and into the Sarpedonian interior, thus far terra incognita to Istroyans. This policy of expansion would prove crucial in transforming Selena from a minor Istroyan polity into a major regional power. Not only did expansion lead to increased notoriety for Serena, it also led to the differentiation of Selena's political system from the traditional Istroyan model would benefit The Mandropolians gradually came to dominate all of Istroyan Sarpedon following the collapse of other major Istroyan polities by 200 BC as a result of internal and external strife. As well as perpetuating and further developing the heritage of their forefathers, Mandra developed a political tradition of emperor-worship and despotism, which following its Christianization would evolve into Caesaropapism. This political tradition strongly influenced Islamic ideas of secular-religious authority in general and those in Chouseini Shi'ism in particular. Ipolisia was, and is seen by Alkharvis, as the marking point of a distinct Alkharvi identity: its military accomplishments are still reminisced, its Basileis are seen as the predecessors of Alkharvia's Caliphs-Basileis, and the Mandropolian Golden Age is a point of pride and remembrance for Alkharvis. Mandropolian heritage is also an important bridge between the Christian Masihis and Alkharvis, a common history uniting both peoples as Alkharvians. [last paragraph metahistorical thoughts on identity]

Culture

Alharvi culture synthesizes two ancient deposits, the Istroyan and the Islamic. Though contradictory in the rest of of the world, the two traditions have fused in Alkharvia, marking a third step in the paradigm shift undergone by Istroyan and Latin cultures following their Christianization. Not only has Alkharvia been influenced by Islam, but the Istroyan heritage that the conquest of Ipolisia brought into the Islamic world has left a strong mark: a major cause of the Sunni-Shia split were disputes over the validity of Istroyan philosophy and arts as a framework for Islamic expression.

Religion & Holidays

(and State + Philosophy, role in identity of groups)

Diaspora

The Alkharvi diaspora consists of Alkharvi emigrants and their descendants spread throughout Ixnay. Small but noticeable Alkharvi communities can be found in virtually every country in Levantia, Sarpedon, Audonia. These communities were formed primarily by disfavored political emigres in the late 19th century, and have achieved modest growth due to economic migration during the 20th century. However, impactful and large-scale emigration has been limited to Punth. The only autochthonous community of Alkharvis outside of Alkharvia is in the Sydona Islands of Kiravia.

Punth

The Alkharvi community in Punth is broadly divided into two groups: Alkharvis who inhabit the directly-administered territories of the Exarchate of Punth, known as the Kandara Triangle, and Alkharvis who live in the highly autonomous Vilaias.

Vilaias

- titles bestowed in addition to local natie titles, vali

Sydona Islands

Coscivo-Alkharvis

????? - Coscivars pictures add name links nominally subject to exarch refer to main article creole peopels category