Mala
| Mala First Nation | |||
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| Motto: Mua a ke Ma'o | |||
| Anthem: | |||
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| Map versions | |||
| Capital | Qorali | ||
| Largest city | Qorali, Dianaville
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| Official language(s) | Mala'anje | ||
| Official religion(s) | Tribalism | ||
| Demonym | Mala'anje | ||
| - Adjective | Malan | ||
| Government | Constitutional Monarchy | ||
| - Aliʻi nui | Kahunamea XI | ||
| - Prime Minister | David Loloku | ||
| - Legislature | House of Nobles | ||
| Establishment | -583 ASC | ||
| Area | |||
| Population | 411,928 (1752 AN) | ||
| Currency | Malan dollar (MLD) | ||
| Calendar | |||
| Time zone(s) | |||
| Mains electricity | |||
| Driving side | right | ||
| Track gauge | |||
| National website | N/A | ||
| National forum | N/A | ||
| National animal | Nene | ||
| National food | Kalo | ||
| National drink | Tea | ||
| National tree | Kukui | ||
| Abbreviation | MAL, MA | ||
Mala is a sovereign First Nation of the Mala'anje people located on the southeastern shores of Keltia. Mala is considered to be the oldest nation in the world and its founding predates some of the earliest civilizations. The Mala'anje people are accepted as some of the first autochthonous inhabitants of Micras, and their early explorations helped to spread humanity across the globe. It is a trans-national tribal entity whose boundaries have historically extended across multiple sovereignties. Under the 1732 AN Memorandum of Understanding, joint sovereignty was shared between the Imperial Federation and Lac Glacei, with the tribal administration exercising the bulk of governance authority. The Mala'anje also hold right of passage to sacred ancestral lands now located within Nouvelle Alexandrie. Since 1753 AN, Mala has faced a constitutional crisis triggered by the collapse of Lac Glaceian governance during the NKR insurrection.
Etymology
The name Mala comes from the Mala'anje language and means garden, an archaic reference to the original settlement of Malanj that was said to have been founded in a field of flowers. The addition of nj or anje is a traditional word meaning village and villager respectively. Thus the literal translation of Malanj would be rendered as "Garden Village," or with Mala'anje, it would be "people of the garden."
History
Mala began as an independent collection of tribal city-states. Oral traditions dating back to around -1000 ASC relate that the warring city-states were in constant conflict until the coming of King Keoua. At the behest of Keoua the other tribal leaders gathered and agreed to form a loose confederation with Keoua himself as sovereign. Mala'anje traditions view the entirety of Mala as a great garden, with its people as its caretakers. Keoua led the tribal leaders to the site of Malanj, which was said to be along the western coast in an area of unsurpassed beauty, and founded the city there that would give birth to the Kingdom of Mala.
Cyberian period
Around -10 ASC Mala was overrun by one of Micras' earliest nations, Cyberia. Cyberia was technologically advanced and had colonialist ambitions for Mala and the surrounding area. It was then incorporated as a province in the southwest of the Federal Republic of Cyberia. It became a province with mixed Imperial, Mala'anje, and Socialist influence. After the First War of Cyberian Liberation, the province was renamed Felicia as a punishment of the Mala'anje who supported UPEC and the rebels. The Mala'anje were repressed during the early stages of Cyberian colonialism, and under Kahunamea IV many migrated to Cognito under invitation from the United Imperium's Emperor, Jacobus. These migrants would settle in the Tigra Isles and Melangia, eventually becoming distinct cultures unto themselves.
Ashkenatzan period
In 1564, after Cyberia collapsed for the final time, Mala joined Ashkenatza as Mala'eretz. Under the leadership of Amir Rabin, the territory adopted the Mala'anashi dialect as its official language. This was the second most populous tongue in use by the Mala'anje, and Rabin, hoping to modernize the nation and gaining significant support from Ashkenatza, took the opportunity to suppress the older language in favor of its modern counterpart. Despite internal tensions as a result of this, the period was marked by relatively strong economic growth, thus minimizing opposition to the loss of tradition. This growth would continue for several decades until the economic collapse of Ashkenatza in 1605, which caused the country to revert to tribalism and stirred up internecine warfare between rival tribes.
Restoration and the 1732 Memorandum
The area would fluctuate between various powers for the next hundred years until the early 1700s when Lac Glacei re-emerged as a major superpower on Apollonia. The Lac Glaceians, longtime allies of the Mala'anje, helped to restore tribal rights in the Tigra Isles. This eventually led to the Mala'anje Repatriation Act in 1705 AN that established the Free Nation Territory on their historic lands in Keltia. The act provided a subsidized route for Mala'anje to return to their ancestral lands in Mala, which had been secured by Lac Glacei. Elements of the act served as a springboard for the establishment of an autonomous tribal government. Challenges facing the nation were the lack of sufficient lands available to returning Mala'anje and an over-reliance on imports to sustain the economy.
In 1732 AN, Lac Glacei and the Imperial Federation established a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishing shared sovereignty over Mala and Windsor Island while placing the bulk of governance in the hands of the tribal administration. This allowed a larger swath of territory to be made available to returning Mala'anje and helped to offset geographic isolation by connecting the port of Qorali with interior settlements, including the main defense installation at Fort Cyberia. The MOU also formally recognized Mala'anje right of passage to sacred ancestral lands on the peninsula now located within Nouvelle Alexandrie. Lac Glaceian subsidies channeled through the MOU funded approximately 30% of public services in the territory. The Imperial Federation established military bases at Chi-Nam and Saigon on Windsor Island, which operated independently of Lac Glaceian administration.
The decades following the MOU represented a period of relative stability and gradual growth for the Mala'anje. Regular consultations between the tribal administration and Monte Glacei maintained the cooperative relationship envisioned by the agreement. The Mala'anje population grew as repatriation continued, and infrastructure improvements connected the scattered settlements of the territory.
Karmic Collapse and its aftermath
The Karmic Collapse of 1744 severely disrupted the economic foundations of the joint sovereignty arrangement. The collapse of the Glaceian Blanc eroded the value of Lac Glaceian subsidies and rendered the Malan dollar, which was pegged to the Blanc, increasingly unstable for daily commerce. Mala'anje businesses and households began shifting transactions toward the New Alexandrian ecu and the Imperial Guilder, both of which circulated freely in the territory. By the early 1750s, the ecu had become the preferred currency for most commercial activity.
The economic disruption coincided with a gradual deterioration in communications between Monte Glacei and the tribal administration. Consultations mandated under the MOU became less frequent, and by early 1751 AN had ceased entirely. The Lac Glaceian government, increasingly consumed by internal instability, failed to respond to inquiries from Qorali regarding subsidy payments and infrastructure commitments.
Self-determination crisis
The rise of the Nü Krantisk Rapskaff (NKR) in the western cantons of Lac Glacei beginning in late 1752 AN posed an existential threat to the Mala'anje. The NKR's ideology of Crandish civilizational primacy explicitly excluded non-Crandish populations from its conception of political belonging. An estimated 4,600 Mala'anje residing on the Lac Glacei mainland, concentrated in the cantons of Anglien, Cognito, and Glacei, became targets of systematic discrimination and violence as NKR influence spread.
As the NKR insurrection escalated into civil war in early 1753 AN, persecution of mainland Mala'anje intensified into ethnic cleansing. Mala'anje were expelled from housing, education, and employment under threat of violence. At least two men from the fishing community in Kloss were detained and subsequently disappeared. By mid-1753 AN, the entire Mala'anje population had been effectively eliminated from NKR-controlled territory through a combination of expulsion, flight, and disappearance. Approximately 340 refugees from the Kloss fishing cooperative arrived in Qorali between III and V.1753 AN.
Ali'i nui Kahunamea XI convened the House of Nobles in emergency session on 9.III.1753 AN, the first such assembly in over a decade. When Monte Glacei failed to respond to a formal petition within 60 days, the House reconvened on 10.VII.1753 AN and declared the Grand Duchy in breach of the 1732 AN Memorandum of Understanding. The resolution formally requested that the Imperial Federation, as co-sovereign, enter into consultations regarding the future of governance arrangements. Ali'i nui Kahunamea XI announced the formation of a Committee on Constitutional Futures to examine all options available to the Mala'anje people, including alternative constitutional arrangements.
Geography
Mala is split into two main territories: the mainland, simply called Mala, and Windsor Island off the southern coast. The territory is a shared administrative region between Lac Glacei and the Imperial Federation under the 1732 AN Memorandum of Understanding, though the tribal administration exercises the bulk of governance authority. The main territory encompasses the core of the former Mala'anje lands, with the administration based in Qorali, the capital and principal port. Other villages, such as Rothschild, Simeon, and New Malanj, date back to the days of Cyberia but are a fraction of their former size.
Windsor Island lies off the southern coast and includes the town of Dianaville, the second-largest settlement in the territory. The Imperial Federation maintains two military installations on Windsor Island: Chi-Nam Base and Saigon Base, which operate independently of Lac Glaceian administration under the terms of the MOU. These bases have continued normal operations throughout the 1753 AN crisis.
Fort Cyberia, located in the interior of the mainland territory, serves as the main defense installation. The 1732 AN MOU connected Fort Cyberia to Qorali and other settlements through improved infrastructure, helping to offset the territory's geographic isolation.
The remaining sections of the Mala Peninsula that historically belonged to the Mala'anje are now divided between the Imperial Federation and Nouvelle Alexandrie. The 1732 AN MOU recognized Mala'anje right of passage to sacred ancestral lands located within these territories, a provision of particular importance given the Mala'anje conception of the entire peninsula as their sacred birthright.
Government and politics
Mala operates as a constitutional monarchy under joint sovereignty arrangements established by the 1732 AN Memorandum of Understanding with Lac Glacei and the Imperial Federation. The tribal administration exercises the bulk of governance authority, while the two sovereign powers share responsibility for defense and infrastructure.
The head of state is the Ali'i nui (paramount chief), a hereditary position held by the Kahunamea line since the unification of the Mala'anje city-states under King Keoua. The current Ali'i nui is Kahunamea XI, who holds reserve powers including the authority to convene emergency sessions of the legislature and to appoint the head of government. The head of government is the Kuhina Nui (Prime Minister), appointed by the Ali'i nui from among the members of the House of Nobles and required to command the confidence of that body. The current Kuhina Nui is David Loloku.
The legislature is the Hale o nā Ali'i (House of Nobles), a body of approximately 22 members combining elected, hereditary, and traditional elements. Twelve Luna 'Āina (District Delegates) are elected every four years by their respective districts. The remaining seats are held by hereditary Ali'i (nobles) from traditional noble families and by traditional authorities: the Kahuna Nui (High Priest), two Kahu Kānāwai (Law Lords), and the Kahu Mo'olelo (Lord Chronicler). All members have equal voice and vote on matters before the House. The Luna Ho'omalu (Speaker) is elected by the House from among its members and presides over deliberations.
Under normal circumstances, the House of Nobles convenes four times per year. Emergency sessions may be called by the Ali'i nui in times of crisis; in III.1753 AN, Kahunamea XI convened the first such session in over a decade to address the deteriorating situation in Lac Glacei during the NKR insurrection.
Culture
The Mala'anje consider themselves to be the oldest extant culture on Micras and the first civilization to emerge from post-neolithic times. These claims have not been validated by the scientific community, but it is agreed that Mala predates even Audentior and Cyberia by several hundred years. It is not uncommon for Mala'anje to refer to themselves as the first people. They consider themselves the precursors to any other civilization on the planet, and as such hold certain lands sacred. The Mala Peninsula is considered their sacred birthright territory, even though it is currently divided between Lac Glacei, Nouvelle Alexandrie, and the Imperial Federation.
A major symbol of the Mala'anje people and a recurring theme in their art and culture is the Malan Tiger, a species of white tiger native to the area and today a protected species under conservation.
Economy
Mala historically used three currencies interchangeably: the local Malan dollar pegged to the Glaceian Blanc, the Imperial Guilder, and the New Alexandrian ecu. Because of the proximity and shared boundaries with neighboring nations, it is common for people to travel and work in multiple locations, and the use of multiple currencies became standard practice.
The Karmic Collapse of 1744 severely disrupted this arrangement. The collapse of the Glaceian Blanc eroded the value of the Malan dollar, which was pegged to it, rendering the local currency increasingly unstable. By the early 1750s, Mala'anje businesses and households had shifted the majority of daily commerce toward the New Alexandrian ecu, which had become the preferred currency for most transactions. The Imperial Guilder remained in circulation, particularly for transactions connected to the Imperial Federation presence on Windsor Island.
The economy remains heavily dependent on imports and vulnerable to external disruption. Lac Glaceian subsidies, which funded approximately 30% of public services under the 1732 AN MOU, became unreliable following the Karmic Collapse and ceased entirely as Lac Glacei descended into civil war in 1753 AN. The territory's economic future remains uncertain pending resolution of the ongoing constitutional crisis.
Defense
Under the 1732 AN Memorandum of Understanding, defense of Mala and Windsor Island was provided jointly by Lac Glacei and the Imperial Federation. Fort Cyberia on the mainland served as the primary installation, while the Imperial Federation maintained Chi-Nam Base and Saigon Base on Windsor Island.
The collapse of Lac Glaceian governance during the NKR insurrection rendered the joint defense arrangement inoperative. As of 1753 AN, Lac Glacei is unable to fulfill its obligations under the MOU. The Imperial Federation installations on Windsor Island have continued normal operations throughout the crisis, and the IF received a formal consultation request from the House of Nobles on 11.VII.1753 AN regarding the future of joint governance arrangements.
During the crisis, the Mala'anje organized informal defense and rescue operations. The Koa Kia'i ("Warrior Guardians"), a volunteer force of approximately 100-150 members, provided security for Qorali and settlements on Windsor Island, coastal patrols, and armed escort for operations to evacuate Mala'anje trapped on the Lac Glacei mainland. The Ke Ala Moana ("The Path to the Sea") escape network evacuated refugees using fishing boats making night runs from the mainland coast. These operations received material and advisory support channeled through Vegno from Nouvelle Alexandrie.
