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Seomna (Seomnan: 섬나), officially the Kingdom of Seomna (Seomnan: 섬나의 왕국, seomna-ui hanguk), is an island country in the West Tethys, approximately xxx kilometres off the coast from Akiteiwa across the Strait of Nagashima. The nation consists of Jang Island and numerous smaller peripheral islands. The island has a population approaching 1 million people, over half of which reside in the capital city of Daeseong.

The island group was first discovered by the Mae-in peoples in 1500 BCE, who settled on the island and formed the Kingdom of Seomna; 1466 BCE is generally accepted as the founding year of Seomna, making it one of the oldest countries in the world. Seomna entered into a tributary agreement with Zheng dynasty Kodeshia in the 400s; this agreement would continue with each successive dynasty and would keep Seomna safe from being outright annexed by neighbouring Aikawa when it invaded in 800. Through Akiteiwa, it would reconnect with the Yeosani Mae-in.

The first confirmed Artemian sighting of Seomna was in 1678 by Jungastian sailors, but further contact with any Artemian shipping would be limited until 1863 with the signing of the Hayama Convention which leased the port of Daeseong to Goetia. The subsequent modernization and rapid industrialization of the island nation fuelled internal conflict as Goetia and Akiteiwa both attempted to wrestle Seomna into their respective spheres of influence. The Grand Campaigns spelled an end to the Goetic Empire and put Seomna into the Akitei sphere; over the following decades, Seomna was turned into an Akitei protectorate.

With the end of the Great Kesh War, Seomna was released from the Akitei sphere; political meddling from Selengeria culminated in the Regency period. An authoritarian dictatorship led by Ko Min-Jae fostered close military and economic cooperation with the NSC until his death in 1986. The subsequent Seomna Crisis pitted the newly-crowned King Seo, his liberal supporters, and most of East Kesh against Selengeria and the NSC in a brief but heated political battle that resulted in Seomna leaving the NSC and realigning itself with Kodeshia and Akiteiwa. Modern-day Seomna is a developed country and a unitary constitutional monarchy with King Seo as its head of state.

Historically dominated by a plantation economy, Seomna remains a major agricultural exporter due to its fertile soil and tropical climate in the region. Its economy has gradually diversified since the mid-20th century, with tourism and military defence becoming the two largest sectors. The state attracts tourists, surfers, and scientists from around the world with its diverse natural scenery, warm tropical climate, an abundance of public beaches, oceanic surroundings, prominent volcanoes, and clear skies on Jang-do. Seomna is notable for delegating most of its national defence to Akiteiwa, which stations approximately 75,000 members of its armed forces within the nation’s borders.

Although a majority of its citizens identify as Mae-in, Seomna is home to a unique culture due to centuries of close and continued contact with other major East Kesh powers. Consequently, it is a unique melting pot of East Keshian cultures, with additional influence from Imperial Goetia.

Settlement by Mae-in peoples (1500 BCE)
The arrival of the Mae-in on the island following their exodus from the Shimao River region in 1500 BCE is commonly cited as the birth of Seomna, the first established polity on the island. Archaeological evidence suggests that Seomna actively traded with Akitei kingdoms within the Aikawa region and various Kodeshi dynasties, managing to even reach Prabhati and Ramayan ports by 100 CE. Solid historical documentation of Seomna first appeared in Kodeshi chronicles dating to the 3rd century CE.

Seomna’s influence on trade slowly waned over the following centuries as Akitei, Selengerian, and Kodeshian merchant fleets took over the majority of trading. In 433, Seomna became a tributary of the Zheng dynasty in Kodeshia. This arrangement would be short-lived, as the Zheng dynasty would fall in 503 and give way to the Jie dynasty. Despite reclaiming its independence, Seomna would find itself increasingly under threat from neighbouring Aikawa as Kodeshia devolved into the chaos of the Five Kingdoms Era.

Vassalization by Aikawa and Akiteiwa (800-1862)
In 800, Aikawa subjugated Seomna, turning the latter into a vassal. Seomna initially managed to retain local autonomy through extensive political maneuvering, but even it began to fade as time passed. Due to Seomna’s position as a key Kodeshian trade partner, Aikawa refrained from attempting to annex the island outright, instead opting to take over the island through various colonization efforts. These Akitei migrations to Seomna briefly came to a halt when Aikawa itself was subjugated by Amekawa in 854, transferring suzerainty to Kikyo.

Infighting and civil strife on the mainland following the formation of the Empire of Akiteiwa allowed Seomna to exercise some autonomy. The inherent instability caused by Akitei customary laws kept Seomna away from direct Akitei influence for the following centuries, even as Akiteiwa entered a golden age of sea exploration in the 14th century. Seomna’s newfound irrelevance in the East Kesh trading region kept it away from prospective settlers who travelled to Komishima and other various islands in the Tethys. By the 1800s, Seomna had developed a culture that retained its ancestral roots in the Mae-in culture while having a distinct Akitei influence. Despite its unique culture, the island polity was better known at this point as Nagashima, its Akitei name.

By being in the Akitei sphere of influence, it gained diplomatic ties to its sister territory of the Yeosan Islands, at the time known as Kazanjima. The following centuries of continued contact bridged the millennium-long gap of isolation between the two cultures; the new Yeosani alphabet invented in the 1300s eventually made its way to Nagashima, where it slowly became accepted as a less sophisticated form of writing compared to using the Kodeshi writing system.

Goetic influence in Seomna (1863-1925)
The first Artemians to spot Seomna were Jungastian, and in 1678 named the island Ilha das Palmeiras (Isle of Palms). Despite this, contact with Artemians was limited until the signing of the 1863 Hayama Convention which opened both Akitei and Seomna ports to Goetic shipping. One of the clauses in the Convention leased the port of Daeseong (대성)/Oyōsai (大要塞) to Goetia for an indefinite term. The city gained the third name of Däsong, adhering to Goetic spelling and orthography rules, and the local administration was accompanied by a colonial administration.

The Goetic administration in Däsong frequently overstepped its boundaries and meddled in Seomna’s governmental affairs, often finding themselves vying for court influence against both the native Seomna and the neighbouring Akitei. Despite any semblance of peace in the court breaking down, Däsong and Seomna as a whole began a period of rapid industrialization and modernization from the 1860s to the 1900s, following in the steps of Akiteiwa and with the assistance of Goetic companies. By the turn of the century, Däsong resembled more of a traditional Goetic city with elements of Mae-in and Akitei culture incorporated into the architecture. Rural Seomna was populated by cash crop farms; the mineral-rich volcanic soil of the island and modern irrigation technology turned Seomna into a new breadbasket for the region.

The fierce competition for court influence between Goetia and Akiteiwa that originated in the 1860s had spilled out into the streets of the kingdom by the 1900s. Goetia sought to assist Seomna in asserting itself as an independent power while Akiteiwa exploited growing anti-foreign and pro-republican sentiment within the court and in the populace. Goetia’s efforts were hindered by a lack of political support at home; there was growing support for allies in East Kesh to counter Tiperyn’s presence in the region, and Akiteiwa presented itself as a much better option than Seomna due to its large modern navy and large industrial capacity. The attempted assassination of the pro-Goetic Crown Prince Yejun by Seomna patriots in 1907 forced the royal court to leave Unhyeongung, taking refuge in the Goetic quarter of Däsong; they governed from there for the following year.

Däsong managed to survive the chaos of the Grand Campaigns relatively unscathed despite its role as an important coaling station and naval base. Except for a small raid conducted by Tiperyn’s West Tethys Fleet at the beginning of hostilities, the city remained unharmed. The collapse of the Goetic Empire and the resulting exile of the Goetic monarchy and the Provisional Government to Lower Alva in 1925 spelled the end of Goetic presence in Däsong and Seomna. Members of the colonial administration as well as Goetic sympathizers evacuated to Singaradscha, Schangau, and the Alvak colonies over the following years.

Interwar era (1926-1959)
With Goetia out of the picture, Akiteiwa resumed its suzerainty over Seomna in earnest. Akiteiwa invested in Seomna’s agricultural sector, drafting land reforms to tackle the long-standing issues of absentee landlords and partial owner-tenants. While these land distribution reforms initially proved popular, they were exploited upon by wealthy individuals and companies who bought the land and forced tenants to work harder for less. As a result, public discontent grew against the plantation owners, culminating in the Rice Riots of 1929. The resulting crackdown on rice cartels bolstered pro-independence sentiment within Seomna, not unlike the Yeosan Islands which had gained home rule in 1903. The first modern university in Seomna was established in 1931. In accordance with new bilingual education policies, Daeseong-Oyosai University accepted both Akitei and Seomna students and taught programs in both Akitei and the Seomna language.

Increased urbanization weakened Akiteiwa’s grip on rural Nagashima as a result of a massive industrial boom in the 1940s. As a major naval base, attention was placed on the island due to its strategic position at the mouth of the Pearl Sea and the possibility of a blockade of Selengeria. Seomna was attacked multiple times during the Great Kesh War, both by Selengeria and Tiperyn. The firebombing of Daeseong in 1958 destroyed large amounts of civilian infrastructure and bolstered anti-Akitei sentiment, leading to widespread protests calling for independence, not unlike the Yeosan Islands a few years prior.

Postwar politics (1960 onwards)
One of the stipulations of the 1959 Treaty of xxxx was the complete independence of Seomna. The Temporary Administration of the Nagashima Islands was set up by Tiperyn to expedite this process. On the 1st of May, 1960, the Daesong Declaration re-established the Kingdom of Seomna as an independent state, with Ko Min-Jae acting as regent until a “suitable candidate” could be found. The head of the Seo dynasty at the time, Seo Yejun, had fled to Kodeshia and espoused liberal views that were deemed unacceptable by the new government. It became apparent to most observers that the new Seomna was all but a puppet state of Selengeria, with a court staffed by Selengerian advisers and pro-NSC collaborators; The leader of the government and head of state, former general Ko Min-Jae, was forced to compromise with the Seomna masses when it came to succession laws due to the widespread popularity of the royal family: upon his own death, the role of King would pass on to Seo Yejun’s son, Seo Kang, who was at a young age and was later on seen as an apolitical figure.

With the assistance of Tiperyn and Selengeria, Seomna was rebuilt; the shipbuilding facilities in Daesong were re-utilized for commercial purposes, and the economy transitioned from an agricultural focus to one aimed toward tourism. State programs revitalized and promoted Seomna culture, and the Secretariat for Cultural Affairs was established in 1971 in order to promote Seomna’s dialect of the Yeosani language and Seomna’s culture.

By 1980, Ko’s health had deteriorated significantly. Opposition leaders from within the military government, within the populace, and in exile met in secret in Songhari at the behest of Seo Kang. The 1980 Songhari Memorandum provided the foundations for a modern constitutional monarchy in Seomna; Once Seo Kang was enthroned, he would exercise his authority as King to appoint reformist ministers. The plan went into effect in 1986 with the death of Ko Min-Jae; Seo Kang was ferried off to Seomna and was crowned shortly after. The secret nature of the Songhari Memorandum meant that the 180-degree policy change of Seomna was completely unexpected, with Selengerian officials scrambling to comprehend the situation.

The 1986 Seomna Crisis saw a pitched diplomatic battle between Selengeria and the rest of East Kesh over Seomna. While brief, it saw Seomna leave the NSC and ally with Kodeshia and Akiteiwa. Daeseong was a point of contempt between Akiteiwa, Seomna, and Alva due to the latter’s status as the host of the Goetic Provisional Government, who retained their predecessor’s claims on Daeseong. The 1987 Maehwa Agreement had the GPG relinquish these claims; in the following year, a small ceremony was held to symbolically hand the original Goetic portion of Daeseong back to Seomna.

Seomna attended the 6th and last Hochberg summit in the prelude to the formation of the Kesh-Tethys Economic Cooperation organization. While it did not initially join due to insufficient popular support and a fear of loss of sovereignty, it eventually did in 1995 alongside the Yeosan Islands.

Geography
The largest and most populated island is Jang-do, which contains around 95% of the country’s population. Maehwa-do is the second largest and only other publicly accessible populated island in the country. Jaewon-do and O-do are open to tourists, but the remaining 12 islands remain restricted. Some islands of note are Yeon-do, which is privately owned by the Akitei imperial family, and An-do, which is used as a firing range by the Kodeshi and Akitei navies.

Environment
WIP

Population
With the most recent census placing Seomna’s population at 939,115 people, it is the least populated country in the East Kesh region.

Ancestry
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Language
WIP

Religion
WIP

Economy
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