Mervaria

Mervaria, also called Irza (: 𐭩𐭫𐭰𐭠) and officially The Maternal Society of Irza (Parsi: 𐭠𐭭𐭣𐭬𐭭𐭬𐭠𐭣𐭫𐭠𐭭𐭮𐭫𐭩𐭫𐭰𐭠, tr. Ānǧmn Mādrān Šhr Ērzā), is a country in Northern Kesh. It sits on the Eurybian Sea to the northeast and borders Jungastia to the north and Aftarestan to the east. Mervaria covers an area of 733,572 km2 (283,234 sq mi) and is inhabited by a population of 22 million. The majority of its people live on the coastline and the limited arable land surrounding the Idignis River.

The Dasht-e Namak Desert and Idignis River Valley have been inhabited by Berbers since the 10th millennium BCE and civilized since the 4th millennium BCE. From the 2nd millennium BCE, the Mihrani migration and conquest of the region led to Mihrani dominance in Mervarian's coastal eastern regions, with the indigenous Berber population being pushed into the interior and beyond the Kamarband Mountains.

Although the country is most well known economically for the export of metals and salt, Mervaria underwent a phase of mass industrialization and partial liberalization or decentralization from the 1960s to the 1990s. While raw natural resources still makes up the vast majority of exports, the importance of the services sector has grown under Mervaria's centrally planned economy. However, modernization and post-industrialization efforts reduced significantly following a devastating drought and famine from 1999 to 2002 and a corresponding economic depression. Mervaria only returned to its pre-1999 gross domestic product (GDP) in 2011.

The government Mervaria is a constitutional monarchy predicated on the ideals of Mervarian Maternalism. Within this theory, the monarch governs with near absolute authority but, either out of idealist benevolence or pragmatic political realities, shares power and brokers deals with kin associations that include family clans, labour and employers unions, and other interest groups. Clan Khavarid holds claim to the Mervarian monarchy, and Banbishn Pantea IV currently rules. The Khavarid Matriarchy's rule was first established in 1741, after the Maternal Revolt overthrew the absolutely dictatorial Kordestanid Patriarchy. The Mervarian government is widely criticized as being illiberal and paternal, with no democratically held elections, widespread corruption, violent suppression of dissidents, and hostility towards foreigners.

Etymology
The term Mervaria is an and Anglicization of the Tipsprek word Marvarye, which is directly derived from the Middle Mihrani mwlwʾlyt (/morwārīd/) meaning "pearl". The term was first applied by Hawkreath explorer Latimer Brooker during his Eurybian expedition in the 1280s. It was a reference to the colloquialism "string of pearls" used to describe an indefinite area controlled by five prosperous city-states on what is now the coast of modern Mervaria.

The less common endonym Irza, Anglicized from the Mervarian is Ērza, which is believed to have been derived from the Sumerian Urza, the name of an ancient city on modern Mervaria's coast meaning "the city of gems". The term is more often used by Mervarian emigrants and scholars in the field of North Keshan studies.

Economy
Mervaria has a mixed economy characterized by a high degree of central planning and publicly owned enterprises, mineral exports, and moderate levels of corruption. The majority of sectors considered by the state to be "essential", such as agriculture, utilities, mining, emergency services, and transportation, are controlled at the national-level. However, certain non-essential services—such as small retail, certain types of manufacturing, and tourist industries—are generally regulated by local clans and controlled by independent businessowners or labour-employer associations. As of 2020, 53% of the Mervarian economy was made up of the industry sector, 42% was services, and 5% was agriculture. The Mervarian economy developed rapidly under Pantea III's post-Great Kesh War economic reforms of the 1960s and 1970s which saw increases in industrialization, rural electrification, literacy, irrigation infrastructure, urban higher education, desalination, and the water retention in the capital region's Lake Abma. Mervaria's exports are led by its mining industry and salt production, with notable export products including coal, salt, cobalt, and natural gas harvested offshore.

Mervaria's currency is the taj (Ʈ), literally translated as "crown".

Infrastructure
Mervaria went through two phases of urban development: the first in the 1930s following the Grand Campaigns and the second from the 1960s to 1980s during and immediately after Pantea III's economic reforms. The first urbanization resulted in the mass migration of Mihranis from the outlying rural areas centred on oases and coastal villas to Mervaria's four major cities. The second urbanization resulted in a wave of modernization, investment in advanced infrastructure, and an opening up of the Mervarian economy to limited foreign enterprise and investment. Several major infrastructure projects were initiated and completed between 1960 and 2000 associated with Pantea III's reforms, including the expansion of the Iraba International Aerodrome and University of Iraba, economic diversification, the connection of all four major cities by rail, the construction of two coastal desalination plants with the aid of Kayan expertise, and the construction of several solar thermal power plants and urban wind farms.

Transportation
A national expansion of mass transit—which was previously limited to infrequent cross country trains and a fragmented, underfunded system of long haul buses—began in 1983. In addition to expansion of long-haul bus routes and the standardization on used buses sourced from Artemia, the cities of Bandar-e Magm, Irbur, Gonzak, and Iraba were connected by a heavy rail route stretching along the coast from the border with Jungastia to the border with Aftarestan. Additionally, construction began on a in the capital city of Iraba in 1986, which was partially opened in 1990 and fully completed by 1999. The Iraba Trolley Network is now among the largest urban tram networks in Northwestern Kesh after Jungastia. During Mervaria's economic depression of the early 2000s, parts of the network fell into disrepair as funding for public works dried up. However, its routes were rehabilitated by 2017 following economic recovery, and the network experienced its first expansion since 1999 in 2020.

In 2002, Mervaria formalized a deal with the Osorran government to open a trolley manufacturing plant in the city of Yazd outside of Iraba operated by the Central Osorra Railroad Engineering Corporation. The capital trolley network's newest Type III and Type IV trollies are now produced and maintained at this plant, which is integrated into the trolley network.

However, outside of the capital and intercity connections between coastal urban centres, the public transportation infrastructure in Mervaria is generally limited. While Gonzak has its own intracity bus network and (as does Iraba), in most other cities, transportation infrastructure is limited to less well developed bus networks and taxis. In interior desert regions west of Lake Abma, public transportation is non-existent. Other than road connections along the Idignis River, the only connection to most remote Berber communities are chartered.



Energy
The majority of Mervaria's electricity production comes from coal-fired power stations fuelled by locally extracted coal. Before 1985, Mervaria was a net importer of energy. However, other forms of electricity production were added to the national grid due to Pantea III's ambition to expand power-intensive industries and become a net exporter of energy. This resulted in the opening of a in Gonzak—fuelled by natural gas drilled offshore and constructed by Austrasian firm REST Turbina—as well as multiple  constructed and operated with Osorran technical assistance. The expansion of power generation in Mervaria's coastal regions was largely tied to the construction of multiple desalination plants, which are power intensive. In major cities, such as Iraba and Gonzak, the government has also funded a proliferation of decentralized solar panelling to handle local energy needs and create return surplus energy to the grid.

Tourism
Although a relatively minor industry, the Mervarian government has drastically increased investment in the country's tourism industry since the opening of Mervarian society in the 1970s. Key attractions the Mervaria has attempted to capitalize on include ancient Mervarian ruins, the highly developed capital region, and Lake Abma—which has novelty as a high salinity lake with resultingly high buoyancy. As part of the effort, the Iraba International Aerodrome was expanded in 1993.

Geography
Mervaria covers an area of 733,572 km2 (283,234 sq mi) and is the 26th largest country in the world. Its defining natural features are the Dasht-e Namak Desert, the western branch of the Kamarband Mountains, and the Idignis River Valley. The country's industrial and urban region is centered on three coastal cities and the capital city of Iraba which sits on a peninsula jutting into Lake Abma (derived from Sumerian, lit. ab meaning water and mun meaning salt).

Climate
The majority of Mervaria is a climate with a band of  foothills influenced by the elevation of the Kamarband Mountains. Rainfall in the desert lowlands is rare, but Mervaria's mountainous regions do experience snowfall in the winter.

Government and politics
Mervaria is a  ruled by Clan Khavarid. The current monarch is Banbishn Pantea IV who ascended to the throne in 1989 following the death of her mother Pantea III. The Mervarian monarchy directly oversees the Maternal Secretariat, which as the country's national ministries and central bureaucracy administers national law and manages the relationships between special interest groups known as kin associations. The Maternal Secretariat is headed by the First Secretary, a member of Mervaria's appointed by the monarch to the post. The First Secretary acts as a de facto head of government. The current First Secretary is Touran Vakili, member of Clan Amanid, who was appointed to the position in 2011.

Although not officially recognized as subdivisions of the Mervarian state, in practice family clans outside of Clan Khavarid control large swaths of territory, particularly in the rural and interior regions. While the Mervarian government delegates all powers not endowed with the national government in the Maternal Code—Mervaria's founding document—typically the Maternal Secretariat must negotiate with family clans to establish the powers of both parties in any given territory. This has led to moderate government corruption in some areas, an inconsistent application of national law, and the de facto semi-autonomy of Mervaria's Berber clans.

State bureaucracy
National policy is centrally enacted by the state bureaucracy, whose will is enforced by the monarch, her military and the national police. The bureaucracy exists at all levels of government and is the body that negotiates the formulation and implementation of national law with special interest groups and family clans. The bureaucracy is divided into several Secretariats equivalent to government ministries that deal with certain types of affairs.

Clan politics
Although Mervaria has a strong, unitary national government, it does not directly govern much of Mervaria. Outside of the boundaries of Clan Khavarid, which include the capital of Iraba and the urban areas surrounding Lake Abma, other family-based clans directly govern localities and maintain their own decentralized militias to police their territory. Although largely informal, the clans maintain a significant amount of power within their territory, and the national government must negotiate with them to maintain control. It is argued that this leads to high levels of corruption, as well as an inconsistent application of the law. Other than Clan Khavarid, prominent Mihrani clans that control the country's urban areas include Clans Amanid, Huberid, Gonzak, Zaganid, and Edinid. Lesser families, often in control of villages or oasis towns, usually align with one of the six major clans. The exception is in Berber territory, where Berber tribes function as semi-autonomous entities outside of the Mervarian clan system.

Matriarchal society
Mervaria's head of state is the Banbishn, translated as Queen. The position is for life, hereditary and operates on a system of whereby the eldest daughter is first in line is entitled to the throne. The national monarchy inherited the practices of Clan Khavarid at its formation, as the clan had been the dominant clan to lead the Maternal Revolt in the 18th century. Only women are eligible to inherit the throne, while male relatives to the heir are not entitled. This system developed from many generations of matriarchal practices, whereby the clan's mothers led households and local affairs. Mothers, even those belonging to the commoner class, are colloquially referred to as "Little Matriarchs" in Mervarian culture as they wield absolute power within their households. Historically, Khavarid children were raised by the mother's family and adopted the family name of the mother. Children typically inherit the social status of the mother at birth rather than that of their father, although individuals have the opportunity to rise or fall in status over the course of their life. When a mother retires from her duties as head of house, property rights typically pass to the eldest daughter, although since the early 20th century it has become the norm for them to pass to eldest sons, creating a new generation of household patriarchs.

The mother's role as household matriarch led to a cultural attitude that positioned women as leaders in "home affairs" whereby the concept of household matriarchy is expanded to include an entire community. This is juxtaposed with "external affairs"—typically applying to such activities as serving in the military, labour in rural areas, and foraging for water outside of town—which were roles typically associated with men. Correspondingly, women were overrepresented in professions related to scholarship, finance and politics up until the early 20th century, while males were overrepresented in martial professions and professions traditionally thought of as unclean, such as tending to crops and livestock or working in the mines. However, women have served in the Khavarid military since at least the 12th century, particularly in leadership positions.

It is believed that Khavarid matriarchal practices were ultimately the result of religious or pragmatic reasons. The mother's role in birthing and raising children is central to Khavarid culture and seen as the key to the entire clan's survival. As a result, the mother's role was likened to the gods creating the sea and Anterra. Thus, Khavarid women are typically characterized culturally as the strategic sex, whereas men are by default characterized as providers and protectors.

Since the mid-20th century, many of Clan Khavarid's matriarchal practices have lost as much prevalence among common Mervarians. For example, inheritance preference—while still favouring daughters—is much more varied and the powers of heads of household have been restricted by national law. Additionally, gender equal provisions have been encoded in national law, such as gender neutrality in selection for university programs and posts within the state bureaucracy, as well as equal protection under the law. But, matrilineal practices remain highly prevalent in the royal court, as well as within highly influential families—some of whom run shadow governments that the national government unofficially negotiates with.

Maternalist ideology
The unifying principle of Mervarian governance is the, ideology known as Mervarian Maternalism. The ideology is defined by a strong, unitary central government that acts in the best interest of the social units (sometimes referred to as "kin associations") that make up society. In the grand scale, the Mervarian monarchy is the ultimate arbiter, mediating all disputes between social units and ensuring that policy decisions are in the greater good for the many. The term "mediated equality" is sometimes used to describe this system as, in theory, the goal of Mervarian Maternalism is economic and social equality for the masses. However, to achieve this, its advocates believe that a benevolent mediator must have the power to prevent exploitation and the domination of one group over another. The dynamic of benevolent mediation is analogized as the relationship between a mother and her children, where the mother has absolute authority, but acts in their wellbeing at all times (including preventing one child from harming another). The Mervarian monarchy serves this maternal role, with the Banbishn or "Queen" overseeing a large bureaucracy that carries out her powers. This "maternalist" system is distinguished from what Mervarian Maternalist scholars define as pre-revolutionary Mervarian Paternalism, where the Patriarch, while espousing benevolent intentions, in practice wielded their power to serve their own interests and the interests of their close associates over those of the masses. This characterization has been attributed to the overthrow of the patriarchal Clan Kordestanid as the dominant family in Mervaria, in favour of Clan Khavarid and its matriarchal allies.

The kin associations which the the Mervarian monarchy mediates are non-standard groups that represent strictly defined aspects of Mervarian society. The most common are family clans (who control land and sometimes represent economic minorities), labour syndicates (who represent the workers in specific industries), and employer syndicates (which represent the employers and are paired with a given labour syndicate). The Mervarian monarchy alone has the power to declare kin associations legitimate, which limits the number of stakeholders involved in government-led negotiations.

Mervarian Maternalists generally critique capitalism as an evolution of the feudal system that the Mervarian people, led by the current Mervarian monarchy, revolted against in the 18th century. They argue that the only members of capitalist society who actually have the liberty to pursue happiness are the wealthy, and that workers who must struggle to survive are not truly free, even if endowed with de jure freedoms. Mervarian Maternalists likens this system to a mother abandoning their child. At the same time, Mervarian Maternalists generally oppose socialist forms of society predicated on complete worker control of the state. The reasoning is that left to their own rule, the working class would destroy the harmony between the social, economic and spiritual aspects of society, and work against their own self interest. In the absence of a wise benevolent mediator, it is argued that Mervarian society would devolve into, the nation's modernization would halt, and the least fortunate would be thrust back into a state of subsistence. These positions have been used in the 20th and 21st centuries to suppress both socialist movements inspired by Aftarestan and wealthy businessowners and clans who challenged the Mervarian monarchy.

More recent currents in Mervarian Maternalist thought influenced by the Great Kesh War and revolution in Aftarestan have also integrated anti-Artemian imperialism and pan-Mihrani nationalism. This stems from the belief that the original "small" scope of Mervarian ideology, which focused primarily on alleviating the socio-economic woes within Mervaria by mediating domestic relationships, would not be sufficient to ensure the prosperity of the Mervarian people. Under Banbishn Pantea III (ruled 1963-1989) pitied the Mihranis who could not free themselves from Artemian oppression, as well as those who fell to socialism. Under her rule, Mervarian Maternalist theory grew to view Mervaria as a vanguard nation that would one day incorporate all Mihranis under its system of government to protect them from the Artemians and Aravans. Although the Mervarian monarchy has not directly threatened its neighbour Aftarestan (a state with a large Mihrani population) with military action since the introduction of its policy, the growth of pan-Mihrani nationalism in Mervaria has increased tensions. Additionally, the shift in ideology has led to an increase in tensions with Artemian powers on the Eurybian—particularly Tiperyn—and the marginalization of the country's interior -speaking minority.

Mervarian Maternalism is criticized globally as an illiberal ideology.

Military
The Maternal Society of Mervaria has three categories of military forces: those charged with protecting Mervarian territory from foreign forces, those charged with protecting the Maternal Society and Mervarian monarchy, and regional militias administered by dominant subnational clans. The first type includes the Mervarian Guards (including ground and air forces), Maritime Guards, and Lake Guards which report to the Secretary of War. The second type includes the Maternal Companions, which is a professional corps of elite troops that report directly to the Mervarian monarch.

Historically, the Maternal Companions are an all-volunteer force with inductees hailing entirely from Clan Khavarid territory—territory controlled directly by the Mervarian monarch. In addition to receiving higher funding for training and equipment, the Maternal Companions are considered to by the political elite of the Mervarian military, with its members pledging loyalty directly to the Mervarian monarch rather than the Maternal Society (as the Mervarian Guards do) or lesser clan chiefs. The force has taken the role of Mervaria's quick reaction forces, with part of its rank acting as special operations forces. But, the reason it was created in 1750 was to act as a counter-coup d'état force should the clan militias revolt.

Since Pantea III's softening of Mervaria's relations with outsiders in the 1960s and 1970s, the Mervarian military has took part in several military exercises and exchanges with countries aligned to its terrain, climate, threats, and ideology. The most recent of these was held at the Katli and Añeros Military Areas in SiWallqanqa during early 2022. The two countries forces, which included a contingent of Mervaria's Idignis Riverwalkers, trained in counter-insurgency missions against a simulated communist militant group. This event caused minor upset within the Farsi-speaking regions of Eastern Mervaria, due to the influence of Aftari-supported socialist groups in the region.

Language
The national language of Mervaria is Parsi, alternatively known as Mervarian Mihrani. Parsi is a Mihrani dialect closely related to Farsi or standard Mihrani as spoken in Aftarestan and Nasiria. The two languages diverged during the Middle Ages as most Mihrani territories, except the area of modern day Mervaria, were subject to Muslim/Aravan conquest. Although Mervaria continued to be subject to Aravan influence via trade and limited migration, Mervarian Mihrani more closely resembles a direct evolution of Middle Mihrani than other Mihrani languages. As a result, Parsi (derived from the Middle Mihrani Pārsik) is the only major Mihrani language to use an evolved, which was pushed out elsewhere in the Mihrani world by the Aravan script. But, despite phonemic differences, Parsi and Farsi are largely mutually intelligible.

Language in Mervaria falls mostly along ethnic lines, with 95% of Mervaria's Mihrani population speaking Parsi. The remainder either speak Berber, mostly in the mountainous interior, or Farsi in the border regions with Aftarestan. Meanwhile, 82% of Mervaria's Berber population speak a. The remaining 18% of Parsi-speakers are mainly concentrated in Mervaria's Mihrani-majority urban areas.

Religion
Religious practice in Mervaria is segmented largely along ethno-linguistic lines. The vast majority of Mervaria's Parsi-speaking Mihrani population practices one of many related polytheistic religions, while the Berber minority practices an unrelated form of polytheism, Farsi-speaking Mihranis generally practice Shia Islam, and the smaller Aravan minority generally practices Sunni Islam. Mervarian polytheism, broadly known academically as Rudabat, meaning "spirit worship". Although most branches share a common set of deities which they worship, typically associated with natural phenomena such as the God of the Sand Storm (a personification of wrath), spirit worship is highly fragmented with most Mihrani clans have their own unique family deities. This does not involve ancestor worship, but can involve worshipping deities personifying traits that clans identify with or mythological heroes associated with specific clans.

Health
Mervaria's health care system is centralized at the national level, under the authority of the Secretary of Welfare. The country has made notable improvements to its public health since the 1980s, funded by new government initiatives and foreign investment. From 1985 to 2015, the number of physicians (not including nurses, dentists and midwives) in Mervaria increased from 0.4 physicians per 1,000 people to 2.1 physicians per 1,000 people (a 425% increase). Although the sophistication of health care is qualitatively lower than in neighbouring Jungastia, all Mervarians have been covered by a universal health insurance scheme since the 1990s. Eighty-five percent of Mervarians live within an hour of a state-run health clinic or hospital staffed by at least one certified doctor, while the cities of Iraba, Gonzak and Irbur each have a Level I trauma centre. However, coverage is still poor in Mervaria's vast desert and mountainous regions where the majority of the country's Berber population live. Mervaria's health care system has been criticized for not including Berbers in its objective targets. This was partially addressed in 2016, when a paramedic unit within the army's Idignis Riverwalkers was raised to provide search, rescue, stabilization, and air ambulance services in remote interior areas. But, the effects of this program and the health system's inadequacies with regards to the Berber population have not been extensively studied by the Mervarian government or outside observers.

Approximately 99.1% of Mervaria's urban population has access to clean drinking water, compared to 94.3% of the static rural population. Nomadic tribes are not included in this statistic due to reporting issues. Emergency and non-cosmetic health procedures are free to all citizens under the government's health insurance scheme, as well as female hygiene products and selected medications.

In 2019, gender reassignment surgery was reclassified from a cosmetic surgery to a reconstructive surgery, allowing it to be covered under the national health insurance scheme. However, the costs of travelling to the only hospital that offers the treatment, the Iraba Medical Centre in Mervaria's capital, is not covered, leading to access issues for transgender patients. Additionally, for the treatment to be considered reconstructive surgery, a certified psychiatrist must declare a medical need for the patient. In practice, this leads to some patients being denied access to the treatment on the basis of individual doctors' moral convictions—a flawed system that has allegedly not been adequately addressed by the Mervarian Secretary of Welfare.