Hesan

Hesan or Ezon refers to both an ancient civilization of Panavic culture and the cultural region developing from it, including various successor states. However, the set of "Hesan" states generally does not include Niderazon, which is considered an independent line of Panavic realms.

History

Ancient history (c. 1000 BF to 767 BF)

The expansion of Panavic culture into Liruzon happened roughly in a east-to-west, south-to-north fashion - first settled was Vard, then Hexi, Herm, Rovana, Dadak, and Halay, and then Rovidajn and Tenesor (what is now Nikitari). These existed as independent city states, among others. As Panavic settlers displaced Vanki natives, they borrowed stories and ideas, including that of Koratar.

Iradanet was born in Halay in 796 BF, and the rulers of Rovana would gradually unite the city-states of Hesan from 790 to 767 BF.

The Empire of Hesan (767 BF to 449 BF)

The Empire of Hesan was proclaimed by Etevni in 767 BF, ruled from Rovana. Fringe territories such as Sbeva were settled around this time but were never incorporated into the empire itself.

From 724 to 551 BF, Hesan was ruled jointly with Yarzon-Watershed as Hesan-Lundroz by Etevni-Aratikent.

Also during this time, the people of Hesan regularly interacted with the Robanagari people who lived underground.

Iradanet also became a spiritual leader in Hexi during this time.

The Gordrivi tribe formed by 687 BF as a constructed culture resulting from people relating to Koratar as a character, mainly those in the northern reaches of the empire who felt separated from civilization.

By 630 BF, Hesan had expanded and conquered the cities of Natrin and Jovel, and settled the city of Avenur.

In 479 BF, Kari became the ruler of Hesan. In 449 BF, he decided that his son Ardik should become the next ruler, despite Niki being appointed. As a result of the conflict, the nation split into two kingdoms, with the south ruled by Ardik from the newly founded He-Ardik and the north ruled by Niki from Tenesor.

Decline of realms (449 BF to 75 BF)

The Southern Kingdom had two rulers - Ardik and Sana - over the course of its history. Sana's kingdom, including Rovana, was overrun by invaders from another empire in Panavis in 396. The city-states of Hesan would later break free from this empire's grasp throughout the 2nd century BF. Starting in 387 BF, the Wila people would arrive from across the sea in Indadvi. They started out looking for trade, but it became quickly clear that they wanted more than that. By 247, they were beginning to settle over Panavic settlements, bringing all sorts of diseases with them, as well as attempting to impose their rule from the top down on the entire northern kingdom. This sudden imposition began the Wars for Iltezon - so named because the invaders didn't just have their sights set on Hesan.

The wars were a series of conflicts fought with united Panavic forces (Sbeva, Rovana, Kan'fi) and Ezeva forces (Korhision) on one side and the Wila invaders in what they called "Myalvi" on the other. Ultimately, what did Myalvi in wasn't the natives at all - it was that back in Indadvi, the country that the territories of Myalvi belonged to had collapsed, leaving the colony orphaned and disconnected from its mainland. Without a regular flow of supplies and a united force, the wars stopped in 75 BF - but Panavic culture had been completely erased from the colonized regions. While the people of Myalvi had advanced technology, they remained isolated and stagnant after this point. It took the Panavic people three centuries to catch up.

Shifting power (75 BF to 636 SR)

With Panavic presence erased from the north, the power shifted to the south. Niderazon (covered separately) emerged from He-Ardik in 31 SR, by that point renamed Henitera. Niderazon did not control the core of Hesan directly, but had it as an outlying territory. The height of Niderazon was in the 3rd century. The fall of Niderazon is usually cited as 636 SR, though it was overall more gradual than that, with the state centered around Rovana breaking free in around 549 SR. Additionally, Niderazon started the slow creep of Panavic culture back into Myalvi, establishing Niki-Myalvi by its collapse.

Modern Hesan (636-present)

Hesan did not participate in the Invasion of Yarzon-Watershed, although the new country was often associated with it. It had a politically turbulent period in around 749 SR. Hesan exists as of 913 SR as a kingdom centered on Rovana.

Government

The Hesanic Empire was an elective monarchy, much like many of its Panavic successors. As an empire, Hesan had a central government that ruled over a number of semi-autonomous "counties", which is also a system that persists into the modern day in some form or another, such as in modern Hesan or Sbeva.

Culture

Main article: Vedil

In the earlier stages of Hesan, and especially in the northern reaches, names were only given to legendary figures or otherwise posthumously; for the identification of individuals, simple descriptions of roles, relations, or characteristics were sufficient, which were often context-dependent and unable to formalize into a system of names consequently (except in the aforementioned case).  

Hesan in particular (alongside the core regions of Niderazon) is unique among Panavic cultures for its use of "secondary worlds", a limited set of culturally fixed worldbuilds such as Durzir, seen as parallel to the real, interactable world, which most fiction takes place in, and the distinction between these and paracosms as personal worldbuilds. As such, Hesanic media often does not explicitly state whether it is fiction or non-fiction, which can lead to a deal of confusion for people outside the culture.