Naher¶
"To abuse a horse can be a capitol offense." — the Terrun Compendium
The Naher (pronounced na-Here) are the horse-clans of the southern continent, "often thought of as wanderers and nomads", found in small clans in its wilder country and ruling one settled kingdom, Faragond in the centre of the continent. Every Naher is bound to a single horse from childhood and buried with it. In the Fifth Age they are the third human people of the Broken Sea, 1,640,000 strong, and more of them live in the wilds than in the Imperium.
Also called Nahar and Naheri; the adjective is Naheric.
Appearance¶
Average in stature, with lighter hair from blonde to light brown, rough features and light tan skin. A Nahar rogue of Brusau in 704 SM, Neven Hayes, is bald with a dark brown moustache and "rough tanned skin", and stands under five feet.
History¶
The Naher "once controlled or inhabited much of the southern parts of the continent, but have been continuously pushed back by the Danari and Huur". Many people of Naheric descent live as freemen, peasants, serfs or slaves inside the kingdoms that displaced them, and the nomadic population is spread thinly across the continent. Their greatest concentration is the Kingdom of Faragond.
Three thousand one hundred Naher survived the Age of the Dark Sun. By 704 SM they number 1,640,000: 420,000 in the Sancturi Imperium, 590,000 in the Riven kingdoms and 630,000 in the wilds. Among the kingdoms, Calyra is a land of "Nahar horsemen that live in frontier-like conditions", governed by an Assembly of Clans that elects a Warchief if the clans go to war; the Rovers who roam what was Faragond are a separate people. By the Proturan era the lands of "former Dalmar and Naher" have fallen under the Urok'gar Confederation of orcs, which favours human slaves.
The horse¶
The Naher revere their horses. An Eorl who cannot ride loses his position. Horses are well groomed, their hair braided, some even wearing jewellery. Every Naher is bound to a foal from the age of three and chooses only one horse in a lifetime, always from the Ghosthorn stock, horses "white to dark grey with faint spotting", very quiet, with padded hooves and small horns, that live eighty years or more. The horse is buried with its rider. If the horse dies first, its rider enters mourning, must choose a lesser horse as a replacement, will still be buried with the first, and is "treated differently, much like a cripple".
Society¶
The Naher are clan-based and sometimes nomadic, living in short-term settlements for a few months and moving on "when they have hunted all the easily available game". They are quite spiritual, revere their hunters as the providers of food, and "collect trophies of creature types to display their prowess". They are "not terribly war-like, but very territorial". They prefer barter to coin, though money keeps its value for trade with outsiders, and farming is known but only supplements hunting and ranching.
Men and women both ride. Women are not generally big-game hunters, though there are exceptions; they fish, hunt small game, gather and craft. "Household is equal, gov is not": Eorls and Aethlings are men, yet clan membership passes through the mother, and in war both men and women fight.
Nobility and freemen¶
Naher society is "two tiers and is very flat". Land is owned by the clan, never by a person; with the clan's leave one may build on clan land and own the building, the crops or the livestock, but the land remains the clan's and its use is the clan leadership's decision.
| Tier | Title | Standing |
|---|---|---|
| Nobility | King | Head of an alliance of clans, normally elected by the Eorls; not always an Eorl, sometimes a promising Aetheling |
| Nobility | Eorl | Head of a clan, normally elected by the Aethelings |
| Nobility | Aetheling | Local nobility, those capable of rising to Eorl; the Eorl's officers for local governance and justice |
| Freemen | Thegn | Freeman with military honours, owing service to an Eorl or King |
| Freemen | Ceorl | Freeman |
Naheric law holds that an election not decided by a decisive majority, "greater than 2 to 1", may be settled by combat, for Eorls as well as Kings. Aethlings have the right to challenge an Eorl's judicial decisions: an execution may be challenged by trial by combat, where the Eorl normally has another Aetheling volunteer to defend his decision "but sometimes fights it himself", and a land seizure or an extra levy may be challenged by trial by hunt, where the Eorl names the creature and "the first back with the dead creature wins".
Religion¶
The Naher honour Artenys, Astrin, Khardas, Lunaris, Pyri, Erolan and Damara.
Dwellings¶
The Naher build fortifications and retaining walls of stone but prefer wood for buildings, living spaces and halls. On the move they raise "a town of domed tents" of leather skins and poles behind a wooden stockade or spike wall, and even then often build some permanent fortification to retreat to in serious trouble.
Language¶
The Naher speak a dialect of Common with a thick, flowing accent, keep Ancient Naheric for rituals and ceremonies, and write in their own Naheric Runes, "similar to the Dwarves". Their names are set out on the Names page.