The Western Isles

Talvistova, officially the Holy Kingdom of Talvistova, is a Country in Northern Argus. It borders Nentia to the south, and Costavozka to the west, with the Argean Sea to the Northeast, and the Karnali Sea to the southwest. Talvistova covers a total of 384,828 Square Kilometers, with a population of roughly 15.5 Million. The capital is the city of Ljustad, with Skalgaard serving as its largest city. The official language is Finnish, but there's a large enough minority of native Norwegian and Sami speakers for both to be considered regionally recognized. 90.1% of the population is native Finnish speakers.

Etymology

Talvistova is named for the homeland of the ancient Talvis people, of which there are very few surviving records of.

The standard way to refer to a citizen of Talvistova is as a "Talvistovan."

History

Pre-History

Southern Talvistova was settled approximately 8,000BC after the recession of the northern ice cap. various cultures emerged doing this time, the most widespread among them being the bear-pot civilization, named so and theorized off of the presence of several pottery fragments emblazoned with or carved into the shape of a bear. Over the next 2,000 years, as recession of the northern ice cap continued and the global temperatures rose, the various stone age civilizations spread north, until all of Talvistova was believed to be occupied by at the earliest 6,200BC, and 5,800 BC at the latest. The early Talvistovans were hunter gatherers equipped with stone tools, largely axes and spears, with some evidence in archeological sites suggesting the presence of spear levers, although so far no surviving examples have been recovered.

Bronze began appearing in Talvistovan archeological records in the coastal regions around 2900BC, believed to be from trade with merchants from either south in the continent, or across the argean sea in what is now the continent of Gael. This is also roughly around the time that things such as animal husbandry, year round cultivation, and the first major settlements start appearing, with the main two we know of being Talve-Pohjoisrantaa, around modern day Hvalfangerby, and Talve-lounaaseenrantaan, roughly 15 miles up the coast from the modern day city
of Strömshamn. These two cities are believed to be the first major trading hubs in the city, as well as where the Argo-Talvic family of languages began to be seen through preserved tablets and birch-scroll records found in and around the city. This is also where records of the domestication of Reindeer comes from at their earliest, which would become an important fixture in the national identity, as well as the folklore and mythology of the country.

The largest recorded population boom occurred around 1,000BC, which coincides with the first recorded evidence of domestic iron production. The main exports of the era were furs, meat, antler-art and jewelry, which remains a major part of Northern culture, and reindeer-sinew bows, which would prove incredibly important in early Talvistovan society. It is also in the Iron age that the oldest continuously settled city was founded, with the fortress city-state of Kvingandannes being founded around 450-500AD in the south central plains of the modern day province of sentrallelund.

Early to Middle Ages.

The 11th and 12th centuries would prove tumultuous for Talvistova, with several southern city kingdoms popping up, and the northern tribes raiding south into the city kingdoms through the central taiga, who were also embroiled in their own wars with one another. The first major unifications would come in the 1130's, with King Aakä the Uniter of the City Kingdom of Kovaa Kotia uniting the lands from modern day Trjeljord to the coast, and north to modern Strömshamn. This unification effort would culminate in the War of the 7 Kings, with the unified eastern lands waging a campaign against a loose coalition of the 6 major western city kingdoms, notionally centered around Kvingandannes and its king Gædda. The western coalition was plagued by squabbling and infighting, and proved ineffective against the comparatively united eastern kingdom. The war culminated in the Siege of Kvingandannes, which would last for approximately 8 months, which resulted in stalemate and would force the First Council of Lords, in with the southern city-kingdoms would unite under King Aakä, forming what most historians agree is the first modern Talvistova.

With the south unified under one banner, the next major focus was the tribes and warbands of the north, known as the elhkeheastavuoddjit, or Elk Head Horsemen, known for their excellent horsemanship and deification of the now-extinct Taiga Elk. This event and period would last most of the 13th century, and would become known as the Wars of Northern Conquest, King Dagr's War, or, with the widespread adoption of Northern Orthodoxy upon the baptism of King Aksel the second in 1277, the Grand Northern Crusade. The wars would fluctuate in popularity, bottoming out after a particularly rough winter in 1245 that would lead to a royal crisis in the then-capital of Kvingandannes, which would result in the Red Court Massacre and the death of the King, although by 1247 and several milder winters the conquest of the north and expansion of Talvistova was seen in a better light, and they would resume the following year. The Wars would go on until 1301, when the Final Elhke chieftain, Ánde Nuhtte bent the knee to Aksel III The Conqueror. This event, the final complete unification of Talvistova, would be celebrated with a feast lasting 2 weeks, and a holiday on 19 July every year that would become known as Unification Day, although the date wouldnt be solidified for several centuries.

Geography

Government

Talvistova is an Executive Constitutional Monarchy, in which the King of Talvistova wields a moderate amount of political power, although in recent years the Monarch's use of said powers has waned drastically. It follows a parliamentary form of government, with the current Prime Minister being Aleksander Jarkoniemi, who is the leader of the new nationalist party, and is currently in his 5th term as prime minister.

The government transitioned from an Absolute Monarchy to the current system in the wake of the 1919-1924 Talvistovan Civil War, in which Loyalist Forces fought the Revolutionary Army to a stalemate, with the empowerment of the National Congress as the main legislative body in the country as apposed to the monarch.

Foreign Relations and Military

Economy

Demographics

Language

Religion

Race

Culture

Talvistovan culture has been cultivated as far back as the stone-age bear pot culture, and until industrialization was mostly secular, although post industrial revolution has drawn from all over The Western Isles, with sizable impact coming from its neighbors and from across the North and Eastern Agean Seas. In the past 75 years, there has been an upswing in the cultural impact from the northern indigenous Elhke People, thanks in large part to the efforts of Conservative Prime Minister Ralf Heimenen, as well as Elhko Rights Activists Biejaš Jælker and Sami Sundstrom in the 1950's and 60's, which has left an impact on music, art, and day to day life.

Symbols
main article=National Symbols of Talvistova
The Royal and National Seals, and by extension the National Animal, change depending on the current royal family, and in the early days, depending on the current monarch, with animals such as foxes, wolves, pine martens, and even the now extinct Taiga Elk serving as National
Seal and Animal. Under the Raikkonen Royal Family, the National Animal is the Reindeer.