Tændeus

Tændeus is a continent on the planet Duro and is the focus of nearly all of Duro's history.

A climate map of Tændeus, excluding the northern reaches of Upper Tændeus.

Etymology

Tændeus comes from the Avœnde word for the continent.

Geography

Upper Tændeus

Upper Tændeus is large peninsula, running north along the Grey Mountains, eventually becoming an archipelago dominated by a very large island. It also includes the strip of land on the Yarali Peninsula north of the Yarali Mountains. Upper Tændeus has a wide climate range, including maritime temperate at the south and ice cap at the very north; Most of it, however, is tundra and cold continental climates. Upper Tændeus is inhabited almost exclusively by numerous fragmentary Upper-Tændean cultures, the first inhabitants of Tændeus.

Yarali Peninsula

The Yarali Peninsula is another large peninsula extending eastwards with the Yarali Mountains. Much of the Yarali Peninsula is desert and semiarid, but the eastern- and northern-most parts are much more humid. This peninsula is inhabited mainly by the Yarali, a Modern Tændean people who inhabit the mostly-desert land south of the Yarali Mountains and the eastern edge of the peninsula. North of the Yarali Mountains live the Jaxāŋa, an Upper-Tændean people.

Abhanji

East of the Yarali Peninsula is a large but sparsely populated island, Abhanji. Abhanji is mainly desert, but contains some Mediterranean climate along its southeastern coast. It is inhabited by the Abhanji People, a Modern Tændean people who were the earliest to diverge.

Inner Tændeus

Inner Tændeus is the vast swath of land enclosed by the Grey mountains to the north and west, the Yarali Peninsula to the east and Southern Tændeus to the south. Inner Tændeus also includes the Inner Gulf Islands and the Peripheral Gulf Islands. The inhabitants of Inner Tændeus are Modern Tændean peoples, the Inner-Tændeans.

The Gulf Islands

The the Gulf islands are divided into two groups, the inner islands and the peripheral islands. The Inner Gulf Islands form a small archipelago at the center of the Gulf, and include Vælis, Meris, and Garanis. The Peripheral Gulf Islands are a group of islands along the fringe of the Gulf, including Frœsis, Ampesis, and the Golden Isles. All of these islands are inhabited by Inner-Tændeans.

Southern Tændeus

Southern Tændeus is a large, rectangular peninsula extending south from Inner Tændeus. It contains two small mountain ranges to either side and a number of large and small lakes in the interior. The interior itself is mostly desert and semiarid, but at the edges are humid tropical climates. It is inhabited by both the Ṇọ́varra, the third group of Tændean settlers, and the Southern-Tændeans, an Modern Tændean people.

History

Pre-arrival (-20000-0)

Around the year -20000, a small group of Ældan, the ancestors of the Upper Tændeans, crossed onto Upper Tændeus from an eastern continent. Slowly, they moved southward and northward, expanding into numerous tribes.

Modern Tændean arrival and Prehistory (0-1800)

From the years 0-75, several groups of settlers from an eastern continent crossed from Abhanji to the eastern end of the Yarali Peninsula. These were the Proto-Modern Tændeans, the ancestors of all Modern Tændean peoples. The Yarali Peninsula was quickly populated, and the Modern Tændeans continued to move westward and southward. The land that is now Avœndia was populated by 500, and Southern Tændeus was reached by 1300, where they encountered the Ṇọ́varra people.

Yaralian Unification (2021)

Before the Unification, the Yarali were divided into seventeen tribes, which often fought over territory. As writing became more prominent, long-distance communication became possible.