Kasheran People

Kasheran

The Kasheran people have the darkest skin tone and are typically dark haired; blonds are extremely rare and are viewed with a bit of distaste by the general populace. The name Kasheran serves as both the singular and the plural.

The Kasheran are predominantly dark skinned with black hair and dark eyes (usually browns and greys). Once in awhile, one will have lighter eyes or a blond one will pop up. While lighter eyes aren’t all that remarkable, blond hair is unfavourable.
Before the Beginning of Days, the Kasheran people used to steal people from what is now Jiinal. The Jiinalese are also darker skinned, but they’re dominantly blond. While this practice was in place, blond children would often be born to the Kasheran people. The gene for blond hair remained in the population although it’s very recessive now and doesn’t assert itself as often as it used to.
Blonds are unlucky in the Kasheran culture. Exceptions are only made for blonds born outside their country, but even then they’re treated with a degree of suspicion. The current Crown Prince attempted to dispel that superstition by marrying a princess of Jiinal.
The Imperial House of Shanshiire has often married nobility from Jiinal, so blonds show up in that family more often than in any other family line in the country. The most recent example of that being Princess Aldiara.
Typically, parents will abandon blond children, leaving them to fend for themselves on the streets to avoid the stigma of having one in the family. Wealthier families will sometimes keep them, depending on their social status at the time. Blonds are encouraged to not marry or have offspring in an attempt to wipe out the unfavourable gene.

Given Names

Male
Craelned
Dalshen, Devril
Hazirik
Julong
Kenjariyo, Kilordrian, Kinlayo
Nathloki
Taorann
Uldarahn

Female
Alaysis, Aldiara
Balindren
Hinathera, Hiorann
Kashiandren, Keidinne, Kishandren, Kornahn
Milishran
Rehrulla
Shimatomi
Yukaren

Gender neutral
Aevalun
Danyen
Karel, Kiadren
Zeraul

Surnames

Kasheran surnames were once heavily gendered. This trend has mostly faded away, but it’s still in use by the nobility and some of the upper classes.
A male is indicated with the prefix fal while the feminine is nil.
EX: Kishandren nil Tanjalaar, Kenjariyo fal Tanjalaar

Common:
Amshedra, Amshedren, Medrolik, Mazrali, Hamaledra, Suranden, Sholiavan, Uedra, Tarandenn, Tarilik, Talarishann, Vanir

Upper Class:
Panaeron, Tirera, Aldamon

Nobles:
Tanjalaar, Thufaltyn, Sevaniris, Leilnalar, Ildevilir, Varnolin

Customs and Culture

New houses and buildings are purified by a priest or priestess with a ceremonial splash of water along the threshold before anyone may enter. This must also be done if any major changes have been done to a structure.

Items that are seen as lucky are burned on the last day of the year in the hopes that their luck will rub off on the item’s owner and the new year will hold good fortune for them.

A common game they play is Kru-shin. It’s a form of hopscotch with very elaborate layouts.

Purple is the colour of mourning and it is in poor taste to wear it otherwise.

"It's been our custom since before the Beginning of Days that we shed blood to remember and honour our dead. We used to sacrifice animals for that purpose. The more barbaric tribes back then would start fights with the purpose of shedding blood to satisfy the custom. The Metal Lord put an end to that. Rather than ask us to abandon a practice we had held for as long as anyone could recall, it changed instead to this small token. We honour our dead with a small offering of blood. We can obey the Metal Lord and still remember our past."

Romance

The Kasheran people rarely exchange tokens, as such things have little meaning to them. Gifts of water or food have more significance to them. A more established relationship--such as a married couple--would give items to each other to express affection, but a younger couple or one in the process of courting wouldn’t.

Same sex affections are accepted.
Romantic tokens are typically made from glass or metal, depending on a person’s means and the message they intend to convey.

Marriage

Monogamy is the standard practice. Same sex affections are accepted and they are permitted the same marriage rights as straight couples.

The upper nobility typically arranges marriages to form alliances, though this is a common practice in all five countries.

They don't believe in soulmates. They find their partners largely through trial an error, courting others until they find the right match.

Others find it strange, but Kasherans find the sharing of water to be romantic. Invitations to join someone in the shade is also considered romantic.

Kasheran weddings involve five parties, beginning with the engagement party and ending with the wedding shower five days after the ceremony.

Family

While divorce is frowned on, it happens, and families break up. The law would rather that children live in an environment where they are safe than in an unhappy home. Unfortunately, it can be hard to escape the stigma of a broken home. Law states that children may not be held accountable, but children will tease each other for this. Adults look down on a divorcee, regardless of the circumstances.

Should a parent die, it leads to an imbalance in the home. The surviving adult may remarry or not if they choose. Death is no one's fault and so no stigma is attached to any of these choices.

Kasherans believe in small families: mother, father, and only one or two children. They were heavily nomadic and small families were easier to keep track of an easier to sustain.

Childbirth

Women don’t lie down. Squatting is preferred. The afterbirth is buried in a place that the parents would find significant for their hopes for the child’s future or on the family land to give them a tie to it. Out in the desert is another popular place to do so.
It’s common to remain abstinent for up to six months.
A shower traditionally happens around 10 days after the baby is born. The mother’s sister, mother or aunt takes the mother through a ritual bath. She is then massaged with special oils. It is a reward for all her hard work and the pain she had to endure in labor. After the mom is cleaned, the baby is bathed. Following this, family and close friends are invited for a special lunch, called Nahali. Guests bring gifts such as clothes and blankets while close relatives often bring something made of silver for the mother.

Food

Politics are expressly forbidden at mealtimes.
There is no such thing as a silent meal in Shanshiire. Some of the wealthier families employ professional speakers for that purpose.

Agaar – cheese stuffed pastry
Kisha – a cinnamon-like spice
Majura – lamb cooked with rice and peas
Rashta – a salad made with fresh veggies, olive oil and spices, it can be eaten in a tapi bread, scooped onto a tapi, or traditionally with a fork
Shajiri – thinly sliced spiced meat served wrapped in a flat bread
Tapi – flat bread
Veshun – grilled vegetables

Commerce

It is considered polite for the shopkeeper to refuse payment from a customer of a higher social rank. The customer understands, however, that the proper response is to insist upon paying. The shopkeeper may refuse payment several times before allowing the customer to convince him to accept. It may also extend to social invitations. It is understood in Kasheran culture that an invitation to one’s home, no matter how enthusiastic, is a mere formality. Should the invitee accept, they may inadvertently put their host (who may not have wanted them in their house at all) in a very awkward position.