Khitimar Tribe
From SCross
Khitimar Tribe
The Clans
The Khitimar Tribe is broken up into seven clans, each of which is almost exclusively made up of a single species. There are Timber Wolves (Shandai Clan), Polar Bears (Mushai Clan), Arctic Foxes (Zakrai Clan), Ravens (Tglina Clan), Caribou (Ngnarra Clan), and Mice (Sharra Clan). The first six clans all follow the same structure; the mice are treated much like Arabs treat the Bedouin.
Tribal Structure
The Khitimar tribe is divided into the seven clans, as listed above. Each clan is further divided into nomadic groups, called camps. An individual's loyalty is to the camp first, to his clan second, and to the tribe third. Males will remain with the camp they are born into from birth to death, while females may be traded between camps (and recently, even between clans) through marriage, either by being stolen or purchased (see the section on family structure.) Recently, the Khitimari have been trying to marry females from outside the tribe into their number, having come to believe that they must expand their diversity, or they will become stagnant.
Family Structure
Khitimar families are centered around one simple thing: Children. The families of the clans are constantly being organized and reorganized around producing as many healthy children as is possible. Most of the time, the nomadic groups taht make up each clan have a greater number of adult females than males, as a result of males being killed in hunting mishaps, or in skirmishes with other clans (or even other tribes altogether.) Therefore, polygamy has become a way of life. Most successful men can expect to have two or three wives at any given time. Marriage is not an equal partnership, and traditionally, women are expected to obey their husbands wishes (no matter what he expects them to do). In practice, women have quite a bit of say in family matters, especially concerning their children. Lineage is carefully traced on both the male and female side of every family; the only written histories the Khitimar keep are family trees, scribed onto cured animal hides.
Marriage itself is a violent affair in the Khitimar tribe. In order for a woman to become married to a man, she must be either stolen, or purchased. A virgin who has never been married cannot be purchased, and must be stolen. This is usually arranged ahead of time. The woman to be married will wait naked in her family's tent, until her husband to be arrives. Her suitor will then attempt to drag her back to his own tent, where he will force himself upon her, while she does her honest best to kill him. In the rare cases where she is successful, any other wives the slain male had are released back to their parents, along with their children; usually though, the bride will choose to give in once she is certain her husband is no weakling and will not make her belly swell with inferior children. Women who are already married can be stolen by other men, though it is generally accepted taht the hopeful suitor will have to defeat the woman's current husband in a test of strength to earn the right to try. (Tests of strength, while not full on duels, are dangerous. While women may duel each other over a man, their bodies are considered more valuable. In order to discourage women from dueling, all duels between women are required to be to the death.)
Wives are occasionally sold from one man to another, with prices varying as widely as the circumstances. Usually this happens when a man realizes he has more wives (and more children) than he can support, and he will sell one (and her children) in order to minimize the loss of face, rather than risk his wives walking out of his tent. Children always accompany their mothers, though their upbringing is determined by the man of whichever tent they reside in, be it their father or not.
Women who cannot produce children are considered useless as wives. Girls who are are barren, either from birth or who become so due to injury or illness, are expected to marry the spear and become hunters and warriors. While most girls are given training in combat and any may technically marry the spear, only those who are barren are expected to make it a profession. Spearwives may also be married to a male, and having a fertile spearwife in your tent is a great boost of status.
Finally, all things hinge on children. Once a male has married a woman, he cannot marry another nor sell her until she produces him at least one child. If she turns out to be barren, he has a problem; no man would steal a barren wife. Technically, he could kill his wife (or order her to kill herself) but this would result in such an enormous loss of status that he likely would never attain another wife anywa, as well as invite the ire of his bride's family. No man has performed either action in living memory.
Clothing
Members of the Khitimar tribe dress differently depending on the time of year. In winter, it is normal to bundle up in as many furs as possible. They have become quite adept at curing and layering hides to make well insulated clothing, which generally covers the body from head to foot. They also wear eye covers made from bone with slits carved into them, to guard against snow blindness. Some furs are reserved for certain individuals. For example, only male hunters may wear polar bear hides, whereas the supple leather of seals is reserved for women.
In summer, whenthe weather is hot, clothing is much more relaxed. Most furs and leathers devoted to clothing are used to make winter garb. Summer apparel is up to the individual. While the Khitimari are unconcerned about nudity and will not comment if someone is without any clothes at all, a loincloth is usually considered to be the minimum.
Regardless of the time of year, the Khitimari are unfailing in one aspect of their dress: warpaint. Different colors and patterns will be used on different individuals at different times. Exact specifics of who wears what tends to vary from clan to clan, and even from one camp to another. Red, blue, green, and yellow are the most common colors. Purple is reserved exclusively for the Sharra Clan. Hand prints, swirls, lines, and jagged designs are common designs. Khitimari consider warpaint a necessary part of their attire, and would rather go without clothing than go unpainted. Aside from this, the Khitimari are fond of charms and fetishes made from wood, bone, or stone, and wear them on leather necklaces, bracelets, anklets, in their hair, tied into the hair of shrunken heads, and anywhere else they can find an excuse to display them. With a few smatterings of trade with Imperial sources, the glitter of metal jewellry is becoming a sought-after addition also, as well as the odd piece of metal armor or weaponry.
Religion
The Khitimari believe that they are all descended from the seven daughters of the trickster spirit. The seven daughters were Shandai the wolf, Mushai the Polar Bear, Zakrai the Arctic Fox, Tglina the Raven, Ngnarra the Caribou, and Sharra the Mouse, and the youngest. The Trickster, who is called simply that in Khitimari legends, allowed the seven girls free reign of his lands. Everything remained idyllic for many years, even in the harsh cold of the North. This lasted until the great wound opened, and the Trickster went away, to help to heal the land. Before he left, he commanded his daughters very sternly to mind their manners, and not to speak to any strangers. While he was gone, a mortal man approached the seven girls, and set to seduce them, one by one. Only young Sharra resisted his charms. The other six girls all gave in, and one by one, found their bellie swelling with pregnancies. When their father returned, he flew into a terrible fury at his daughter's disobedience; one by one, he tore their heads from their bodies in punishment. From their bodies, he breathed life into their unborn children, who ran away into the wilds, to form six of the seven clans. The Trickster then turned to little Sharra, who had behaved so well, but now cried for her sisters. The Trickster breathed across her tears as they fell from her cheeks, and from them emerged the seventh tribe. The mice of the Sharra clan are thus unique; they do not engage in head hunting as the other clans do; they are however the only clan of the seven who are able to become Gaimen. The other six clans treat the Sharra with great reverence, and will always surrender to them the best spots to camp and the pick of any hunt, whenever they are present, as well as petition them to provide a gaimen when they are lacking one. Meanwhile, all seven clans worship the spirits as the other tribes do, but hold special ceremonies for the Trickster.
Head Hunting and Human Sacrifice
Head hunting is an activity that the Khitimari engage in, though not on a regular basis. When one hunter kills another hunter, either from the same clan or another (or even a different tribe; the Khitimari war with the Khaluet on a regular basis), if the fight was particularly dramatic or meaningful he will claim his opponent's head, shrink it, and carry it about with him as a talisman. They believe that doing so confers a portion of the slain foe's strength onto them. No Sharra will ever engage in such activities, though for the other clans it is considered a mark of strength and valor to carry a few severed heads from defeated foes.
Human sacrifice is occasionally practiced, though again it is rare. Sacrificing food or goods to the Trickster is common, especially in lean times. If members of one of the clans find themselves in particularly dire straits, they may kill one of their own as an offering to the Trickster, in the hopes that he will smile upon them and save them from whatever threatens them. Young women are considered the most valuable sacrifices, and are usually the ones selected; choosing is done by having each potential sacrifice inscribe their mark in a piece of leather, and drawing one at random.
Cannibalism
Generally, this is forbidden. In extreme desperation, some Khitimari may turn to the practice as a means of survival; however, they are not Khaluet, and do not make a habit out of it.
Dueling
Grievances between members of the same and different clans are generally settled through duels. Strife is considered undesirable during winter, however, so it is a requirement for all duels that both opponents fight nude; while dueling is allowed in the winter, it is almost assured that both combatants will die of cold, so it is very rare. Aside from this, duels are fought differently for men and women. Men may set any terms that both combatants can agree on, from the first wound to a fight to the death. Anything not a fight to the death is usually termed a 'Test of Strength'. The loser must abide by the conditions set out before hand. Women are considered important as life bringers to the clans, and to discourage them from dueling, all duels fought by women must be to the death, no matter what it is about. Men and women may not duel each other. (though this is not to say they cannot fight each other in full skirmishes and inter-clan warfare.)
Birth and Death
Childbirth is considered a tribe affair. If a child is born in summer, it will almost invariably be born outside, unless the mother is ill. Any who wish to watch are welcome to. In winter, the same applies, except that the birth will take place in the largest standing lodge, to keep mother and child warm. After being born, each baby is inspected; any deformities will result in the child being left in the wilderness to die. Only healthy babies are permitted to survive their first sundown.
When Khitimari die, their possessions are divided amongst the clan. Someone from their family is chosen to decide who shall receive what, with nothing going to the deceased's own relatives. Once the deceased has been stripped of his possessions, a grave is dug for them; the body is decapitated, the head and body are burried together. The Sharra Clan is the exception, and burries their dead intact.
Territory
Notes on this coming soon!
Important Locations
Notes on this coming soon!
