Jemin

The Jemin people are an ethnic group indigenous to the Jejem region of mainland Tikaj, which today is split between the countries of Shynok and Caistria. Minorities both sides of the border, and persecuted to different degrees over time by the respective dominant cultures, their numbers have consistently dwindled down the centuries to the point that they are in danger of extinction. Their mother tongue is critically endangered and their many of their traditional customs have been lost in their original form over time.
Fifteen hundred years ago, many Jemin left the region and settled in Blueland, where they founded a new society, and their culture provided the foundations for the new one which developed as settlers from High Tor and Misha joined them. While today the Bluelander culture—very much the same across ethnicities within Blueland—has evolved into something quite unique, it retains a strong resemblance to the Jemin’s traditional customs.
Today, the Jemin culture is best preserved in Klyford, not their home region. During the Keizon Empire’s “failed” invasion of what was at the time known as East Mainland Shynok (now, the territories of Klyford and Enger), once rumours spread that the region could be signed over to the Empire as part of peace agreements, many Jemin left their homes overnight and attempted to make it into Klyford before the borders could close. Those that were successful were granted amnesty by the Empire and settled permanently in Klyford, where they were no longer pressured to conform to another culture’s customs. However, the Shynok authorities did not take the mass exodus well, and those that failed to escape in time were severely punished.
Although the Jemin people are no longer officially persecuted by either Shynok or Caistria, there is still huge social pressure (especially in Shynok) to conform. As such, most Jemin still in the region have either abandoned their cultural traditions, or continue them in secret while adopting mainstream customs in public.