Iran, Iraq and Kuwait, Five Years after the Vanishing
u/NeinNine999 — 3 days ago
▲ 11 r/EmptyContinents
A Rhinan Tourist Brochure (2315)
Vilkommen al vrây Rhînpaiss, mayn Amyens [fɪl.kɔ.mən al vʁaɪ̯ ʁiːn.paɪ̯s, maɪ̯n a.m.jɛns]
(Welcome to the true Rhineland, my friends)
The following is a short introduction to the Rhinan language, the mix of German and French that we speak in this part of the European Confederation.
1. A Few Basic Rules
o Like in German, all Rhinan nouns are capitalized regardless of their position in the sentence or them being proper nouns. You can see an example of this in my greeting above, where Aymens, meaning “friends” is capitalized.
o Also like German, Rhinan likes to form compound words. For an example we will be using the town of Gratvit. Gratvit breaks down cleanly into Grat and Vit, translating to “Ridge” and “Fast” respectively, so Gratvit as a whole is “Fast Ridge”. The notable difference from German that can occur here is in the order of words. Whereas German would always place such compounds as Descriptor-Noun, the order in Rhinan varies with no formalized pattern, Gratvit for example being Noun-Descriptor, the same order that is used in French.
o Since our language started as a pidgin and was only turned into a written language later, Rhinan spelling tends to follow its phonetics as closely as possible. This has resulted in use of diacritics from both languages, sometimes even in the same words. Further, this has resulted in a “hardening” of word endings, for example contrast the French “Ville” to Rhinan Vill, where the soft e at the end has been dropped in favor of a harder more German-feeling double-L.
o Plurals in Rhinan tend to follow French rules, meaning that they are formed almost exclusively by adding an s at the end of the word.
2. A Few Basic Words
The minimum amount of Rhinan you can learn. While almost all Rhinans speak English and/or Esperanto, we are a small regional community and always appreciate if people from the outside take the time to try and speak to us in our language instead.
Hello: Salü [za.lyː]
Goodbye: Tschüss [t͡ʃyːs]
Please: Sivü [zi.vyː]
Thank you: Dankor [dan.kɔʁ]
Yes: Ouya [u.ja]
No: Non [nɔn]
Excuse me / Sorry: Pardor [paʁ.dɔʁ]
Cheers!: Prôst [pʁoːst]
Welcome: Vilkommen [fɪl.kɔ.mən]
3. A Few Basic Phrases
A list of phrases that you might find useful when travelling in our area. While these are certainly more difficult to memorize than the single words, knowing them will make you stick out from the crowd of tourists to a much greater degree.
English: My name is... What is your name?
Rhinan: Mayn Namm sêttr... Kel sêttr dayn Namm? [maɪn nam zeːtʁ... kɛl zeːtʁ daɪn nam]
Literal English: My name is... What is your name?
English: Where are you from? I come from...
Rhinan: U dü sêttr andrébass... Je kuhr andrébass... [uː dyː zeːtʁ an.dʁɛ.bas... ʒə kuːʁ an.dʁɛ.bas...]
Literal English: Where you are other-from... I course other-from...
English: Where do you live? I live in...
Rhinan: U dü viven... Je viven dedan... [uː dyː vɪ.vən... ʒə vɪ.vən də.dan...]
Literal English: Where you live... I live inside...
English: Do you like... ? Yes, I love... ! It is so beautiful!
Rhinan: Dü sentir bonn... ? Ouya, je sentir sehr bonn... ! Ciss sêttr sehr schon! [dyː zɛn.tiːʁ bɔn... u.ja, ʒə zɛn.tiːʁ zeːʁ bɔn... t͡sɪs zeːtʁ zeːʁ ʃoːn]
Literal English: You feel good... ? Yes, I feel very good...! This is very beautiful!
English: How long are you staying? I am here for … days.
Rhinan: Kel Tampgrand dü sêttr isiss? Je sêttr isiss por … Tajors. [kɛl tamp.gʁand dyː zeːtʁ ɪ.zɪs... ʒə zeːtʁ ɪ.zɪs pɔʁ ... ta.ʒɔʁs]
Literal English: What big-time you are here? I am here for … days.
English: When is your flight? My flight is in … days.
Rhinan: Vann sêttr dayn Fluvol? Mayn Fluvol sêttr äpré … Tajors. [van zeːtʁ daɪn fly.vɔl... maɪn fly.vɔl zeːtʁ ɛ.pʁeː ... ta.ʒɔʁs]
Literal English: When is your flight? My flight is after … days.
English: Have you seen [the] sight? No, I have visited …, … and…
Rhinan: Dü mardek passet var Sehnplass? Non, je passet kurvisit …, … un …. [dyː maʁ.dək pa.sɛt vaːʁ zeːn.plas? nɔn ʒə pa.sɛt kuʁ.vɪ.zɪt … … ʊn …]
Literal English: You see past was see-place? No, I past course visit …, … and…
English: I have seen [the] sight. It is very impressive!
Rhinan: Je mardek passet var Sehnplass. Ciss sêttr sehr stonnant! [ʒə maʁ.dək pa.sɛt vaːʁ zeːn.plas. t͡sɪs zeːtʁ zeːʁ stɔ.nant]
Literal English: I see past was see-place. This is very stunning!
English: Tomorrow I am going to…
Rhinan: Äprétajor je kuhr a … . [ɛ.pʁeː.ta.ʒɔʁ ʒə kuːʁ a …]
Literal English: After-day I course to…
English: I plan to visit … / You should visit ...
Rhinan: Je babsik kurvisit … / Dü solln kurvisit … [ʒə bab.sɪk kuʁ.vɪ.zɪt … dyː zɔln kuʁ.vɪ.zɪt …]
Literal English: I plan course-visit … / You should course-visit ...
English: Do you have any recommendations?
Rhinan: Dü avvisser mênungs? [dyː a.vɪ.səʁ mɛː.nʊŋs]
Literal English: You have-know recommendations?
English: Where is …? Is it far?
Rhinan: U sêttr …? Sêttr ciss lofern? [uː zeːtʁ … zeːtʁ t͡sɪs loː.fɛʁn]
Literal English: Where is …? Is this far?
English: Is there a good restaurant around here?
Rhinan: Ilyav un bonn restorn pré isiss? [ɪl.jav ʊn bɔn ʁɛs.tɔʁn pʁɛ ɪ.zɪs]
Literal English: It has a good restaurant near here?
English: I have (not) eaten … before. What should I try (now)?
Rhinan: Je marnjé passet (non) … vorisiss. Was solln je gustek (jetz)? [ʒə maʁ.njeː pa.sɛt (nɔn) … foːʁ.ɪ.zɪs. vas zɔln ʒə gʊs.tɛk (ʒɛt͡s)]
Literal English: I eat past (not) … before-here. What should I taste (now)?
English: Is this meat? Is this fish?
Rhinan: Sêttr ciss flaych? Sêttr ciss pofiss? [zeːtʁ t͡sɪs flaɪ̯ç? zeːtʁ t͡sɪs poː.fɪs]
Literal English: Is this meat? Is this fish?
English: This is delicious!
Rhinan: Ciss sêttr leckon! [t͡sɪs zeːtʁ lɛ.kɔn]
Literal English: This is delicious!
English: Sorry, I do not speak Rhinan very well. What is this in English?
Rhinan: Pardor, je sprek Rhinan non sehr bonn. Was sêttr ciss in English? [paʁ.dɔʁ ʒə spʁɛk ʁiː.nan nɔn zeːʁ bɔn. vas zeːtʁ t͡sɪs ɪn ɪŋ.glɪʃ]
Literal English: Sorry, I speak Rhinan not very well. What is this in English?
English: How do you say... in Rhinan?
Rhinan: Komô düm dirn... in Rhinan? [koː.moː dyːm dɪʁn... ɪn ʁiː.nan]
Literal English: How one says... in Rhinan?
English: Could you speak slower?
Rhinan: Könnt dü sprek mor lanto? [kœnt dyː spʁɛk moːʁ lan.toː]
Literal English: Could you speak more slowly?
4. A Few Words of Thanks
With the very basics of your Rhinan knowledge now established, all that is left to say is:
Dankor por lesen gannsveg a ciss Fin. [dan.kɔʁ pɔʁ leː.zən gans.veːg a t͡sɪs fɛ̃]
(Thank you for reading all the way to the end).
and
Genissen dayn Tamp dedanciss Rhînpaiss! [gə.nɪ.sən daɪn tamp də.dan.t͡sɪs ʁiːn.paɪs]
(Enjoy your time in the Rhineland!)
u/NeinNine999 — 13 days ago
▲ 14 r/EmptyContinents
Tamo Daleko (2030)
Dalibor stood at the edge of the river alone and in silence. He had been doing it for almost two years now. Coming here, and simply staring across the water for entire evenings. There was nothing there now, nothing but trees and meadows and maybe some animals where once had been another part of Hamburg. But while he had been fond of his time here, the old Hamburg wasn’t what Dalibor thought of as he watched the fogs drift by the distant riverbank.
His thoughts were much further away, some one-and-a-half thousand kilometers he would guess. If he stood for long enough, he could imagine the Elbe as the Sava or the Danube and the remnants of Hamburg behind him becoming another city altogether, one that he would never see again, one that was likely gone forever. And if he then closed his eyes, Dalibor could almost hear Belgrade too. His Belgrade, where he had been born, where he had lived, where his family had been until that day 29 months ago.
Today he was not so lucky. The sounds of home didn’t come to his mind, only the incessant whining of the wind along the river, and the shouting of some workers at the nearby dockyards. Dalibor sighed and reopened his eyes. He wondered if anyone had survived back home. The consensus among most of the small circle of Serbians he had found was that only islands had been spared, and even then not all. Dalibor had never concerned himself in detail with what part of home was an island, and even if he had there wasn’t even certainty that it still existed.
Likely all of Belgrade now looked like that far bank, as if no human had ever set foot there. Likely no one he had known had made it to this new world. Likely Serbia itsself had gone with them to whatever place they had been taken, one he was sure had to be better than this world. As he turned away from the river, Dalibor recalled, not for the first time, the lyrics of an old folk song “There, far away, away from deep blue sea lies my beloved Serbia, that’s home for you and for me.” He was almost certain they were no longer true.
u/NeinNine999 — 16 days ago
▲ 30 r/EmptyContinents
Membership Changes in the Paneuropa Pact
The Lotharingian War had a profound impact on Europe as a whole, and the Paneuropa Pact could not go unaffected by it. The United Kingdom felt that most of Europe had turned against them during the conflict, with the European Confederation as well as its closest associate Slovakia being especially critical of the botched attempts to retake the low countries. As a result, the UKGBF officially resigned its membership in Paneuropa only three weeks after the Treaty of Las Palmas.
Despite the damage the war had done, the UK remained Europe’s largest economy, and its exit could have potentially toppled the entire alliance. But after a few shaky months in late 2341 and early 42, most of the rest of Paneuropa managed to stabilize their new situation. The exceptions to this were Ireland, which officially pulled out in January 2342, citing the tensions that had already been readying to flare up again in Northern Ireland as well as economic ties to Britain, and Gibraltar, which left a few weeks after Ireland and after negotiating for continued open borders with the Spanish government.
But despite the economic damage that the three exits had done, they also opened opportunities. Italy had been excluded from Paneuropa largely at the behest of Britain for decades, and, in part to ease its ongoing negations to join the European Confederation, it briefly became an independent member of Paneuropa from August 2342 to May 2344. The Italian entry was seen as a general reopening of Paneuropa’s ranks to new members, leading them to be followed by Magyarország in November of the same year, and Vidzgale in February 2343.
At the same time a largely Croatian led effort led to several treaties that pulled the, by now only six, members of the Eastern Mediterranean Union closer to Paneuropa, stopping just short of integrating the smaller economic alliance. Observer seats for Paneuropa were also officially established for the first time in its history, with the first two being granted to the newly independent Lotharingia and its close associate Heimoaate. In general the exit of the UK seemed to give Paneuropa a new flexibility that had been previously constrained by bickering between the two main blocs within the alliance, led by it and the European Confederation respectively.
Of course, as both international observers, and politicians in countries that are less firm in their support for Paneuropa have pointed out that this new arrangement has placed the European Confederation as the de-facto head of the organization. However, the Confederal administration under its new High Magistrato Emma Meldgaard has taken active steps to limit its dominance within Paneuropa to the strongest reasonable degree, and allow the smaller states that fill the alliance alongside it to have a clear say in its direction. Whether this new balance of power within Paneuropa will function long-term or whether the more skeptical states will eventually decide that the Confederation’s shadow looms to large within the organization without Britain to balance them out remains to be seen in the years and decades to come.
u/NeinNine999 — 21 days ago
▲ 27 r/EmptyContinents
Three Maps of Gorkhaland (2340)
1: Infobox
2: Transliterated Names
3: Devangari Names
4: Language Distribution
u/NeinNine999 — 28 days ago
▲ 12 r/EmptyContinents
A Revolution's Fading Shadow (2133)
When had it gone wrong? That question remained, even after so many years. It would always remain. And Tsiory knew that she would never be able to answer it. Had it gone wrong when the Indonesians landed? Or had it been when the highlanders pushed them away from the capital? When they massacred half of her hometown? Or maybe it had gone wrong the very moment the first stone was thrown in Toamasina.
Or, what she had always assumed had been the first stone. Maybe there had been others that she’d never seen, never heard. Ones that came before hers. If she tried she could still feel the texture of it, the rough piece of concrete and rusted steel that had crumbled from a neglected apartment block. She could still hear the sound it had made impacting against the head of the policeman, and the one he made when he collapsed. She could still sense the shift of the crowd’s energy around her as they realized the line that she had just crossed.
But that memory had long since lost the spark of fervor it had had in the moment. The optimism, the excitement at finally getting to change things on her own terms. The naivety with which she had taken up her first gun. Those were all long gone. Now there was sorrow, and the ever-returning question that she would never answer. There was no more revolution in the deeply scarred city that would always be her home. Or in Tsiory herself for that matter. There was no righteous cause to fight for. And no brothers and sisters in arms to fight with.
The last one she had known had left almost ten years ago, a heavy fever, Malaria maybe. The hospital had been too full and too expensive to find out. Since then only Tsiory remained. The last one still standing, still slaving away in factory shifts that would have been arduous for people a third of her age.
Sometimes Tsiory regretted not having had any children that could have taken care of her in her old days. But she could not have stomached passing on the sorrow of her life, the regret, the feeling of hopelessness that had defined her for so many decades. No child would have deserved to witness those in their mother, and so Tsiory could not have been one. It was better for her to die alone.
Tsiory rolled herself out of her bed with a groan of pain. All these memories and thoughts would do her no good in the end. They would never help answer the question. They would never bring back her comrades, or her family, or the years of her life she’d already lost. As far as she was concerned, the Tsiory that had been a fighter of the United Malagasy Opposition Forces was nothing more than a shadow of the past, and judging by the pain all over her body, not one that would linger much longer.
u/NeinNine999 — 1 month ago
▲ 40 r/EmptyContinents
The New Peoples of Europe - The Steinhuder Laketown (2231)
Excerpt from chapter five of the 2231 book “The New Peoples of Europe” by University of Europa Anthropologist Sophia Skov
Just beyond the Victorian-esque tea rooms of Hanover, to the west, another curiosity can be found. Unlike British settlement efforts which are a global phenomenon this one is a lot more unique. On the water of one of the largest lake in Weser there sits a town. Not next to the water. On it.
Originally the survivors on the ‘Steinhuder Meer’ lake had come about as a result of a company anniversary getaway hosted by a large marketing firm from Frankfurt. An attempt to build better teamwork among its employees since the company had been struggling with HR. The party lasted long into the night. When the Vanishing occurred, 57 people found themselves stuck on Wilhelmstein, an island meant for only 16 to stay overnight.
How exactly they survived the earliest years is a mystery both to me and to the wider world. Some locals I interviewed claim that there were experienced fishermen among their ancestors, others that someone had illegally dug a doomsday bunker on the lake’s other artificial island and that they lived off its stocks, and some even attribute it to a very direct divine intervention. None of these stories can be clearly corroborated these days, since records of the Steinhuder Meer only restart in 2031 when they linked their small community to Hannover, which was struggling far more with food issues.
As a result dozens of Hanoverians began to move to live along the lake, and to accommodate these new arrivals as well as their own growing population in a place safe from the various wild animals, the people of Wilhemstein began expanding the island. Since their lake is only about 3 meters deep at most, driving stakes down into the lakebed was a relatively easy process, and allowed for stable structures, typically hovering about a meter above the waterline.
This practice did not stop even when the authority of Europa reached the lake and any necessity there could have once been started to quickly become obsolete. Over the years the more central parts of the growing town were filled in with soil, but most of it still remains as the stilt-town it had begun to form into almost two centuries ago. While Wilhelmstein remained as the name of the original piece of land at its center, the larger town quickly became known as “Seestadt” "Lake-Town", possibly in reference to Tolkien’s Hobbit, in which a quite similar town appears.
Unlike with some of the more obscure places I have documented, I was far from the only visitor during my time on the lake, since the unique town has been drawing small but steady numbers of tourists for decades now being viewed as a “local Venice” by many Hanoverians. Unlike that Mediterranean counterpart the buildings of Seestadt are still almost entirely wood and it remains much simpler in its aesthetic. More like Venice however, transportation within the town is focused on small boats and walkways that are often so thin that two people can barely pass each other. While regulations for security have become more strict since the early days of Seestadt, many things in it still do not quite live up to standards that other towns would have to follow, especially in regards to the lack of guard rails next to the water.
u/NeinNine999 — 1 month ago