River People

From Gothpoodle

Bonobo/Human: Slight sexual dimorphism: females 3', 85lbs; males 3'6", 100lbs, prominent breasts, slender, omnivorous, promiscuous multi-partner mating, no formal bonds, mother-son relationship most important.

Names

Two syllable, tribal/family/house name.

Development

• Hunter-gatherer bands based around matriarchal families that meet regularly for trade and social interaction. Bands composition very fluid, breaking into smaller groups and reforming, and movement between bands is common. Territories often overlap and there is not strong territoriality except when resources grow scarce, which is also when violence becomes more prominent.
• Villages form around agriculture (farming, herding, and fishing) mostly along the river, family matriarchs make decisions. Men raise their sister's children and protect the family household. Ownership and resources lead to more violent interaction with other groups, though war is still infrequent. Trade and social interaction with other villages still common, but identity forms more around the village tribe and fluidity is lost.
• Prominent villages grow into cities and economically dominate surrounding villages through trade. Head Matriarchs becomes a hereditary position as Grand Matriarch. Economic power is paramount and fighting is over resources. Production of luxury goods and public architecture are ways of showing wealth, necessitating bureaucracy. Military power wielded by the Prince (eldest son of the Grand Matriarch) is balanced by the religious significance given to the latter position. Priestess caste develops from bureaucracy. Further development of states is hegemonic.

Society

• Commoners (divided by tribes)
• Nobles (Matriarch's family, attached to a settlement)
• Royalty (High Matriarch's family)