Nayokiz culture

=Origins=

Introduction
The Nayokiz culture is a very rich culture. Its essence comes from nature and its elements. Everything around us influenced the Nayoks ways of living and all of these ways were passed on throughout the generations till today. It is said that the first men landed on Voti Spes and they wrote a couple of pages that were passed on throughout the generations as somehwat sacred.Our Goddess HUVOW was someone consumed by passion and love. Our compassion and love for all that surrounds us is a result of her accomplishments.

Etymology
The word "Nayokiz" is fusion of two words: "Nayo" meaning she is our Joy and "Kiz" means Girl. It relates to our religion giving the Goddess is our Joy.

Day 1
We've landed on Voti Spes. It's nighttime and the weather is fair...for now. Clouds are close and we fear rain. All of our radios are broken but we're working on it. On other news, land is quite green and we have found some Actinidia deliciosa votispesiana. We now seek shelter from the rain that's coming. That's all.

Day 2
We have decided to divide into two groups: Four of us will stay in our current location to provide shelter, a camp fire and a basic camp for us to stay. Temporarily. The three others are going to explore to find food and hopefully water sources. We fear that the water we have won't last for more than three earth days. Nothing new about the radio getting fixed. It's just crappy luck! That's all.

Day 3
One of us carved wood containers for us to stock food and rain water. That should buy us some time until we find a more stable water source. We found fruits and vegetables and some animals. The explorers have decided to try and make a map of the landmarks around us. That should make it easier for us to wander around and provide our basic needs. We are also planning to start gathering seeds to plant as soon as water is available. That's all.

Day 4
We have lost hope on fixing the radios. Two options: either we die or we live. Let's hope we live. The explorers are leaving tonight after dinner South on their quest to find water. Our containers were filled last night with some rain water. We have more than enough for the moment but the weather is uncertain so we prefer finding a more stable source. That's all.

Day 5
They're back! Water! The explorers have come back at around lunchtime with news that relieve us so much :they have found a river that they named:Voyz. It's actually quite close if we follow the road they took. It takes about thirty earth minutes walking south. Oh speaking of time, a day and night on Voti Spes take approximately 23.13 earth hours based on the sun's position. That's all.

After that
After that, the scientists ended up pairing up, getting married in their own way and had children and their children did the same and so on. Different mixes of traditions, beliefs, laws and other characteristics made up the Nayokiz culture that still stands today.

= Traditions=

Weddings
When two people decide to tie the knot, a ceremony takes place. At the beginning, the man has to go with his father and male siblings for a hunt. The husband to be hunts down a wolf symbolizing the white direwolf of the legend as a paradox to killing any harm that could get close to his woman. If he fails, the bride's father gets to oppose the children' s wedding. During the hunt, the women and the rest of the men stay and have the traditional meal cooked by the mothers of both the bride and the groom. Once the husband to be comes back, he presents the wolf's skin to the bride's father and mother. Then comes the sacred part of the ceremony. The Chosen then gives two blessed cherries as a reference to the Goddess and the two lovers feed one another as the Goddess fed the cherry three with her blood. They then plant a cherry tree. They then have the dance every couple has at their wedding. After that they are officially wedded and spend their lives together.

Pregnancy
On the first pregnancy of the wife, the mother and father of the bride gift the two lovers. They use the wolf skin and make a blanket for the couple. During the nine months of pregnancy, the woman uses the blanket for her to carry a child that his father to protect.

Part of the community
Today, as a ceremony of blessing our children, we use cherry juice. We dip our babies feet into this juice for them to walk on the path of love and for them to find their soulmate. On that day, parents pick a totem for their child.

Funerals
When a person dies, the dead body is buried under the family cherry tree. A whole ceremony takes place with dancing and chants and prayers. He is buried in the form of a fetus for him to have a very good beginning in the world of spirits.

Greetings and goodbyes
While greeting someone you should move your head forward and say "Ayeh" meaning Hello and to say goodbye you bow your head down saying "Wuwo" meaning Goodbye.

Signs of disrespect
The intertwining of the two pinkies is considered a sign of disrespect. Never look at a woman's feet and curves unless you want to marry her.

Signs of respect
Between two lovers :he should kiss her forehead after greeting her

Naming
All females have the sound "Kiz" at the end of their names since "kiz" means girl. All males have the sound "Zik" at the end of their names since "zik" means boy.

= Religion = It is said that when Goddess Huvow lived on Voti Spes, she had been the only one to survive the cold. Everyone else perished. She had lived on the mountaintops and had been an amazing planter: her garden was full of trees. Her only friend was a great white direwolf which's barks sounded like actual words. She fell for him but could not see their love flourish since their different species wouldn't allow them to reproduce and see their love fructify. She then enchanted her cherry tree for it to be the solution to her problem. She enchanted it using her blood, bonding her to it and making them unified. She fed the tree with her blood and so the tree grew and gave magical sweet cherries to the woman. Goddess Huvow then fed a cherry to the direwolf. He stayed for only a while then left for adventure. She loved him as she still does today. It was so painful for her but then came the pain that was even greater when she found out he had cut the flourishing branches of the cherry tree. She and the tree were sired and his cutting of the branches caused Goddess HUVOW never to be able to move on to the world of spirits. She cut the rest of the tree out of anger and died right after, still holding a part of a dead branch. The lover also died in his animal form. They say the spirit of Goddess HUVOW still stays among us today, watching out for lovers and clearing the path for them to meet.

When it starts
As a ceremony of blessing our children, we use cherry juice. We dip our babies feet into this juice for them to walk on the path of love and for them to find their soulmate. On that day, parents pick a totem for their child.

Totems
Each person has a totem picked for them when they get blessed during the blessing ceremony. Only the parents know their children's totems and it is unpermitable foranyone to else know this totem. The Goddess works in mysterious ways as two soulmates with unbreakable love all have the same totem. All but one couple in every 3 generations.

The Chosen
The couple has undeniable unbreakable love. The child that comes from this union cannot find love but is gifted and blessed. The child's gift has something to do with his parents' totems example: Fire and cat have ac hild, Fire-cat: has the power to connect with fire or to "understand" Felines. He has a great understanding of the Goddess and of the world of spirits. He is a spiritual leader and has the duty of guiding the people. They come to him and they ask for guidance when they believe they've lost their way.

The world of spirits
It is said that After our bodies use up their lifespan which is of exactly 99 years, our spirits leave us. They then meet the one that has blessed them enough to find their second half. Indeed the Nayoks feel empty when they are far of their lover and they feel incomplete and feel thrust for love. After that the spirits go straight to the world of spirits. Their role is then to contact The Nayoks when these people ask for them in their prayers. It is said that the spirits of the dead do not forget so it is advised to be good with everyone during your life.

Zayow
The Zayow is the main form of prayer. In a session of Zayow the chosen is present and so are the people that need guidance. They perform the prayer with calm or brutal gestures and they take their tension out with different chants. Once the people get a kind of vision of the answer, they speak of it with the chosen that is qualified to advise them especially when it comes to love or relationships and even more if it's related to the gift he has.

= Language = Our language is very fluent and soft. Grammar:
 * Subjects come before verbs
 * Verbs remain the same whether they're singular or plural
 * Putting a line on the top of a word adds a "V" sound to the end of the word.
 * Putting a line at the bottom of a word adds a "S" sound to the beginning of it.

= Representational Arts =

Nyakay
It is a form of self expression. •	Punching •	Kicking •	have a strong philosophical belief of the flow of energy •	 the physical, the psychological and the spiritual. •	strength, stamina, flexibility, movement coordination •	simple stance, muay thai...jeet kun do •	basics are : 1.	hook 2.	uppercut 3.	elboes (hit .. cut) 4.	kicks: front kick 5.	low kick 6.	straight knee 7.	side knee 8.	clinch

= Music= The Nayoks do not use any instruments, they only use their bodies and anything that might be around them. They use screams for brutal songs expressing anger or pain or loss and softer sounds for the rest of the feelings they might want or need to describe.

= Cuisine = The Nayok cuisine mainly consists of elements coming from nature. Our starters are traditionally made of salmon "swuwo" seated on vegetables. There are many main dishes but the most common is the "Nowmov" usually accompanied by "Snayo" salads and deserts are based on fruits and contain fresh creams.

= Politics and Laws = The transgression of these laws all lead to two punishments:
 * Physical abuse is not allowed especially between parents and their children no matter what.
 * Revealing one's totem isn't allowed.
 * After the sun sets, wandering the streets is forbidden.
 * Sex is prohibited until after marriage.
 * Parents do not have any saying in the personal choice of their child's husband or wife to be unless the husband to-be isn't able to hunt a wolf.
 * Until their wedding, children cannot move out of their parents' house.
 * Men are put in ten feet deep holes naked and are thrown mud at every day.
 * Women are punished by having to take the walk of shame. She'll have to walk around naked hands tied to a horse.

=Geography=

=Trade System= The Nayoks do not have any currency and so they trade objects or services and they are helpful by nature. =work= The Nayoks either do not work and stay home all day or they do work. In fact, the people can either be dancers or Nyakay performers entertaining people who do not work for services or even resource workers who go the further parts of the area to get limited resources. =Clothing= The nayoks do not have any traditional clothing but however they usually wear long silky scarfs around their heads as a sign of the presence of Huvow in their minds.

=Architecture= The Nayoks build their houses essentially out of wood and large leaves. Each house cannot have more than four rooms as the Goddess's cherry tree had four branches. Each room can have as many windows as possible and we believe that the more windows we have the clearer our view of life will be.