We don’t know quite as much about Tevinter culture and society as we do about some nations in Thedas, having never experienced it ‘first-hand,’ so to speak, from the perspective of a player character in one of the games. However, there are a lot of canon details dropped here and there, from which it’s more than possible to extrapolate a rather fuller picture.
Luxury goods, such as a perfume known as attar of tahanis, are imported from Par Vollen. As we also know that both hot cocoa and bananas are delicacies Iron Bull craves, it is more than reasonable to expect that both chocolate and bananas are eaten in Tevinter also, imported from Par Vollen. (1)(2)
Pomegranates and dates are also delicacies in Tevinter, and might be served as a common courtesy to visitors of rank. (1)(3)
There are public baths in Minrathous at the least, and likely all great cities boast them. It also seems likely these baths are similar in style and offerings to ancient Roman bathhouses. (1)
Duels between mages are common, some of which are fought to the death. Given that Minrathous boasts a Proving Ground of dwarven design and construction, it can perhaps be assumed that at least some of these magical duels are fought there, as ‘official’ or legally-sanctioned ways of settling disputes between rivals. (1)
It is common to burn offerings of incense as part of Tevinter devotional practices; statues of revered figures, such as Archon Darinius, are designed with bowls equipped for this purpose. It can be extrapolated, perhaps, that the burning of incense is also part of religious devotions in Tevinter also, not only secular. (1)
Not all magical education is performed in Tevinter’s Circles of Magi. Private tutors are common, as are apprenticeships, and smaller private schools do exist – some of these schools of magic, like the Order of Argent, have an overtly religious, Andrastian nature. (4)
The higher class neighborhood of Minrathous, presumably where high-ranking altus and laetans families keep their residences, is known as the Gilded Quarter. (4)
However, the residence of the Imperial Divine is known as the Argent Spire. Argent means silver. Combining the Argent Spire with the religious school known as the Order of Argent, it seems likely that silver, rather than gold, is strongly symbolically associated with the Imperial Chantry. This might be deliberately chosen to contrast with the golden sunburst imagery used by the southern Chantry.
In a mural in the Orlesian Winter Palace which symbolically depicts Andraste and the two Chantries, the Imperial Divine is shown wearing a head-dress which resembles either the horns of a dragon, or a crescent moon. In addition, the sigil which seems to represent the Imperial Chantry is a stylized multi-headed snake, not the southern sunburst. (5)
Themes of self-sacrifice for a greater cause (as opposed to personal gain) seem prevalent in Tevinter’s monomyth, often but not always associated with the use of blood magic. The story of Crescens and Seraphinian has reached the status almost of folk myth, as has that of Tirena of the Rock. As the national personality of Tevinter is one of unreserved passion, according to Dorian, it seems likely that stories such as these have informed that culture.(6)
There is no direct evidence that inheritance in Tevinter is by primogeniture. Children might be expected to be named their parents’ heirs in many cases, but it is far from certain that they will be. There is a clear and thriving practice of choosing an heir from outside of the bloodline. Often this is an apprentice or protégé. Apprenticeship status seems to confer some of the legal rights of an heir to the apprentice; Dorian was able to settle the affairs of Alexius upon his return to Tevinter.
There is no direct evidence that married women in Tevinter assume the family name of their husbands. There is no example in the canon (that I’ve found) of a married woman being referred to by her husband’s family name. As women can become Magisters and can hold rank in the Imperial Chantry, it seems likely they would desire to maintain their own family names also.
There is a wide variance in skin tones among Tevinters; those in the eastern parts of the Imperium tend to be darker-skinned than in the west. Given that the Tevinter Imperium once covered the majority of Thedas, it is reasonable to assume that in ethnic phenotype, they are still something of a ‘melting pot.’ In addition, Tevinter nobles are known to marry the nobility of other nations. (3)(7)
Mages from Tevinter are known to travel fairly extensively outside of Tevinter, visiting at times the Anderfels, the Free Marches, Nevarra, and Rivain at the very least. They also socialize with nobility of other nations (Dorian’s mother is acquainted with Cassandra’s cousin). (3)
1: Paying the Ferryman
2: In-game Iron Bull-related banters/dialogue
3: In-game Dorian Pavus banters/dialogue
4: World of Thedas, V2
5: Winter Palace Chantry triptych
6: Codex Entry: Responsible Blood Magic
7: David Gaider video
