To their southern neighbours, the great civilizations of the South Kantishian and Kantishian Plateau, they are the northern barbarians - to their northern neighbours, the settled peoples of the Basin, they are mountain barbarians. This unflattering judgment is informed by the Am-Wiek's low population densities, strange patriarchal structures, lack of written language and reliance on hunting. In turn, this judgment shapes the relationships between the great kingdoms and empires and these "barbarians", and in this way, much of the fascinating oral history, rich folklore, impressive dances and other cultural riches of the Am-Wiek remain unknown to foreigners.
Origins
The Am and the Wiek have independent but converging histories. The Am are the most ancient settlers of the region. Of undenau origins, they settled the Northern Kantishian from the Basin plains, something which may still be deduced from the similarities of their languages and those of the Tahen and the Coha. The ancestors of these peoples (let's call them the *-ã) were matrilineal and had a highly gendered bigender social structure, in which male and female antioles had distinct and complimentary roles which were nominally equal. In the *-ã which would become the Am, the harsh environment of the Kantishian range increased the importance of hunting, a traditionally male pursuit. Prestige accrued through familial links to great hunters became increasingly important and eventually resulted in a shift to patrilineality - a stepping stone in the shift to patriarchy, for which the determining factor was increasing influence from the Wiek peoples. The Wiek are a later arrival to the Northern Kantishian, a people of kpikigd descent whose ancestors inhabited the Southern Kantishian and were displaced by the growing power of what would become Ghøwout. Most kpikigd people tend towards patriarchal social structures, and the Wiek's ancestors were no exception. The low population densities of the Northern Kantishian allowed the Wiek's ancestors to settle in the midst of the *-ã, setting the scene for the centuries of close contact which would see these two people become the Am and the Wiek. In the modern day, the Am and the Wiek share much in term of lifestyle, social structures, cosmology, and lineage - while the Am remain notably more ethnically undenau, and the Wiek more kpikidg, to the southern and northern peoples the Am-Wiek and the Oubixwø-øi of the Kantishian plateau form a distinct montagnard ethnicity. These similitude were born of centuries of trade, warfare, competition, collaboration, intermarriage, hatred, and friendship. These complex interactions underlay the life and politics of the Northern Kantishian.
Lifestyle
Am-Wiek are sedentary agriculturalists. They rely heavily on hunting and fishing to supplement their diet, a lifestyle which enforces low populations densities and impedes the formation of cities and large-scale polities. For this reason, the Northern Kantishian is a constellation of small kingdoms and independent villages with unstable politics and complex local identities - neither Am nor Wiek perceive themselves belonging to such a large cultural identity: the division between Am and Wiek has some basis in cultural practice and ethnicity but is mostly rooted in language. In fact, even more discrete divisions based off political structure and cultural practices are rarely used by these peoples themselves, with very local cultural identities (often to the level of a single village) being the most prominent ones. Larger-scale identities such as Akisam, Naihlam, or Highland Tiagwiek mostly appear in higher level political contexts such as between kings or powerful chieftains, or contexts where frictions generates a need for larger scale collaboration, and more often to speak of foes than to speak of allies. Petty warfare between small fiefdoms is a staple of summer life and rarely achieves much lasting geopolitical effects.
Historically, the Am-Wiek have not raised much livestock apart from the diminutive kabi, but this is beginning to change with the introduction of the tsut, a small therizinosaurine livestock imported by the Setse colonists to the West. The adoption of tsut-based pastoralism by Am-Wiek peoples has been slow - the reduced reliance on hunting is perceived as a threat to Am-Wiek values and lifestyles - but the increased population densities enabled by pastoralism suggests that the delicate balance of petty warfare in the Northern Kantishian will undergo significant changes in the decades to come.
Cosmology
Am-Wiek cosmology is a world of spirits, from the small spirits of mundane animals to the powerful First Spirits of legend. Most powerful of all are the World, the Sun, and the Sky Eye, the mother-spirit in the Moon which ensouled the First Spirits. Am-Wiek share their myths and oral histories through tales but also through dances and songs. Dances of the solstices and equinoxes are especially impressive, often involving the best craftmanship and dancers from several villages. The image above illustrates a traditional solstice dance, in which the Owlcat, representing the Hunt, faces off against the Ceratopsian, representing the Warrior. This dances marks the seasonal change in lifestyle: at the Winter Solstice, the Ceratopsian looses, signifying a return to peace and to the winter hunts, and at the Summer Solstice, the Owlcat loses, signifying the return to farming and warfare.
