Fractured Reflections

About the La Tribe

Origins

The La tribe is a mixed tribe of Seekers of the Sun and Keepers of the Moon. The original La Seekers branched from the L following the tribe's exodus from Ilsabard following Garlemald's invasion of the Kingdom of Nhalmasque. After a disagreement on where to take the tribe to safety divided them, the two Nuhns went their separate ways with their followers. THe younger of the Nuhns designated his new tribe the "La" as they were smaller in number. While they began solely as Seekers, they came to pick up the remnants of Keepers families fleeing Ilsabard. With the tribe struggling to find its place in and around Radz-at-Han, the added numbers could not be ignored. With conflicting traditions, the tribe settled on a mixed culture: It would be led by both the Seeker Nuhn and the Keeper Matriarch. Their first Nuhn remained the one who led the Seekers from the initial branch while the Matriarch was chosen between the three Matriarchs that had chosen to join their fragmented families to the tribe.

The Nuhn would continue to breed as per Seeker tradition while the Keepers would keep their family units, but the Nuhn could mate with unmarried members of the Keepers at their and the Matriarch’s consent while the Keepers would be permitted to marry into a monogamous relationship with Seekers at their and the Nuhn’s consent. A Tia married to Keeper did not exempt him from being able to seek the title of Nuhn, but none attempted the title until Toris La’hahn (born La’toris Tia) sought and succeeded the role with the support of his wife, Keirna La’hahn. Keirna, herself, was elevated to the role of Matriarch of the Keepers two years later, creating the first instance of a married Nuhn-Matriach leadership.

On Naming Conventions, and Who can be Nuhn

To keep with traditions, only children sired by the Nuhn received the Seekers’ naming. Any other child received their naming by Keeper traditions, but with La as a prefix to their mother’s surname similar to how La is a prefix to the forename for Seekers. This was due to Keepers of the Moon being Matriarchal whereas Seekers of the Sun were Patriarchal. Children in the La tribe only came about either through a union with the Nuhn or by marrying into the Keeper side of the tribe. Tia Seeker males were allowed to marry into the Keeper side as a way to have a family and children. In doing so, however, Tia males surrendered their “Tia” title as well as the “La” prefix of their given name, taking their new wife’s family name to follow their given name. Their children would then follow their mother’s Keeper traditions.
[Note: While Seeker males (males sired by the Nuhn) could marry into the Keeper families, Keeper males (males not sired by the Nuhn) could not do the opposite. Only sons of the Nuhn received the title of “Tia” and were eligible to seek the title of “Nuhn.”]

Only two complications arose over the years. The first was with La’moul Nuhn. Born La’frey Tia, he married into the Moul Keeper family. He became Frey La’moul in the process and had a daughter, Caith La’moul, with his wife. An attack on the village two years later took the young Moul Matriarch away. The attack showed Frey that the tribe had become weak, and so he challenged for the title of Nuhn. He was the first former Tia to make the challenge. The Matriarch of the time did not think his claim valid due to his marriage to the Keeper families, even though he was now widowed, but the Nuhn accepted. The Matriarch relented on the condition that Frey honor his marriage and deceased wife should he ascend. When he did, he forsook his given name in honor of his late wife and her bloodline. He was thereafter referred to only by his married name and his title, to be remembered as the “La’moul Nuhn.” He bore two daughters as Nuhn who, as a result of Seeker naming convention, took on the surname “Moul.”

La’moul Nuhn’s ascension to Nuhn set a precedent for other Seeker males who had married into the Keeper side of the Tribe. Though most who did so had little to no interest in taking on the role of Nuhn, it nonetheless opened the door and new decisions had to be made as to determinations on eligibility for the right to challenge for Nuhn. Previously, all Tia who married lost that right as they had to surrender their “Tia” title to take on their new wife’s family name. Now, all Tia would retain that right but would require their wife’s blessing prior to issuing the challenge. Only those Tia whose wife had passed on prior to the challenge (such as the case with La’moul Nuhn) would be required to alter their name in their wife’s honor upon ascension.

Thus is how La’toris Nuhn came to be, along with the second complication in naming. La’toris became Nuhn with great support from his wife, Keirna La’hahn. Her ascension to Matriarch two years later was followed within months by the birth of their firstborn, a pair of twin girls. With Keirna’s significance as Matriarch, they couldn’t ignore her right to continue her name. As such, they created a new precedent as well: In the event of a Nuhn-Matriarch marriage, all children carried by the Matriach (in this case, Keirna) would carry on her name while all children otherwise sired by the Nuhn would carry on Seeker tradition.