Vinland (An Honorable Retelling)

Republic of Vinland ᚱᛁᛒᛘᛅᛚᚠ ᛅᚾ ᚢᛅᚱᚾᚴ Timeline: An Honorable Retelling
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Vinland (An Honorable Retelling) Location of Vinland (green)
Capital (and largest city)		Straumfjörður
Official languages		Vinlandic
Demonym		Vinlandic
Government		Unitary parliamentary constitutional republic
-	President	Sibbe Gormdottir
-	Prime Minister	Reinn Ormsson
Legislature		Mannþing
Population
-	2022 estimate	1,900,627
Currency		Vinlandic króna (kr‎)
Drives on the		right

Vinland (Vinlandic: ᚢᛅᚱᚾᚴ), officially the Republic of Vinland (Vinlandic: ᚱᛁᛒᛘᛅᛚᚠ ᛅᚾ ᚢᛅᚱᚾᚴ) is a nation situated of the coast of Columbia. It lacks land borders, but it has maritime borders with Canada and the United States. The nation is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic and their republican constitution dates back to 1685, making them one of the continent's oldest republics.

Etymology

Vinland was the name given to part of Columbia by the Icelandic Norseman Leif Eriksson, about 1000 AD. It was also spelled Winland, as early as Adam of Bremen's Descriptio insularum Aquilonis ("Description of the Northern Islands", ch. 39, in the 4th part of Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum), written circa 1075. Adam's main source regarding Winland appears to have been king Svend Estridson, who had knowledge of the "northern islands". The etymology of the Old Norse root vin- is disputed; while it has usually been assumed to be "wine", some scholars give credence to the homophone vin, meaning "pasture" or "meadow". Adam of Bremen implies that the name contains Old Norse vín (cognate with Latin vinum) "wine" (rendered as Old Saxon or Old High German wīn): "Moreover, he has also reported one island discovered by many in that ocean, which is called Winland, for the reason that grapevines grow there by themselves, producing the best wine." This etymology is retained in the 13th-century Grœnlendinga saga, which provides a circumstantial account of the discovery of Vinland and its being named from the vínber, i.e. "wineberry", a term for grapes or currants (black or red), found there.

Satellite view of Vinland

Geography

Vinland is roughly triangular, with each side being approximately 500 kilometres (310 mi), and having an area of 108,860 square kilometres (42,030 sq mi). Vinland and its associated small islands have a total area of 111,390 square kilometres (43,010 sq mi). Vinland extends between latitudes 46°36'N and 51°38'N. Vinland is primarily characterized by having a subarctic or a humid continental climate. Locations on the extreme southeast of the island receive sufficient maritime influence to qualify as having a subpolar oceanic climate. The Terrevinian Epoch that begins the Cambrian Period of geological time is named for Terre Vin (the French term for Vinland)

Demographics

According to a census taken in May of 2022, Vinland has 1,900,627 inhabitants, most of whom reside in major settlements. Vinland has a majority of Norse and Celts descendent individuals with Eastern Europeans in second followed by North Africans. Just over 60% of Vinlanders are practicing Waldensians and attend mass once a month whilst Islam and other Christian sects hover at about 10% each.

Vinland ranks very high in regards to fertility rates and average age with the Vinlandic males expected to reach 82.3 years of age and the women 84. 62% of Vinlanders have a college degree or an equivalent.

Karlsefni Catsle in central Straumsfjörður

Major settlements

The biggest settlement in Vinland is the capital of Straumfjörður which has around 450.000 inhabitants followed by Leifsbær (156.000), Nýhöfn (125.000) and Þórðarvík (110.000). The rest of the population is scattered among smaller towns and burghs as well as some farmers living in the countryside.

History

Vinland was long inhabited by indigenous peoples of the Dorset culture, the Beothuk, who spoke the now-extinct Beothuk language.

Viking Kingdom

Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson was the first man who is confirmed to have reached the coast of Vinland and doing so at the turn of the millennium 1000 A.D. He landed in Leifsvík where he settled with his family before sending word of his discovery back to Greenland and Iceland where many subsequently settled across the Isle. One of those settlers was Thorfinnur Karlsefni who, along with his wife and slaves settled in Straumfjörður. In 1010 Leifur called for a meeting of Vinlandic chiefs, akin to the Icelandic Alþingi. There he was proclaimed king of Vinland, he would reign for 22 years and having outlived his children the Chief would proclaim another king at that summer's Þing thus establishing a tradition of elective monarchy.

Leifur I "The Lucky"

In the summer of 1044, King Baldur of Bresanes received Christian emissaries from Iceland and had every chief present baptized thus bringing Christianity to Columbia. Between 1050 and 1073 ships to and from the Icelandic Commonwealth stopped due to an Icelandic famine which resulted in increased emigration to Vinland during the 1090s which brought the new Icelandic, having diverged from Old Norse. In the 12th century the first dynasty was established when descendants of Thorfinn Karlsefni held the throne for a century and a half keeping the seat of power in Straumfjörður which became the capital from there on.

Absolutism

In 1447, Frederick of Luneburg had heard of Vinland from Icelandic fishermen and with the blessings of his father he asked for an early inheritance and sailed for Vinland. Reaching Vinland in 1451 he built the first University and brought great many books and after the passing of King Jóhannes II in 1457, Frederick was chosen as his successor becoming King Friðrik Lúnborg. By the end of the century House Lúnborg had secured the throne and were proclaimed perpetual leaders in 1500. Friðrik IV Atli declared nation Lutheran in 1546 in order to continue good relation with other Nordic Powers. From 1549 until 1555, the nation successfully quelled an invading native force from the east which ended up in the expulsion of the few remaining natives from the remote parts of the island.

1558 was the first year without a Þing and the year after King Jóhannes III began to hold a sizeable court which became more and more exclusive and began to dictate policy until a small group of nobles which almost never left Straumfjörð held the island's future in their hands. In 1614, the country waged war with Denmark-Norway who hoped to put the island under Danish rule and thus have an established foothold in the Fjernkyst Bay. the Danes would not sign a peace deal until 1621 when they conceded defeat in the Treaty of Lúnborg. In 1634, Garðar I died with any heir and after a short-lived state ran by a Pastoral Council, a republic was to be declared.

Republic

Lúnborg Castle

The Lúnborg castle was converted to a parliamentary office and in the summer of 1645 a manifest was published by a selected group of men which declared a Republic led by a government give a mandate every other year which itself was led by a triumvirate made up of "Landmestarinn" (Landmaster), "Sjómeistari" (Seamaster) and "Æðsti Erindreki" (Chief Diplomat). Vinland's independence and style of governance served as a major inspiration for the eventual revolutions in Mexica and the United States, which avowed to establish similar republican structures. In 1780, the triumvirate was abolished and the singular office of President was created.

After 30 years of a presidential republic, Mannþingið decided to elevate the position of head of state and create the office of prime minister as the head of government. During the 1840s, Vinland stood behind Canadian independence actions, supplying resources and naval assistance in the successful uprising. During the 19th century Vinland, with the help of Canada, the United States and to a lesser extent Iceland, was able to industrialize to an acceptable standard and flourish. This was also the time that diplomacy began to focus on Germanic nations to reconnect with the ancestral homeland.

Modern history

As the 20th century began, party politics exploded in Vinland with various groups and organizations founded their own parties, not only to represent their interests but for personal power as well with politics becoming a more respectable way to establish your name. The early half of this century would be dominated by the Bændaflokkur who prioritized infrastructure and the wellbeing of small on metropolitan people whilst also wanting to boost international trade. Soon the Lýðræðisflokkur would be founded and by 1925, having gained most of the metropolitan vote, they became a serious force within the government culminating in 2 decades of back and fourth between them and the Bændaflokkur leading Vinland.

Vinland during the 20th century held an isolationist view with most parties having it as a part of the foreign policy. Vinland voted to suspend all trade to warring nations in their Neutrality of Vinland (Hlutleysi Vínlands) declaration in 1920 in response to increased pressure from Denmark-Norway to lower prices during the Third Great War, this would be broken in 1983 in order to support the pro-democratic side during the Transoxian Civil War. The outrage following this action, breaking a cornerstone of Vinlandic foreign policy over a War in a Far Away Country led to the then-ruling Lýðræðisflokkur being ousted in the following election. While Vinland does maintain embassies or consulates in foreign countries they make it known that they will move away in the event of a war.

After the turn of the 21st century, the nation moved to more political extremism with the Þjóðernissinnar and the Engelískiflokkur have both been able to form a majority government between the years of 2002 to 2006 and 2010 until 2013 respectively. An debate was held in 2015 on whether Vinland should apply to join the European Community as an observer state but feeling it an unnecessary devaluation of Vinlandic neutrality the public reject the motion in a national referendum.

Politics

Vinland is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic with a prime minister whom is chosen by a coalition of parties with a majority of seats in the Mannþing. The parliament has 75 electoral districts with most of them being situated in major urban areas although some are based on old chiefdom which attended the Old Þings. After a government has been formed by having at least 38 seats pledge their allegiance to a coalition then a cabinet is agreed upon as well as a leader of the opposition. Since 1946 no person has held 2 cabinet position at the same time and though not expressly forbidden it has become standard practice to not engage in such decision.

Parties

As of the 2021 parliamentary elections, there are 5 active parties in the Mannþing, 3 of those are currently members of the government having 45 seats put together, those parties being in Italics.

• Lýðræðisflokkur fólksins: Founded in 1912 by the merging of several political wings of trade unions following Vinland's urbanization, this party was the most left-wing party in Vinland up until the mid 1960s. In the early 1980s, they absorbed 2 dying parties and thus became more moderate but still retain their trade union ideals and have been behind most of the country's left-wing policies.
• Hinn Engelíski flokkur: This party was created following the mass influx of moderate liberal into the Lýðræðisflokk and took up the banner of philsopher Friedrich Engel and adopted his extreme left-wing views as their own. However the party wouldn't reach the Mannþing until the 2007 election having been a fringe, rebellious party until then.
• Bændaflokkurinn: This is the oldest active party in the nation having been founded in 1832, the party have always held on to their agrarian values and their beliefs in building infrastructure throughout the island. This party is socially centrist but during the 20th century often worked alongside or displayed socially conservative values.
• Íhaldsflokkurinn: This party is the biggest right-wing party active in parliament, the party has a brand of moderate conservatism with focus on a strong fiscal policy. Founded at the turn of the 20th century most by merchants and factory owners to ensure unified representation in government and a say on tariffs.
• Þjóðernissinnar: This party represents ultra-nationalists in Vinland and has offered to so since 1946, having been founded in the likeness of the party of Benito Mussolini. The party promotes closed borders and reviews on the statuses of immigrants. The party spent time of their history as a violent militia before fielding candidates for elections in the early 1960s.

Head of state

Vinland also has a President whom acts as a head of state and is elected by direct will of the people every 5 years. Upon announcing their intention to run for President the individual has officially renounced all previous political afflictions and is running as an independent candidate. There are no set term limits to the office but no-one has ran for a seventh term as of yet. Should no candidate meet the requirements to run against an incumbent then an election isn't held, this happens most often during an incumbents 2nd election.

Economy

Vinland has 2 major industries, petroleum and fishing. These industries have undergone some government acquisition in order to keep revenue within Vinland, there is a private sector but since 2005 those companies have been required to pay the government directly in lieu of taxes to avoid tax fraud and offshore tax payments.

Faxi being towed out to Mikli Bakki.

Oil production from offshore oil platforms on the Svartakra, Hvítrós and Nýlands oil fields on the Miklu Bakka was of 110 million bbl (17 million m³), which contributed to more than 15 per cent of the nations's GDP in 2006. Total production from the Svartakra field from 1997 to 2006 was 733 million bbl (116.5 million m³) with an estimated value of $36 billion. This will increase with the inclusion of the latest project, Faxi. Remaining reserves are estimated at almost 2 Gbbl (320 million m³) as of December 31, 2006. Exploration for new reserves is ongoing.

The fishing industry remains an important part of the provincial economy, employing roughly 20,000 and contributing over $440 million to the GDP. The combined harvest of fish such as cod, haddock, halibut, herring and mackerel was 92,961 tonnes in 2017, with a combined value of $141 million. Shellfish, such as crab, shrimp and clams, accounted for 101,922 tonnes in the same year, yielding $634 million. The value of products from the seal hunt was $1.9 million. In 2015, aquaculture produced over 22,000 tonnes of Atlantic salmon, mussels and steelhead trout worth over $161 million. Oyster production is also forthcoming.

Culture

Hallgrímur Pétursson

Vinlandic culture is the successor to the Icelandic culture, Iceland being so influenced by Scotland has lost the elements of Old Norse culture and language that survived in Vinland. Vinlanders are classified as Germanics and their literature after the Era of the Sagas are mostly similar to those of Germany. Vinland culture from the 1550s until 1900 was also heavily influenced from Lutheran Protestantism, this includes venerations of the Blessed Virgin Mary and psalms. Their most influential writer and Theologian was Hallgrímur Pétursson, Bishop of Lúnborg who translated the Psalms into Vinlandic and wrote some of the nations classical literature.

Films

The Vinlandic film industry produced its first film in 1921 with an adaption of Hallgrímur Pétursson's 1641 novel Djöfullinn í Dalnum (The Devil in the Valley). During the 1930s, the first movies were written independent of previous works. Vinlandic films were seen as gritty and with dark themes up until the 1960s, when stories of settlers and Vikings became popular. In 1962, a soap-opera called "Landnemar" (Settlers) began with the premise of 6 families settling in a fictional Vinlandic valley and is still producing seasons to this day. In 2012, the film "1010" was released portaying the events of the first Mannþing, the film won 3 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Music

A 17th century copy of the Passíusálmar

Early Vinlandic music was comprised of Icelandic kvæði (Poems or Lays) kept through oral traditions which told the stories of the old norse gods, mythical Germanic stories like Atlakviða (about Attila the Hun) and cultural traditions like how to treat a guest, choose friends and behave. Between the years 1656 and 1659 Hallgrímur Pétursson wrote the Passíusálmar (Passion Hymns), a collection of 50 hymns, published in English and Latin, they were the most popular Lutheran texts written in the 17th century and popular among Catholics.

In modern times, Vinland has adopted every European trend since the beginning of the 20th century but Europop has remained popular since the 1980s in spite of the rise of hip-hop and house music. Musical talent is fostered by the Vinlandic government with every child having to learn to read notes and basic flute playing from the ages of 6 to 9, after which parents can apply for grants to pay for lessons on another instrument.

Sports

In Vinland, 3 sports dominate the scene, Handball, Association Football and Hockey. Athletes in the top flights of these sports are professionals and are able to do sports as a fulltime living. The Government, like with music, gives parents the ability to apply for grants to pay for participation in sports. While attendance and funding is not on par with the men's games the women's leagues have grown during the past 20 and attendance is increasing and has less fluctuation.

Football

Karlsefni leikvangur, where the national teams play their home games

Vinland's first association football clubs began playing amongst eachother during the 1890s with Knattspyrnufélag Straumsvíkur being founded in 1887. The island's oldest competition, the Vinland Cup, began in 1899 and is played between every registered club. A football pyramid was created in 1910, initially it had 2 divisions but currently has 3 divisions with non-league teams playing to join it. In 1970 the League Cup was started played between clubs in the top 3 divisions. The top teams, or cup winners, of the top league play in UCFA Champions League or Columbia Cup. The winner of the Top flight and the winner of the Vinland cup, if that is the same team the second place team in the league takes that spot, compete at the start of the following season for the Sigurbikar. The Vinlandic national team was organized in 1912 but did not win a game until 1923 in a friendly against Henryland. Vinland first qualified for the 1986 IFF World Cup, they qualified for the following 2 tournaments but have only qualified 2 since (2006 and 2014). Their best showing was in 2014 reaching the quarter-finals against eventual winner Italy. Vinland compete in Copa Columbia qualifiying first in TBD and having won the competition in TBD and TBD. The women's team was drafted in 1978, the team can generally be considered more successful than the men's having 1 IFFW World Cup and 3 Copa Columbia.

Handball

European Handball is the second most popular sport in Vinland, though not popular in Columbia Vinland's top flight of handball is a professional won, with 3 other regulated division. They also have the Milk Cup and Super Cup to compete for. Vinland's club compete amongst the European clubs in continental competitions because of Columbia's lack of teams. The sport became popular in the 1930s as a winter alternative to Football. They have a strong national team having won the FIHA World Cup 3 times, and UCHA Champions 7 times with extra 2 olympic gold medals.

Hockey

Unlike the European style of Handball and Football the Hockey league, like the NHL, has a set number of team with no relegation. The Vinlandic Hockey League was founded in 1928 with the national cup coming 12 years later which allows amateurs and non-league teams to compete. The Vinlandic national team has been active since the 1904 Olympics and is generally considered to be above average with their highest world ranking coming in 1992 when they claimed their only Olympic Gold and thus reaching 3rd.