Bolgia: Loredump

8- Yeddati

They are a very superstitious people, and with good reason, every couple of centuries "something" happens to them, from a disease that almost wiped out all Yeddati men in less than 2 years, to a series of marine monsters that specifically hunted them down to skin them and make clothing out of said skin, to talking birds deciding to settle in their forests just to periodically light forest fires and then leave, and more.

The Yeddati keep a record of all this via oral stories because apparently, at one point, they had it written down and had a great library with multiple wings covering mythology, architecture, etiquette, mathematics, and other such interest, but apparently, during a summer storm, somebody left a window open and freakish lighting made its way inside one the wings a vicious fire broke out, wiping out the almost totality of said books, so from that day on, the Yeddati don't write down their history.

The Yeddati are a matriarchal society, they are notorious for putting a great deal of importance on family and usually frame their extrafamilial relationship through familial bonds.

the Yeddati Pillars that guide their life can be roughly summed up as Family, Etiquette, Seniority, and general enjoyment of life.

General Yeddati connotations are:

the trademark reddish skin, whose range can vary from deep maroon to purpura and from antique pink to pale violet or lilac;

their pinky fingers share the same length as their index finger, while their middle and ring fingers are shorter;

Their lips, fingernails, eyelids, and the tips of the ears are usually a shade of green, colors and how well-defined these areas are may vary;

they present two small 'horns' sprouting under the brow almost covering the inner angle of their eyes, these 'Little Horns' are half twisted and pointing downwards, they appear almost waxy, it seems to have more in common with fingernails than with bone;

Yeddati women are generally considered tall, looming almost, impulsive, and freakishly strong. The adults cut all of the hair on their heads with a razor every morning in a ritualistic fashion, a Yeddati woman with hair uncut is considered either childish or untrustworthy, for they can't be trusted not even to cut their hair consistently, this ritual is usually performed for all their adult life but it's not unheard for old women to become laxer with the cut as they approach their dusk years, for they have earned that privilege;

children and teens are allowed to keep their hair but girls usually keep them short, until the First Cut which is the unspoken rite of passage where a girl becomes an adult and their hair is cut, the first cut is performed by a family member, usually the mother, in the intimacy of their home.

Yeddati men are lesser in number, shorter, and more slender than their counterparts, the tip of their head barely makes it to a Yeddati woman's chest and their thin frame makes it almost easy to hide behind their counterparts.

They also commonly have wavy or curly hair and do not grow beards or a significant amount of body hair.

The disease that times ago almost wiped out the Yeddati men still makes its lingering presence known, socially as Yeddati men are seen as something precious and to defend, and physically as - one out of three are either stillborn or fall tragically ill in the first years of their life, never to recover -

out of the two-thirds that survive, a number of them are born 'different', they are referred to as Guaddié which we'll discuss later.

Yeddati men are usually the homemakers of a family, caring for the children and the elderlies, Yeddati marriages are usually collective in their affairs, with commonly two or more men being the dedicated homemakers, the 'Nacari', and an undefined number of spouses.

Also, given the significant infant mortality, it's customary not to give boys names before their 6th birthday, and even after their full name is to be kept personal and in the family, until they get married and share that name with the spouses, so before their 6th birthday boys are referred as a series of 'common names' such as Curò, Nicu, Giojó and others; while after being given their full name by their Nacari, they are to be referred with a shortened version of it until marriage.

Returning to the subject of Guaddiés, they are, indeed, different to say the least; they are born without reproductive organs, backward-legged and presenting less of a mouth and more of a snout, and their skin is darkened with patches of warmer shades of color that help distinguish the individual, they are also capable limited speech and are animalistic in their interactions;

their upper bodies are thick with muscles adorning oblong arms, comparable in length to their entire body, and tipped with fingernails akin to dogs;

but in contrast to their appearance, they are usually harmless with those they know, and especially around children, they seem to show very strong parental instinct, gently guiding children home before dark and guarding them against threats;

they like to live outside, roaming in the cities and nearby, subsisting on scraps, hunting small vermin or mauling and eating alive monsters that may find their way toward settlements.

They are EXTREMELY territorial, entering their territory without being accompanied by a local or wearing a piece of clothing worn by somebody they would recognize might as well be a death sentence, for even where just one of them is comparable in physical strength, if not slightly stronger than an average person and therefore CAN be fought off...they live in packs... and they don't forget.