Telise

From Almeopedia

The Telise proper

The Telise [tɛ ˈli sɛ] race occupies the entire western half of Ereláe. It includes the Somoyi-Meťelyi, the peoples of the Rau jungle, Nan and its offshoots Moreo Ašcai and the Bekkai, and Luduyn. They are known for having thick lips and flat noses, and their skin color is reddish (rúžžue to the Verdurians), darkening to reddish brown towards the equator. Their hair color varies from black to chestnut to reddish (a good deal more red than our own ‘red’-haired people).

Linguistically, the Telisî divide into five language families:

• Western in the Rau jungle and Nan
• Ur-Kagöt in the center of the continent, itself divided into Somoyi-Meťelyi in the north and Kagöt in the south
• Mgunikpe in Luduyn and Geriŋ, in the arctic zone
• Bekkayin north of the Zone of Fire (though this region also includes some Nanese languages)
• Æzgaʔric in parts of the Rau jungle

The Téllinorese

The people of Téllinor, Jagai, and Vipodoȟ in the far west are considered— by eastern Ereláeans— to be Telisî, but could equally be classified as a separate race. They are light-skinned— indeed, their skin color is closer to terrestrial Caucasians than any other Almean race— though their features are typically Telise. Their hair is frizzy where that of the other Telisî is straight. In Vipodoȟ skin color darkens to a caramel color.

There are at least four Téllinorese language families:

• Yamda-Trêng, named for the two principal languages of the Verdurian colony; extends through much of Téllinor and the entire western coast
• Interior Vipodoȟ, spoken in the interior of Vipodoȟ
• Jagaic, spoken in Jagai and in one nation of Téllinor
• Kagöt, spoken in southeastern Téllinor and eastern Jagai

Though the distances of the Island Sea are vast, they are punctuated by islands, so that there is no great barrier to settlement even by primitive peoples. There has been some settlement westward from Téllinor and Jagai, but the main thrust has been eastward from Kereminth.

Etymology: Ver. tel ‘west’ + adjectivizing suffix. Note that Telise is a Verdurian word and is thus pronounced “teh-lee-seh”; the plural is Telisî.