Deverry Cycle - Cultures and Peoples

Cultures and Peoples

Though much of the story takes place within the kingdom of Deverry, there are several other cultures which also occupy the world of Annwn.

Westfolk

Also known as Elcyion Lacar ("Bright Spirits"), and as elves, the Westfolk are a tribe of nomadic horse herders that live on the grasslands west of Deverry. They are a refugee population, originally from a set of seven cities farther west; the cities were destroyed about a thousand years before the present-time period of the novels by marauding Horsekin. Their term for themselves is Impar, the People. Elves are humanoid, with an affinity for the element of Air and a certain degree of natural psychic talent (all elves can see the Wildfolk). Elves can be recognized by their pointed and furled ears, and by their eyes, which have catlike irises. They also have an extended lifespan, with five hundred years being the norm, heal faster than humans, and only begin aging shortly prior to their death. They have a low birth rate (consistent with their extended lifespan). This last is an ongoing problem for the Westfolk, for whom the stresses of a nomadic existence mean a death rate due to accident, illness, and old age that outpaces their replacement birthrate. Elves are cross-fertile with humans and offspring are fertile with both humans and elves. Half-elves tend to look more human than elven, though they may have some muted elven traits, such as slightly sharp ears or strange eyes. Inheritance of other standard elven traits by half-elves (the ability to see the Wildfolk, sharpened eyesight, the ability to see in the dark, better than normal health and healing speed) is random, with different half-elves inheriting a different mix of traits. Inheritance of the elven lifespan by half-elves is also unpredictable. Half-elves typically have a much longer lifespan than humans (on the order of centuries) but generally a shorter lifespan than full elves; rate of apparent aging varies, with some half-elves showing gray hair within their first century and others showing no sign of age after nearly two. The Westfolk are in fact one of three elven populations that are shown during the course of the series.

Bardek

Though Deverrians refer to this southern archipelago as if it were a single country, it is in fact a collection of independent city states. Bardekians, who have much darker skin than Deverrians, consider the Deverrians barbarians. Many Bardekian city-states have a semi-democratic system of government, much like Classical Athens. Their medical skills are valued highly. There are oblique suggestions in the novels that Bardek, like Deverry, was settled by people from our world, and Kerr has flatly stated online that they are descended from Hellenized Moors.

Mountain Folk

Living in the mountains north of Deverry, the Mountain Folk, or dwarves, are short but stocky. Like the elves, they have a significantly longer lifespan than humans and are cross-fertile with them (although Kerr has indicated that elves and dwarves are not directly cross-fertile with each other); they likewise share the elven ability to see in the dark. Their elemental affinity is Earth and they have a predilection for metals, metalworking and other crafts. There are two different dwarven populations, both of which live in cities that are partially or primarily underground, and which make use of artificial and natural caves and tunnels. In the larger of these two populations (Dwarveholt, centered around the city of Lin Serr), dwarven women remain underground for the entirety of their existence. Dwarven culture emphasizes thrift ("Thrifty as a dwarf" is a common saying in Deverry) and takes debt and obligations of all types very seriously. They distrust the Elcyion Lacar, considering them to be thieves. Connected with the dwarves is a remote and sparsely populated city, Haen Marn, which travels through space and possibly time. To enter, one must first find it, then use a boat to travel through its river's strong current, then ask for entry. The water contains mysterious monsters.

Guardians

The Guardians are spirits who dwell in one of the higher planes. Though they were meant to incarnate like all other souls, they somehow “stayed behind.” Most have no sense of individuality. Some Guardians have great magical prowess, most notably Evandar who is responsible for bringing the original human settlers of Deverry from our world to Annwn. The Guardians are known as the Færie in “our” world, with their two main divisions known as the Seelie (led by Evandar) and Unseelie (led by his “brother”) Hosts.

The Rhiddaer

To the north and west of Deverry is the Rhiddaer, or Freeland, which is occupied by the descendants of escaped bondsfolk (serfs). Riddaer folk, who speak an archaic-sounding dialect of the Deverrian language, refer to the people of Deverry as “The Slavers.” They have a democratic system of government, headed by an elected Chief Speaker.

Horsekin

A large and hairy humanoid species which possesses a strong psychic talent which manifests as animal empathy. They are responsible for the destruction of the former elven civilization having been pushed out of their own homelands by the humans when they arrived in Annwn. They are referred to by the elves as 'meradan' (demons) and also as Hordes. Because one of their cultural practices is to eat the flesh of their own dead, the Horsekin were struck with a cholera-like plague which almost completely destroyed their population. The survivors abandoned the elven cities and constructed new settlements nearby. The term “Gel da’Thae” refers to civilized Horsekin that live in these settlements, while the term “Horsekin” in its stricter sense refers to the uncivilized tribes that dwell on the high plains north of the Rhiddaer, who have a culture extremely different from those living by the elven ruins, and who are considered barbarians by the city-dwelling Gel da’Thae. The more savage Horsekin hate the Elcyion Lacar and Guardians, while the civilized Gel da’Thae revere some of the Guardians as gods and consider the Elcyion Lacar the “children of the gods.” In later books the term “children of the gods.” is replaced by the term “Ancients.”

Dwrgi

Introduced in the penultimate volume after some brief foreshadowing in the previous work is another species that provides an elemental affinity to Water. Dwrgi appear to be shape-changers, able to shift from human (or near-human: their features as described hint at their alternate form, since their hair is particularly short and thick and their brows low) to otter-like form. There are at least two tribes or communities of them, loosely allied. In “our” world, they, or creatures very similar to them (seals instead of otters), appear in legends as the Selkies.