Knights of Ferlonia

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON VELITASIAN CUSTOMS AND CULTURE

NAMES

On the continent of Boreatica and the Velitasian peninsula, family names, or surnames, are a luxury that only noble houses can afford.

Thanks to the magic that has guaranteed an improvement in living conditions in recent centuries, there has been a significant population increase, and this has forced the Papal Curia to issue the "Baptismi Edictus", in order to solve the long-standing problem of homonyms, which, as trivial as it may seem, was crippling the legal and tax systems of every nation.

According to the edict, in each territorial district (cantons, università, communes, depending on the state nomenclature), a name can be given only once and cannot be used again as long as the individual to whom it was given is still alive. The only exception are the first-born sons of first-born sons, who have the right to inherit the name of their paternal grandfather or grandmother before their death. There is also the right of exclusivity: when a name has been used for the first time in a family (or fuoco), there is the possibility to keep it even after the death of that member, so that it can be reused for newborns who have a blood relationship with the ancestor who bore that name.

Districts can have a maximum of ten thousand residents, therefore the most populous cities are made up of several districts, generally defined on the basis of the city's neighborhoods (e.g. in Leapoli the districts are Torre Mordelle, Torre Castagna, etc.).

In this way, by indicating the name and district of origin, it is possible to uniquely identify each baptized individual.

When addressing someone who lives within the same district as you, to give more formality to the conversation you can use the interlocutor's paternal name instead of the name of the district of residence (e.g. Viryl, son of Yustass).

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KNIGHTLY EPITHETS

Regarding names, a separate discussion must be made for knightly epithets, which knights choose in preparation for the Adoubement. For Knights of the Order of Ferlonia, an epithet consists of a noun and an adjective. Possessing an epithet is in itself a sign of prestige, and the most boastful knights demand that their name always be followed by their epithet. Therefore, it can be said that the epithet itself, once assigned, becomes an inseparable part of the knight's name, sometimes even after retirement.

The general rule is that an epithet is never changed, but there are two exceptions. The first is that a knight who is the firstborn son of a knight may inherit his father's epithet when the latter ceases to use it. The second is promotion to the High Table of the Order or the Table of the Sixteen of the Crown.

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NUMISMATICS

Each state has its own mint, and the value of a coin relative to others has a fixed value, based on the amount of precious metals used to forge it. In Ferlonia the highest value coin is the Gold Ducat, in the League the Zecchino, in the Signoria of Fierubini and in the Lazulian Patrimony of Classia the Fiorino.

For the purposes of the story, the currencies of Ferlonia and the League of Free Communes will be particularly important, therefore I report the following equivalences:

1 gold ducat is equivalent to approximately 0.923 zecchini and 0.917 fiorini
1 gold ducat = 10 silver ducats = 100 carlini = 1200 grani = 2400 tornesi = 14400 cavalli
1 zecchino = 10 lire = 200 soldi = 2400 denari = 9600 quartaroli

A denaro/tornese has roughly the purchasing power of two pounds of flour, or half a liter of milk, and a night's lodging at an inn has a median price of three carlini. A knight of the Order of Ferlonia at the beginning of his career, when he does not yet have access to the low table, excluding compensation for assignments, has a base salary of about forty silver ducats (or four gold ducats). As one progresses through the Order, one can reach stratospheric monthly salaries: one of the Sixteen of the Crown earns up to sixty gold ducats per month. How much the honorary fee of the three Knights of the King corresponds to, however, is a mystery.

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CALENDAR

The current Lazulian calendar preserves the structure of the old Classian calendar, divided into sixteen months of equal duration. However, the names and holidays change, since they are no longer dedicated to the False Gods of the Classian Pantheon, but to the Zefiriana liturgy.

In order from the first month, which marks the beginning of the spring season, the months are: Inflorescence, Zefiricus, Germinaticus, Tetrestes, Harvest, Arsicus, Novella, Laurentinus, Ennestes, Caducicus, Funereus, Dodrestes, Silificus, Neviticus, Pendecrestes, Termina.

The months all have a duration of 25 days, except for four (i.e. Inflorescence, Novella, Funereus, Silificus, that are called "festive months") which have a duration of 28 days.

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HISTORICAL PERIODS

History is divided into three periods:

* A.C. - Ante Classia (a few millennia, from the appearance of writing to the foundation of the city of Classia)
* C.I. - Classiae Imperium (MCXLII years, that is 1142, from the foundation of the city of Classia to the fall of its empire)
* P.C. - Post Classia (we are currently in the year 973 after the fall of Classia)

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ORBUS' SATELLITES

Orbus has four satellites: Luna (the white moon), Estenore (the smallest, which in turn orbits the white moon), Ascurpice (the green moon), Coronice (the black moon).