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Undo revision 132669 by Witless (talk) I would not say this person is notable and shouldn't be included here - these sections aren't meant to list everyone
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LadyLameness (talk | contribs) (Undo revision 132669 by Witless (talk) I would not say this person is notable and shouldn't be included here - these sections aren't meant to list everyone) Tag: Undo |
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== Geography and Ecology ==
{{quote
|The entire landscape had an eerie feel to it, as if it were dead. Nothing moved.
Lying on the western side of continental Roshar, Shinovar is bordered to the east by the [[Misted Mountains]] and to the west by an unnamed mountain range. Multiple rivers flow through Shinovar from the bodies of water to both the north and the south. The Misted Mountains prevent Shinovar from bordering any other nations.{{map ref|Roshar}} The mountains also protect Shinovar from the worst of the [[highstorm]]s, so Shinovar experiences far more mild highstorms than the rest of Roshar. Regular storms also occur in Shinovar, particularly during the summer, and it can be difficult to tell the two apart based on strength.{{wob ref|5701}} The highstorm still recharges gems with the same amount of [[Stormlight]] despite its lower strength.{{wob ref|11482}} [[Spren]] rarely manifest in Shinovar, though that is unrelated to highstorm strength.{{wob ref|8714}}
Shinovar has a vastly different ecology from the rest of the planet, as the flora and fauna there have not the need of adapting to survival in the highstorms. Much of the ecology there is based on the plants and animals brought to Roshar by the [[Ashyn]] refugees.{{book ref|sa3|113}} The ground in Shinovar is coated with a layer of soil, making the ground feel springy to outsiders. The entire land is coated with a thick layer of grass that does not move or react to movement. The trees dotting the landscape are straight upward with leaves that do not withdraw into the trunk. {{book ref|sa1|i|4}} Plants that are known to be farmed in Shinovar include wheat,{{book ref|sa3|106}} strawberries,{{book ref|
Buildings made of clay and earth seem to be common in Shinovar, as they remind [[Szeth]] of his home in the [[Valley of Truth]]. This is motivated by the Shin's beliefs that stone is sacred and cannot be used as a building material.{{book ref|sa1|i|6}} The weakened highstorms likely make this form of building viable when it would not be in other parts of Roshar. Shinovar contains an [[Oathgate]] somewhere inside the country, though its exact location is not known.{{file ref|Oathgate Locations.jpg|Oathgate Locations}}
=== Class Structure ===
The Shin have an extremely strict social structure based on profession.
Traders and merchants are lower in status than farmers, and are required to be supervised by the latter during certain transactions, as when trading with foreigners. They wear colorful capes to signify their status, and they may also ride on horseback.{{book ref|sa1|i|4}}
{{sidequote
|Here, warriors are the lowliest of men—kind of like slaves.
|[[Vstim]] to [[Rysn]] on Shin culture
|side=right|size=300px
}}
Warriors are all viewed extremely poorly in Shin culture. To a Shin, since warriors exist only to destroy, they are far below the farmers and craftsmen who live to create, and even merchants, who trade in other's goods. All warriors are required to obey totally the person who holds their stone, voluntarily subjecting themselves into a state not unlike slavery. While a Shin warrior is able to distinguish his stone, it does not appear to be remarkable in any other way--their subjugation appears to be entirely voluntary. As a rule, Shin warriors cannot be given to outsiders, and the rules regarding the trading of warriors inside Shinovar are unknown. What is known, however, is that any person who picks up a weapon is required to take
Only the [[Truthless]] are considered lower than warriors in the Shin culture. At present, there is only one Shin Truthless, and there are not likely to be more in the foreseeable future. Truthless are exiled from Shinovar, and required to live the life of a Shin warrior outside of Shinovar. They are required to have a master, but are not allowed to seek or avoid a particular master, freely sharing information about their servitude to any who asks (assuming that a current master has not given contradictory orders). The precise nature of the offense that makes one Truthless is unknown.
{{for|Stone Shamanism}}
The Shin follow [[Stone Shamanism]]. They believe stone to be sacred and that their soul is given to the stones upon their death, where they continue to exist.{{book ref|sa1|i|6}} They consider walking upon stones to be a heresy, and derogatorily refer to those who do as Stonewalkers. The stones of [[Urithiru]] are the one exception to this, as Urithiru is a holy site.{{book ref|sa2|i|10}} Similarly, mining in stone is considered to be a heresy. Because of this, metal is very valuable in Shin territory, with the Shin preferring [[Soulcast]] metal above mined metal because of the inherent blasphemy in obtaining
=== Economy ===
|A presumably Shin greeting [[Vstim]] gives [[Thresh|Thresh-son-Esan]]{{book ref|sa1|i|4}}
}}
The Shin have their own language, which is part of the Dawnate family derived long ago from the [[Dawnchant]]. It shares grammar with other languages in the Dawnate family, like [[listener]] and [[Horneater]], but the vocabulary is vastly different because of how long ago the languages diverged.{{wob ref|3977}} Unlike languages spoken in the east, the Shin have multiple words for different kinds of [[chicken]]s.{{wob ref|1415}} The Shin language does not lend itself to simplifying words as well as the [[Vorin]] language family.{{wob ref|3978}} There is at least one written form of language, the warrior's script.{{book ref|sa1|i|6}}
== Notable Shin ==
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