Lesser-Known Peoples of Tamriel III: The Ildringr or Island Nords

Off the shores of Hammerfell there are many islands. The smallest are uninhabited, but the larger ones are home to varied and colourful communities. The relative isolation of island life has led these peoples, mostly of Redguard extraction, to form unusual and highly localised cultures and any one of them would be worthy of discussion here. I have, however, chosen to describe what to my mind is the strangest island society of all- that of the Ildringr or Island Nords.

The origin of this race is shrouded in mystery for reasons that may become clearer as I continue. I hypothesise that they are descended from a Nord raiding fleet that chose to settle in warmer, sunnier climes in eras past. I have heard claims from them, however, that their forebears sailed directly from Atmora, and while their distant kin settled the first lands they found in the frigid north, one ship carried on sailing and found its way to these waters. Whatever the truth of the matter they have lived on their island (‘Ildring’) for centuries at least, and their culture has begun to diverge from that of Skyrim in a striking manner.

Physically they resemble their northern kin in most respects. Men and women both are tall and broad-shouldered, with booming voices. The sun has tanned their skin, although they are still much fairer than the Redguards they trade with on occasion. Many have a ruddy complexion, which they call “Magnus’ Curse”, and they wear broad-brimmed hats as they farm, fish and attend their orange groves. A red face and shoulders are considered a sign of honest labour. Both sexes shave their heads, and men trim their beards short, with some of the more dandyish locals plaiting seashells into their facial hair. They live in houses built from stone and meet in longhouses, where they roast enormous birds and hold bardic contests in which contestants must create new songs and stories on themes of the audience’s choosing. Common themes are sea-raiding, drunkenness and tales of brave children.

Their society is organised very strangely and is, as far as I am aware, unique in all the world. Youth is venerated on the island, and the ruling Chaal Council comprises entirely of young adults, none older than twenty-six at the time of my visit. The wisdom and experience of elders is held to be less important than the vitality and insight of the young, so older islanders serve the council merely in an advisory capacity. The small warrior class, the Tanas, is similarly youthful, and they carry out occasional raids of nearby islands that are perceived as being part of the Ildringr domain. Very young children are treated as priests, daubed with colourful pigments and bedecked with flowers, and much significance is gleaned from their earliest words and questions. Priest-Leader/Warrior-Farmer is the normal progression of life on Ildring.

The reasons for this strange approach to governance may be found within the native religion. In an inversion of what may be seen elsewhere, the Ildringr venerate not their ancestors but their descendants. They hold the belief that each generation is more physically and spiritually sophisticated than the one before, and that all of history is a constant process of renewal and improvement. They predict a time, far in the future, when all mortals will have ascended to the level of the gods and a new era of enlightenment will blossom across creation. This sunny outlook is underpinned by a need to constantly reinvent the old and discard anything that may foster nostalgia- for them a dreaded spiritual sickness. If someone dies in a house, that building is torn down and a new one built. The old and infirm, rather than burdening their families, will often choose ritual suicide by poisoning. They believe this destruction and renewal is repeated on a divine scale, as a great serpent periodically rises from the seas on a tidal wave to scour the land and wash it clean. When the waters recede, only the good things of the old world remain.