Nahmon

Nahmon (IPA: [ˈna.mɔn]) is a humanoid species with some semi-aquatic traits and an unusual reproductive mode. They are the main inhabitants of Naiparku, and make up about 94% of its population.

Evolution
Anatomically and behaviorally modern Nahmons first appeared around 10,000 BFC, and the Neolithic transition from hunting-gathering to agriculture and settlement occurred around 1200 BFC, after the extinction-level event occurring in 1000-2000 BFC severely impacted climate in Naiparku for centuries.

Anatomy
Nahmons have long, slender fingers, with retractable webs between their four fingers and toes. They don't have thumbs, but a hardened, protruded pad at the base of the palm serves as a pseudo-thumb that is opposable to the fingers. Nahmon skin has a firm, leathery texture, with good resistance to scratches, and the skin tone is on average of a dark coppery bronze with a tinge of olive (#6C4E37). Their eyes are large, with nictitating membrane which aids them to see underwater. Nahmons are mostly hairless: a small number of the population (~7%), male and female alike, develops significant facial hair, which is often seen as an anomaly and can be the source of embarrassment, sometimes even mockery and harassment. On average, females have a larger stature than males: average height for an adult Nahmon is about 163 cm for females and 155 cm for males. Average mass for an adult Nahmon is about 65 kg for females and 55 kg for males. Average life expectancy at birth of Nahmon is 11 years (about 55 Earth years) for females and 12 years (about 60 Earth years) for males. The energy expense involved not only in conception of fetuses but also in soul imbuement is often thought to be the reason that females have a shorter lifespan than males.

Diet
Nahmon have a predominantly vegetarian diet: no animal husbandry is practiced and only small aquatic invertebrates and fishes are captured and consumed, usually raw.

Behavior
Nahmons are renowned for their stealth and agility: those are their main assets against foreign attackers and predators, which are admittedly not numerous, except for the fearful carnivorous dolphins that live in the Great Salt Channel, and sharks that roam the high sea in the Great Salt Ocean.

Reproduction
Reproduction is perhaps the most unique aspect of Nahmon biology: they reproduce through a form of ovovivparity. Nahmons reach sexual maturity and start participating in reproduction at the age of 1.5-2. After copulation, an embryo is first conceived and grows in the mother's body. After about two months, the mother would find a suitable place to construct an fetus shell on the ground with secretion, and lays the fetus in it. The fetus shell is sturdy and resistant to desiccation and predator attacks, however, most still prefer to lay their fetuses in the wetlands.

The fetus is incubated within the shell for about another 11 months before being imbued, where a soul is transferred to the fetus by its mother during a one-week process. Afterwards, the fetus completes its development at an exceptionally fast rate before finally bursting out of the shell one month after as a young, rather precocial infant, who can usually stand and walk after a day.

Usually a new soul is created by the imbuer mother during the imbuement process, but under specific circumstances, an existing soul can be transferred into a developing fetus. The transferred soul could be either of the Nahmon species, in which case the newborn is called a reborn child; in rarer cases, it can also be of another species, in which case the newborn is called a transformed child. A transformed child is usually a form of hybrid, retaining some physical or mental traits of the donor species. For example, a Re-transformed Nahmon would be more comfortable and proficiency in tree-climbing, and would have a considerably longer lifespan (~25 years).

Only females who have recently lain fetuses temporarily possess the ability to imbue a fetus, and imbuement is an energy-consuming, highly ritualized process: during imbuement, a group of males (any spouse/mates and other helpers) are usually around the imbuer to ensure constant supply of nutrition. Whereas Nahmons often start conceiving embryos soon after reaching sexual maturity, they usually wait till a later age to start imbuing souls, while waiting to acquire sufficient energy reservoir and experience. Imbuement through the creation of a new soul is more energy-consuming but requires less concentration, whereas imbuement through the transfer of an existing soul is less energy-consuming but requires more concentration, and the more experienced the imbuer is, the better the result will be. A "failed" imbuement would result in significant physical or mental defects of the newborn.

All Nahmon individuals possess a certain bond to their mother who imbued their spirit, and through some training and meditating telepathy can be achieved, allowing them to communicate without verbal language.

Kinship
Nahmon kinship relationships are constructed in a complex way due to the particularities of Nahmon reproduction. A schematic diagram showing the kinship terms can be found here. In general, the gender/sex of the relative is less important than how they are related to the speaker and their age generation. In most family there is an official pair of "spouses", but extramarital relationships, whether past or ongoing and with either sex, are acknowledged and can be even valued.

Parents

 * General term for parents: jami
 * Mother (conceiver and imbuer): napata, nana (addressing term)
 * Mother (imbuer but not conceiver): nabowan/nowan, non/nono (addressing term)
 * Mother (conceiver but not imbuer): naurwa/narwa, nwa/nwanwa (addressing term)
 * Mother (neither conceiver nor imbuer, just spouse/mate of father): muka
 * Father (conceiver): naigėt/nak, san (addressing term)
 * Father (not conceiver, just spouse of mother): hansyat
 * Father (not conceiver, just mate of mother): josat

Offsprings

 * General term for offsprings: pugam
 * Child (imbued): harėt
 * Child (conceived but not imbued): nopo
 * Child (neither conceived nor imbued, but from another mate/spouse): bwėsi

Affixes

 * Reborn child/person (one that was imbued by transferring another existing Nahmon soul): nek-
 * Transformed child/person (one that was imbued by transferring another existing soul from a different species / different sex): ruk-


 * Child before adulthood: (no affix)
 * Child after adulthood: o- -an
 * Child after first mating: sa- -an
 * Child after having conceived an offspring: ari- -dan
 * Child after having imbued an offspring: pan- dan
 * Child after having done both: shi-

Mate

 * Mate (anyone who has ever been in a relationship with the referent): oku
 * Mate (anyone who has conceived a child with the referent): gyep
 * Mate (anyone who imbued a child that the referent conceived): kach
 * Spouse (the official mate for the family): rikich

Sibling
There are different terms for siblings and cousins (including in-laws), based on the their age generation relative to that of the speaker:


 * Sibling/cousin (in-laws) (of the same age generation): yun
 * Sibling/cousin (in-laws) (of one age generation above): shada
 * Sibling/cousin (in-laws) (of higher age generations): ya-
 * Sibling/cousin (in-laws) (of one age generation below): deno
 * Sibling/cousin (in-laws) (of lower age generations): ya-/hom-

There are different terms for aunt and uncle (including in-laws), based on the their age generation relative to that of the parent to which they're related to (and which is specified by [term of aunt/uncle] kak [term/name of parent]):


 * Aunt/uncle (in-laws) (of the same age generation): jagi
 * Aunt/uncle (in-laws) (of one age generation above): tovri
 * Aunt/uncle (in-laws) (of higher age generations): ya-
 * Aunt/uncle (in-laws) (of one age generation below): ansu
 * Aunt/uncle (in-laws) (of lower age generations): ya-/hom-

Age generation
In Nahmon society, every person belongs to an age generation of 5 years in length: each age generation has a distinct "generation name", decided every five year for the newborn generation when the eldest reaches the age of five. The names of the age generations are based on a list that is mostly common to all of the estates, but with some minor regional variations, and the names are drawn from the list independently in each estate. Individuals in the same age generation are often expected to study and work together, and for the younger age generations, to live together.

Magic
Nahmon's magic system mostly revolves around their ability to imbue souls into developing fetuses, either through the creation of a new soul or transfer of an existing soul, either of a Nahmon individual or of another species, and not necessarily of the same sex to the fetus. This effectively provides them with the ability of body/sex transformation,/rejuvenescence or immortality under certain circumstances. Any individual possesses a certain bond to their mother who imbued their spirit, and through some training and meditating telepathy can be achieved, allowing them to communicate without verbal language.