Kesh
| File:Orthographic-Kesh.png | |
| Area |
20,827,906 km sq (12,941,860 sq mi) |
|---|---|
| Population | 2,186,505,918 |
| Population density | 104.97/km2 |
| Demonym | Keshian |
| Countries | |
| Dependencies |
Dependencies and overseas territories by country
|
| Languages | Akitei, Andalusian, Arabic, Ardumnikel, Arki, Bakanese, Basque, Berber, Eastern Ramayan Standard, Farsi, Guoyu, Gwandi, Heibanese, Jungastian, Ki-Kongo, Kochinkel, Parsi, Namay, Nanwen Guanyu, Qi, Ramayan, Tanateoe, Goetian, Thalassian, Tiberican, Tiberico Mixto, Tipsprek, Wuenhua, Yahabesha, Yeosani, Yuenese |
Kesh is a landmass comprising mainland Kesh and the islands of the West Tethys Ocean. It has a total land area of 20,827,906 square kilometres (12,941,860 sq mi), making it the second largest continent in Anterra, covering 28.3% of the planet's total land surface area. The continent borders the Iapetus Ocean to the west, the Hyberian Ocean to the south, the Tethys Ocean to the east, and the Eurybian Sea to the north.
Geographically, Kesh is home to the world's largest mountain range, reaching the Tethys Ocean on its easternmost side, and the Jungastian Sea on its westernmost. The North Kesh Mountain Range runs across 17 countries, with its highest point, Mont Blanc, acting as the tripoint between Beifang, Kodeshia, and Alva. The mountain range is the direct result of the convergence border between the Eurybian and Kesh plates, and the rivers flowing from the peaks of its western side create the West Kesh Basin, the largest in the world, which flows into the Iapetus Ocean, and expands across 7 countries. A smaller mountain range exists in the southern portion of the continent, running across the South Kesh peninsula, and acting as the main geographical division between the states of South Kesh and Naga to the west, and Nanwen and Prabhat to the east. The rivers flowing from these mountains, combined with the those flowing across Cagayan from the North Kesh Mountain Range create the second largest river basin in the continent, which flows into the South Kesh Bay.
The North Kesh Mountain Range also acts as the primary climate divisor of the continent, with the land to its north being dry and arid, characterized by Hot Desert (BWh) and Hot Steppe (BSh) climate zones, which cover most of the area. The region only becomes more suitable heading into Jungastian and Bakanese territory. South of the mountain range, the continent's climate becomes significantly more humid, with the primary climate zones being those of Tropical Rainforest (Af), Tropical Monsoon (Am), and Tropical Savanna (Aw, As). This region is home to the second largest contiguous Tropical climate zone in the planet, after that of central Avalonia. Because of its distance to both poles, Kesh is, on average, the warmest continent of Anterra.
Administratively, Kesh is divided up into 37 sovereign states, and 11 overseas territories or dependencies, of which Kodeshia is the largest in both size and population, at half a million people. Nations from Avalonia and Artemia hold dependent territories within Kesh, with the largest of these being southern Komishima, a dependency of Tiperyn. Jungastia, Akiteiwa, and Kodeshia are the only Keshian countries to have overseas territories, with Jungastia holding lands in Avalonia as well as the Tethys and Iapetus oceans. The remaining foreign powers with presence in the continent are those of Agrana y Griegro, Mero-Curgovina, SiWallqanqa, Samotkhe, and Chezzetcook. Kesh is home to three regional organizations and one global, these being the Kesh-Tethys Economic Cooperation (KTEC), Sanqing, the Southern Kesh Economic Cooperation Organization (SKECO), and the Collective International Security Treaty Organization (CISTO).
Although the name "Kesh" is used to encompass the different array of nations that exist on the continent, it's oftentimes regarded as a geographical concept more so than a cultural one. This is due to the continent's cultural diversity within its territory, and the significant regional isolation throughout its history. Keshian countries have subsequently been the ones to least influence other continents, making much of the region's cultures and languages unique to this region of the world.
Geography
History
Many of the world's first civilizations developed in the rich river valleys and coastal plains of the periphery of Kesh. In Sindhustan, the Ramaja civilization developed in the Sonasindhu River Plain; in Kodeshia, the earliest stages of Ying'guo civilization developed on the banks of the Changan River. As these civilizations grew, developing large-scale agricultural communities that later grew into cities and adopting hierarchical societies as the population grew, technological innovations such as writing, mathematics, and the wheel arose as trade networks eventually spread across the vast expanses of the continent, linking these civilizations together. These trade networks were the ancient precursors to the Silk Road.
One of the most important technological innovations during this time was the production of bronze from smelting its original copper and alloying with tin, leading to a period known as the Bronze Age, which is typically characterized by the development of bronze, writing, and urban society as well as the expansion of trade networks in early civilizations. The Bronze Age is said to have lasted c. 3000-1200 bce in the Middle East; c. 3000-1200 bce in the Sindhustani subcontinent; and c. 2000-300 BCE in Kodeshia. In Sindhustan, the development of bronze is linked with the Hamalshanbe Civilization in the Sadehrud River Valley and the Ramaja Civilization in the Sonasindhu River Plain, which at its height reached four million inhabitants before its collapse.
While the central steppes of Kesh, many of which lie in the Sadehrud River Valley in Sindhustan and in the plains of Guurdalai were home to settled, agricultural societies that developed on the banks of major rivers that provided narrow corridors of fertile land in grassy, windswept steppes; they were largely home to nomadic horsemen who entered in and out of the historical record, separating from more ancient civilizations by the vast deserts and mountain ranges that provided a geographic barrier. Throughout Keshian history, many of these nomadic horsemen would play a large role in the history of the continent as they came to conquer many of the settled societies that they were once isolated from, establishing long-lasting states that would change the history of the region.
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