Ruulran Social Hierarchy
Ruulran society encodes social rank directly into personal names by means of suffixes. A name’s final letters broadcast one’s station at a glance and are enforced by custom and law. The royal house sits above all others; below it are the aristocratic houses, then the learned, then the commoner castes. Outside the system entirely stand those who have renounced all suffix and citizenship.
1.1 Tiers & suffixes
A) Commoner strata — suffix -il
- Tharil — “Land-tied.” Agrarian peasantry and general laborers.
- Drökil — “Mineral Workers.” Trades tied to ore and stone (miners, smelters, related crafts).
The -il ending is intentionally ubiquitous; most Ruulrani bear it. This makes common status immediately legible while keeping higher ranks linguistically rare.
B) Learned strata — suffix -in
Those recognized for scholarship, engineering, or magic.
- Mialin — “Thinkers.”
- Thaelin — “Seekers of Knowledge.”
C) Aristocracy — three noble lines by suffix
- Ruulrix — “God’s Voice.” -ix
- Vethax — “The Prideful Ones.” -ax
- Tharnri — “Eternal Lineage.” -ri
D) Royalty — reserved highest ranks
- Ruuldren — “God’s Ruler.” -dren
- Vithdron — “Death’s End.” -dron
- Orridraks — “Light’s Might.” -draks
These suffixes are legally protected and mark direct members of the royal house and its recognised cadet branches.
1.2 Marriage & inheritance (suffix descent)
- In mixed-rank marriages, children inherit the suffix of the lower-ranked parent.
- The same rule applies even when one parent is royal; as a result, royal unions are tightly controlled to avoid diluting succession.
- This custom broadly discourages “marrying down” and helps keep ranks “pure.”
1.3 Renunciation & outcast status (Na’vortha / Na’vorthæ)
Some Ruulrani renounce any suffix at all, placing themselves outside the hierarchy. This condition has a formal name in Ruulden:
- Na’vortha (sing.) / Na’vorthæ (pl.) — “of no tribe” (na “without” + vortha “tribe”).
- Form: carries no suffix.
- Standing: not a Ruulrani citizen.
Rights & restrictions of a Na’vortha
- May reside in Ruulran, take lawful employment, and even serve in the military (typically as rank-and-file).
- Forfeit all civic privileges of citizenship:
- No entry to holy sites (Sanctums and other sacred buildings) and no service within them.
- Cannot own land or property; may not purchase real estate or hold tenures.
- No passport or cross-border travel rights; only suffix-bearing citizens may apply for emigration papers, leaving many Na’vorthæ trapped within Ruulran’s borders.
- Marriage to a Na’vortha is deeply shunned. Children of any union involving a Na’vortha are born without a suffix, irrespective of the other parent’s rank—consigning them to the same rightless status.
Example: Irian renounced his aristocratic suffix entirely and became Na’vortha; his former style “Irianix” (-ix) is historical only.
1.4 Names in use & address
- Outside Ruulran, Ruulrani still read social origin from the final letters of a name.
- Formal address commonly uses title + given name for nobles; commoners are addressed by given name unless office or profession warrants more.
- Royal names always retain their protected suffixes in formal address.
- Na’vorthæ are addressed by given name only; any attempt to append a suffix is considered an insult or a legal fiction.
1.5 Quick reference
| Stratum | Label | Gloss | Suffix |
| Commoner | Tharil | “Land-tied” (peasantry, labor) | -il |
| Commoner | Drökil | “Mineral Workers” (ore/stone trades) | -il |
| Learned | Mialin | “Thinkers” (scholar/engineer/mage) | -in |
| Learned | Thaelin | “Seekers of Knowledge” | -in |
| Aristocracy | Ruulrix | “God’s Voice” | -ix |
| Aristocracy | Vethax | “The Prideful Ones” | -ax |
| Aristocracy | Tharnri | “Eternal Lineage” | -ri |
| Royalty | Ruuldren | “God’s Ruler” | -dren |
| Royalty | Vithdron | “Death’s End” | -dron |
| Royalty | Orridraks | “Light’s Might” | -draks |
| Outside system | Na’vortha / Na’vorthæ | “Of no tribe” (renounced; rightless) | — |
1.6 Glossary (select Ruulden forms)
- na- — privative prefix “no, without.”
- vortha — “tribe, kin-group.”
- Thar- — “land, soil.”
- Drök- — “ore, mineral.”
- Mia- — “mind, thought.”
- Thae- — “knowledge, lore.”
- Ruul- — “god, divine.”
- Veth- — “pride.”
- Tharn- — “lineage, bloodline.”
- dren / dron / draks — royal morphemes associated with rulership, endings, and might.
7.7 Demonyms & ethnonyms (usage & language)
Common (Directian) usage
- Ruulrani — the standard demonym for any person from Ruulran, regardless of species (Elvenkind, Humekind, Landlings, etc.).
- Adj. “Ruulrani” (e.g., Ruulrani law, a Ruulrani emissary).
Ruulden usage
- Ruulden prefers a relational phrase rather than a compact demonym:
- y’ie nai Ruulran ya — “I am of Ruulran.”
- y’ie “I,” nai “of/from,” ya copula.
- y’ie nai Ruulran ya — “I am of Ruulran.”
- When a compact form is unavoidable in Common, use Ruulrani; in Ruulden speech, keep the nai Ruulran construction.
Ethnonym vs. demonym
- Ruul’yun (“God’s Children”) is the ethnonym for Elvenkind everywhere, not a national demonym.
- Using Ruul’yun to mean “a person from Ruulran” is archaic and subtly biased. Modern texts should reserve Ruul’yun for species/people-group and Ruulrani for nationality.
Outside the system
Na’vortha / Na’vorthæ (“of no tribe”) indicates renounced, suffixless status, not a demonym. A Na’vortha may be of any species formerly within Ruulran society but stands outside its civic body.